AC Milan and Inter Milan have formally presented joint architectural plans for a modern 71,500-seat home that will lead to the demolition of the historic Stadio Giuseppe Meazza, widely known as the San Siro. Revealed on Thursday at the Castello Sforzesco, the project marks a significant step forward for the two Italian football giants, who have secured a naming rights agreement with Italy’s largest insurance firm to brand the facility as the Generali Stadium.
The public briefing drew immediate protests, with Inter supporters gathering in the castle courtyard to unfurl a banner declaring that the lights at San Siro will never be extinguished, accompanied by chants demanding that authorities keep their hands off the iconic venue. Despite the opposition, club officials and the project’s lead architects pressed ahead with details of the sweeping development.
Designed by architectural firms Foster + Partners and Manica—whose previous collaborative and individual portfolios include Wembley Stadium in London, the Chase Center in San Francisco, and Lusail Stadium in Qatar—the new arena centers on a distinctive oval footprint. The structural frame will be composed of 80 massive diamond-shaped elements supporting a double-curved roof. These diamond structures are engineered to provide exterior glimpses into the facility while offering sweeping views of the city from the interior concourses.
The stadium will rise to a height of 60 meters at either end behind the goals, a specific design choice honoring the traditional home of the hard-core supporters known as the curvas. Architect Norman Foster noted that the stadium’s low body rising up at the extremes directly responds to the physical placement and cultural energy of the fans. Architect David Manica emphasized that the San Siro is fundamentally a feeling rather than merely a physical building, stating that the design aims to capture that same spirit in a new structure.
Raised upon a structured podium, the venue will incorporate parking, club stores, and a museum underneath. The interior features a 360-degree bowl split across two tiers, a notable reduction from the three rings of the San Siro. Seating inclinations will reach up to 37 degrees, positioning spectators so close to the turf that Manica remarked it will feel as though fans are sitting directly on the grass. The acoustic engineering has been specifically calibrated to trap and amplify crowd noise, minimizing external sound disturbance while maximizing internal atmosphere.
The exterior facade will feature customizable colored LED lighting and projection capabilities. Beyond football fixtures, the venue is intended to host concerts and major public events.
Construction is tentatively scheduled to begin in 2028, with the opening match targeted for the 2031-32 season, aligning with Italy’s co-hosting of the 2032 European Championship alongside Turkey. However, Inter president Giuseppe Marotta expressed caution last year, warning that historically slow Italian bureaucratic processes could threaten the timeline. During construction, both clubs will continue playing at the San Siro before the historic ground is mostly demolished, having been built on an adjacent parking lot within a broader development footprint covering approximately 281,000 square meters.
The proposal follows years of abandoned efforts, including two sets of plans presented in 2019 that ultimately stalled amid public debate and regulatory hurdles. The land purchase agreement for the San Siro site has been valued at €197 million, equivalent to $226 million, while Milan president Paolo Scaroni indicated that total construction investment will exceed €1 billion. Financial projections suggest each club could generate up to €180 million annually from the new venue—representing more than double their current revenue of approximately €80 million—boosted by non-matchday tourism, stadium tours, event hosting, and the Generali naming rights deal.
