The globally renowned consulting firm AlixPartners published a report in the Italian media outlet Calcio e Finanza, which highlights that from the 2018-19 season to the 2022-23 season, the overall trend in Serie A has been one of significant salary reductions.
In the early part of this century, the major Serie A teams were primarily controlled by the wealthiest Italian entrepreneurs (or politicians), who invested substantial sums of money to achieve sporting objectives, driven by their love for football and concern for local prestige. However, in recent years, there has been a large influx of overseas capital into Serie A—much of it from fund-based investors—which has led to an overall shift towards cost-cutting measures, including salary reductions.
Over the period from the 2018-19 season to the 2022-23 season, Serie A as a whole achieved a 15% reduction in salaries. Juventus saw its wage bill drop from €301 million to €255 million, a cut of 15%, making them the team with the highest absolute reduction. Nonetheless, the Bianconeri remain the highest-paying club in Serie A by a considerable margin.
AC Milan reduced their wages from €169 million to €149 million, a decrease of 12%. Roma’s payroll decreased from €165 million to €154 million, a reduction of 7%. Napoli saw a 20% decrease, going from €132 million to €106 million.
There are only two exceptions to this trend: Inter Milan increased their wage bill from €163 million to €197 million, an increase of 21%, making them one of the few clubs to have raised salaries during this period. Similarly, Atalanta’s wages rose from €54 million to €77 million, an increase of 42%.
These two teams, due to their “counter-cyclical” approach, experienced two notable outcomes. Firstly, they have enjoyed good results; Inter has won the Serie A title twice in recent years, captured several Coppa Italia and Supercoppa Italiana titles, and reached the UEFA Champions League final. Atalanta, meanwhile, secured their first-ever European trophy. Additionally, over the past five years, these two clubs have been among the top sellers in the transfer market, with Inter generating €471 million from player sales, ranking second in Serie A over the same period, and Atalanta earning €399.8 million, placing third. The underlying reason for these strategies lies in their revenue generation capabilities, which cannot support the financial pressure caused by wage increases.