Rummenigge: ´Italian football is in trouble´

Bayern Munich CEO Karl-Heinz Rummenigge has provided Serie A clubs with the Bundesliga’s recipe for success.

The German claims that a lack of supporting infrastructure has resulted in Italian teams having to sell their star players for profit.

It was notably the case with the departures of Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Thiago Silva to Ligue 1’s Paris Saint-Germain from AC Milan in the off-season.

“Italian football is in trouble, but I’m sure they will be able to manage this crisis,” Rummenigge said.

“German stadiums are always full because we implement a social policy to keep our tickets affordable to the poor, being as low as seven euros with Bayern.

“The international success of the Allianz Arena suggests municipalities in Italy must understand the importance of modern stadiums for public football.

“Although I’ve read the Milan teams have been criticised, I believe they are on course to balancing wages and offering young players a chance.”

Italian champions Juventus notably failed to sell out their stadium on its inauguration into the Champions League against Shakhtar Donetsk due to disputes over ticket prices.

AC Milan and Inter have been plagued by dwindling numbers of season ticket holders in recent years.