FORMER Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi agreed Friday to sell soccer team AC Milan to a consortium of Chinese investors, ending his three decades of ownership of the seven-times European champions.

    Berlusconi’s Fininvest family holding said it had signed a preliminary agreement valuing the club at 740 million euros (US$818 million) including 220 million euros of debt.

    The Chinese investors, whose identity had not been disclosed during three months of negotiations, included development and investment fund Haixia Capital and Li Yonghong, chairman of management company Sino-Europe Sports Investment Management Changxing, the statement said.

    It added that there were other companies involved in the deal, some of which are controlled by the Chinese State, but gave no further details on their exact identity.

    Last month, a source said that private investment firm GSR Capital, with its co-founder and Chinese dealmaker Sonny Wu, were among investors but the Fininvest statement did not mention either.

    Chinese investors with cash to spend have been pouring money into soccer, as President Xi Jinping, a soccer fan himself, looks to make the country a global force in the sport.

    On Friday, a group called Yunyi Guokai (Shanghai) Sports Development Ltd., controlled by businessman Guochuan Lai, agreed to buy English Premier League club West Bromwich Albion.

    China’s food and beverage packaging products company ORG Packaging Co. Ltd. also said it planned to acquire a 60 percent stake in French second division club AJ Auxerre for 7 million euros.

    Once the AC Milan deal goes through, it will mean both of the city’s soccer clubs are controlled by Chinese investors.

    In June electronics retailer Suning Commerce Group Co. Ltd. agreed to buy nearly 70 percent of city rivals Inter Milan for 270 million euros in what was the highest profile takeover of a European team by a Chinese firm.

    The deal is due to be closed by the end of the year.(SD-Agencies)