Sino-Europe Sports President Yonghong Li assured that "we’ve identified an alternative investment structure" if the Chinese government delays the purchase of Serie A side AC Milan, according to FOOTBALL ITALIA. The deal was supposed to be completed this month, but the consortium was "forced to delay" until March as it was "not permitted to move the money out of China." Li said, "I'm sorry for the fans who, quite legitimately, wanted the sale to be done quickly. But it's right that it's like this, the [Supercoppa] final was achieved by the previous ownership and it's only right for them to experience it and hopefully win it. ... The delay? In China, every investment in foreign countries is subject to approval by Chinese regulators. Recently the authorities announced new regulations on investments abroad, and that applies to deals announced before they were made public, as is the case in the acquisition of Milan by SES." He added, "At this point SES isn't allowed to hold any equity in Milan." Despite the problems with the investment, Li "insisted that the money is there, and there are backup plans in place." One of the "worrying" aspects of the deal is that "no-one appears to know the name of the potential investors," and Sino-Europe’s president would not be drawn. Li: "Unfortunately we can’t give any more information on that issue until the closing, and in fact an early disclosure would complicate an already delicate process for obtaining the necessary authorizations" (FOOTBALL ITALIA, 12/22).
