Casa Milan: the Rossoneri find a new home

AC Milan recently moved its headquarters to the Portello neighbourhood adjacent to Fiera Milano City, the location where it intends to build its new stadium.
The modern and functional new headquarters was, in the words of the club’s CEO Barbara Berlusconi, “built to welcome all fans who want to find out more about our history”. In the official press releases, she continues: “Our history is not the past, it is the way we have chosen to face the future. It is entertainment and passion.” Casa Milan, the name chosen for the building in Via Aldo Rossi, is a 9,000 square metre development created by architect Fabio Novembre as part of a broader renovation and expansion project for the club.
The new headquarters is located in one of Milan’s largest squares, a 25,000 square metre space created as a venue for celebrating the club’s sporting achievements. A giant screen mounted permanently on the building’s façade projects iconic images from the club’s history and airs major sports events. Inside, the building hosts the new official Milan Store, an approximately 500 square metre experience store divided into two functional areas dominated by five bright red sculptures of sprinting figures. It sells books about the club, its history and famous personalities, legendary shirts from the past and present, the team’s official kit, merchandising and exclusive souvenirs. Accessible from both the museum and the square, it also sells tickets to all AC Milan matches held in the San Siro stadium.
The 450 square metre Cucina Milanello restaurant, open from 8 a.m. to midnight, offers guests the chance to enjoy fine food while watching AC Milan matches and other major international sports events on strategically placed screens. The architect chose ceramic tiles from Lea Ceramiche for the coverings of some of the surfaces, opting for two collections with a textured effect that blends in perfectly with the modern style adopted throughout the building. The floors in the office space (a total of 3,500 sq.m including meeting rooms and business areas) feature concrete effect tiles from the Metropolis collection, a line available in 7 different colours combining both warm and cool tones. The surfaces in the Rossoneri’s new official store are clad entirely with ultrathin (3.5 mm) Gouache Slimtech panels in an imposing 3 x 1 metre size, also from Lea Ceramiche, which serve to highlight the various merchandising areas. Large-format laminated porcelain panels from the Gouache Slimtech collection are also used in the 500 square metre restaurant, where they combine outstanding functionality with a high level of sustainability. The red and black theme also features on the façade. “Just as the buildings of the past were inspired by figures of saints or powerful men, here it is the images of moving players that emerge from the angled façade,” explains the architect. “The underlying message is that football is more than just a sport, it’s an educational tool and a symbol for union and growth. To emphasise the power of the message, the façade is decorated with concentric red and black bands that appear to propagate like a shockwave capable of engulfing the entire city.”