AC Milan (a) – A guide of the San Siro

I recently made the trip to Milan with three key objectives. Watch football, Drink beer & Eat Pizza. This article will show how I got on, you can use the table of contents to navigate to areas of interest.

The Game Experience

It was Saturday 27th January 2024. AC Milan are set to face Bologna at the San Siro. The cold air was whistling around the stadium, there was a strong smell of pyrotechnics and The Rossoneri were making themselves heard.

We arrived at the stadium 2hrs before kick-off to soak up the atmosphere and explore the various food & merchandise stands. The almost freezing temperatures didn’t appear to deter any of the locals from arriving early to get a few pints in them before the game.

There was an abundance of food vans and plenty of merch stands, if a half-and-half is your kind of thing… (if you do buy a half-and-half scarf and you are over the age of 12 you need to give ya head a wobble).

The game finished 2-2 with plenty of talking points which I will explore later in this article. As I write this introduction I hope this article will portray how good an experience visiting the San Siro was.

The San Siro

One word, that’s all that’s needed – ‘Spectacular’.

For a stadium that’s foundations were built 100 years ago, it really is a site to behold. The history, the architecture, and sheer size was mind-blowing for my little brain. We walked down the Via Simone as as you turn the corner the magnitude of the ground just blows you away!

Who knows how long the San Siro will remain standing after plans were announced that both AC Milan & Inter Milan have their own desires to own separate stadiums in the city. One thing is for sure it won’t be around forever so I highly recommend any football enthusiast goes and experiences it before it closes.

The Game

The Game itself was rather eventful, 4 goals, 2 missed penalties, and 2 red cards! What more could you ask for?

There was a fast pace to the majority of the game with AC Milan, as expected, dominating possession. However, early on it became clear Bologna would be a big threat on the counter with Zirkzee proving to be the focal point of their attack.

It was the away side who struck first after Zikzee finished from a tight angle following a penalty box scramble which saw 4 attempts in 8 seconds.

Following a few chances AC Milan were then awarded a penalty as the game approached half-time. However, despite Giroud’s impressive record from the spot, his rather weak effort was easily saved by the opposing GK.

To the relief of the Rosaneria fans, they were able to find an equaliser just 3 minutes later after a cross found its way into the path of Loftus-Cheek who perfectly timed his run to poke home from 6 yards out.

-Half Time-

Bologna came out from the second half with another good 5-minute spell, but before long the tide turned back in the home side’s favour. Despite several good opportunities and even rattling the woodwork, they hadn’t really tested the Bologna goalkeeper. However, he was called upon again when Theo Hernandez stepped up to take another penalty after being fouled in the area. His big frame seemed to be enough to put Hernandez off as his effort hit the bottom of the right post.

8 minutes later it was Ruben Loftus Cheek who again put the ball in the net as he met Florenzi’s cross to head the ball home. The game looked dead and burried as we headed into the final minutes. But, the drama, a last-minute VAR penalty was awarded & the subsequent spot kick was scored, which saw Orsolini slide the ball under Maignan from 12 yards out.

2-2 final score.

San Siro Tour

The day prior to the game, we paid out €30 for a Stadium & Museum tour. The Museum showcases the very best artefact’s from games gone by at the San Siro stadium. From Messi & R9’s shirts to old flood light bulbs, they had the lot. You are given approximately 25 minutes to explore the museum taking in all the information about key games and moments through history.

We were then taken out of the museum and headed through the stadium’s main entrance before being taken into a corridor where the players walk down as they head to their changing rooms. It’s also where Journalists can ask questions and take photos as the players arrive on game day.

Once we had stopped for a quick photo and fake interview you are guided into the AC Milan changing rooms. We spent 5 minutes or so here as the tour guide explained the reasoning behind the layout and fittings while also including various interesting facts and pointing out where players sit.

We then headed out of the AC Milan changing room and headed further down the corridor to the Inter Milan changing room. Again we spent 5 minutes or so in the Changing room before heading down the tunnel and out next to the home bench.

Because both AC Milan & Inter Milan play at the San Siro the Stadium staff have to change the branding throughout the stadium between each game – this looks like a mammoth task as they change every last detail!

You are then taken up to a higher viewing point before walking around half the stadium and heading into a gallery of the stadium’s history.

If you do find yourself in Milan I would highly recommend doing the stadium tour.

About the trip & Useful Information

We flew to Milan Malpensa (MXP) the day before the game and returned home the day after.

Once we landed we headed out of the airport and got on one of the many buses to Lotto which dropped us off 5 minutes from our hotel, the ‘Hotel Montebianco’.

The Hotel was a 15 minute walk from the stadium and was also about a similar time walk from the City Life Shopping Centre, a 25 minute walk from Sempione Park & a 50 minute walk from Milan Cathedral.

Tickets to the game were purchased 2 weeks before the game when they went on general sale, we paid €19 for each ticket.

As mentioned above we got to the stadium approximately 2 hours before kick-off, we then entered the ground a little over 1hr before kick-off. If you are planning on going to an AC Milan game remember to take your ID with you, this caught us by surprise but thankfully we both had our UK Driving licenses which they seemed happy enough to accept.

The food in the ground is fairly basic and where we were seated they only served Heineken, this better be some licensing agreement they have otherwise they are seriously off the mark with their selection of beer.