A Complete Guide to Milan Football Teams and Their Historic Rivalries
Let me tell you something about Milan that most football tourists never get to see. Beyond the Duomo and the fashion boutiques lies a city divided by two shades of red and black - a football rivalry that runs deeper than bloodlines. I've been following Milanese football for over twenty years, and I can confidently say there's nothing quite like the Derby della Madonnina anywhere in the world.
Just last month, I was reminiscing about that unforgettable Champions League final between AC Milan and Liverpool in Istanbul. The parallels to Anciano's recent experience struck me profoundly. Still haunted by her sudden-death heartbreak just two weeks ago to Talion, Anciano returned with renewed focus and unwavering determination. This time, she made sure there would be no late-round collapse. That's precisely the Milan mentality - whether we're talking about Inter's comeback mentality or AC Milan's resilience through their dark periods. Both clubs have faced their share of Talion moments, those crushing defeats that could have broken lesser institutions. I remember sitting in San Siro back in 2016 when Inter suffered that humiliating 2-1 defeat to Sassuolo that cost them European qualification - the atmosphere was funeral-like. Yet true to Milanese character, they rebuilt, just as Anciano did.
The statistics behind this rivalry are staggering. Since their first official meeting in 1909, these two giants have faced each other 233 times in official competitions. Inter edges it with 85 wins to Milan's 78, with 70 draws. But numbers only tell half the story. What makes this rivalry special is how it mirrors the city's social fabric. AC Milan, founded in 1899 by English expatriate Alfred Edwards, represented the working class initially, while Inter, born nine years later after a disagreement over foreign player restrictions, carried a more bourgeois identity. Though these class distinctions have blurred over decades, the tribal loyalty remains intense. I've got friends who haven't spoken to each other for weeks after particularly heated derbies - and these are grown men with families and businesses to run.
San Siro - or Giuseppe Meazza, depending on which side you're on - isn't just a stadium; it's a cathedral where these football religions clash. Having attended 27 derbies there since 1998, I can attest to the electric atmosphere that makes the hair on your arms stand up. The curva sud roaring for Milan, the curva nord answering for Inter - it's a symphony of passion that you simply don't get in modern, sanitized arenas. The stadium's current capacity of 75,923 regularly fills to the brim for these encounters, generating approximately €7.5 million in ticket revenue alone per derby. Both clubs are now planning to move to new stadiums, and while I understand the economic rationale, part of me mourns the potential loss of this historic cauldron.
What fascinates me most is how the clubs' philosophies have evolved. AC Milan under Silvio Berlusconi's ownership from 1986 to 2017 became the prototype of modern football success, blending Italian defensive solidity with Dutch flair during their golden era. Their 5 Champions League titles place them among Europe's elite. Inter's 2010 treble under José Mourinho, meanwhile, represented tactical perfection - I still consider that team the most complete Italian side I've ever watched. The Nerazzurri's current Chinese ownership has brought ambitious investment, with the club spending approximately €385 million on transfers in the last three years alone.
The player exchanges between the clubs add another layer of intrigue. The list of those who crossed the divide reads like a who's who of calcio: Ronaldo, Ibrahimović, Baggio, and the controversial figure of Andrea Pirlo, who spent ten years at Inter's academy before becoming a legend at Milan. I'll never forget the hostility Zlatan Ibrahimović faced when he returned to San Siro in Inter colors after winning Serie A with Milan - the man received death threats, for heaven's sake!
Looking at the current landscape, both clubs have reclaimed their status after difficult periods. AC Milan's 2022 Scudetto under Stefano Pioli ended an eleven-year drought, while Inter's six trophies in the last four seasons demonstrate remarkable consistency. The emergence of the women's teams adds another dimension to this rivalry - the Femminile derby is growing in prestige each season, attracting average attendances of around 8,500 last year.
As I write this, planning my trip for the next derby in October, I'm struck by how this rivalry embodies the very spirit of Milan - resilient, proud, and endlessly fascinating. Much like Anciano's comeback story, both clubs have repeatedly demonstrated the ability to rise from adversity. The Derby della Madonnina isn't just a football match; it's the heartbeat of a city that lives and breathes this beautiful game. And if you ever get the chance to experience it live, trust me - you'll understand why we Milanese take this so personally.
We are shifting fundamentally from historically being a take, make and dispose organisation to an avoid, reduce, reuse, and recycle organisation whilst regenerating to reduce our environmental impact. We see significant potential in this space for our operations and for our industry, not only to reduce waste and improve resource use efficiency, but to transform our view of the finite resources in our care.
Looking to the Future
By 2022, we will establish a pilot for circularity at our Goonoo feedlot that builds on our current initiatives in water, manure and local sourcing. We will extend these initiatives to reach our full circularity potential at Goonoo feedlot and then draw on this pilot to light a pathway to integrating circularity across our supply chain.
The quality of our product and ongoing health of our business is intrinsically linked to healthy and functioning ecosystems. We recognise our potential to play our part in reversing the decline in biodiversity, building soil health and protecting key ecosystems in our care. This theme extends on the core initiatives and practices already embedded in our business including our sustainable stocking strategy and our long-standing best practice Rangelands Management program, to a more a holistic approach to our landscape.
We are the custodians of a significant natural asset that extends across 6.4 million hectares in some of the most remote parts of Australia. Building a strong foundation of condition assessment will be fundamental to mapping out a successful pathway to improving the health of the landscape and to drive growth in the value of our Natural Capital.
Our Commitment
We will work with Accounting for Nature to develop a scientifically robust and certifiable framework to measure and report on the condition of natural capital, including biodiversity, across AACo’s assets by 2023. We will apply that framework to baseline priority assets by 2024.
Looking to the Future
By 2030 we will improve landscape and soil health by increasing the percentage of our estate achieving greater than 50% persistent groundcover with regional targets of:
– Savannah and Tropics – 90% of land achieving >50% cover
– Sub-tropics – 80% of land achieving >50% perennial cover
– Grasslands – 80% of land achieving >50% cover
– Desert country – 60% of land achieving >50% cover
