Former AC Milan owner Silvio Berlusconi will return to Italian football by buying third division club Monza.
Berlusconi, 81, sold his controlling stake in Milan for €740 million last April after 31 years at the San Siro, saying a single family could no longer bear the costs of running a leading European club.
He will now purchase Serie C club Monza, the city in which his main residence is located, through his Fininvest company with the aim of taking them into Serie A within two or three years.
"Fininvest has today finalised the purchase of 100 percent of Societa Sportiva Monza 1912," a Fininvest statement to ANSA said.
Former Monza owner Nicola Colombia will remain president, while Berlusconi has appointed Adriano Galliani, his right-hand man at Milan, as general manager.
Monza have won their first three games of the season and are favourites for promotion to Serie B this year.