Four-time Italian prime minister, current Monza president, and former Milan owner Silvio Berlusconi has passed away at age 86. He was hospitalized Sunday for scheduled checkups, but his condition quickly worsened. He had been battling with chronic myelogenous leukemia and other illnesses. He spent 45 days at the San Raffaele clinic due to pneumonia in recent months, La Repubblica informs.
His sons Paolo, Marina, Barbara, and Eleonora rushed to the facility Monday morning as things started to turn for the worst. The entrepreneur, most known for founding the broadcasting company Mediaset, helmed the Rossoneri for 31 years since February 1986.
Berlusconi was one of the winningest presidents in the history of football. During his years, the club took home eight Scudetto, five Champions League, one Coppa Italia, seven Supercoppa Italiana, two Intercontinental cups, five UEFA Super Cups, and one Club’s World Cup. He lifted 29 total trophies. He was instrumental in putting together iconic squads, for instance, the one led by Arrigo Sacchi, whom he hired while he was still largely unproven.
The tycoon created the political party Forza Italia and won the general election in 1994. He presided over three separate governments considering his ensuing turns from 2001 to 2006 and from 2008 to 2011. He was a senator and a part of the majority supporting the current cabinet.
Berlusconi sold Milan to Chinese businessman Yonghong Li in 2017. Roughly a year later, he took over Monza, which was in the third division at the time, and led it to their historic first promotion to Serie A in the span of five seasons along with his longtime collaborator Adriano Galliani. The Brianzoli comfortably avoided relegation in the recent campaign.
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