Associazione Calcio Milan were founded as a cricket club in the late-1890s by British expats. The club are now known by their easier-to-remember name "AC", and have retained the English spelling of their city's name, rather than translate it to Milano. The Italian pronunciation is MEE-lan, but the local northern Italian dialect more resembles the English way of pronouncing the word.
AC are one of the world's true footballing giants, up there with Barcelona, Manchester United, and Real Madrid. They have won 18 different international titles, a healthier record than any other club in world football. AC have swept the UEFA Champions League (formerly the European Cup) on seven occasions (with only Spanish giants Real Madrid winning it more times, nine. A.C. Milan is the second most successful club in Italy, boasting 17 Serie A league titles, after Juventus, who have won an astonishing 27. They have also won the Intercontinental Cup/Club World Cup no less than four times, the most recent coming in 2007, when Brazilian star Kaka, along with team-mates Inzaghi and Gennaro "Snarling Dog" Gattuso, beat Argentina's Boca Juniors 4-2.

AC Milan's stadium, the San Siro, has a breathtaking 85,700 capacity, and is officially known as Stadio Giuseppe Meazza. The stadium is named after a former player of both AC Milan and Internazionale. The district of Milano where the stadium is located is called the San Siro district. They share the stadium with Inter Milan, another huge football club in the glamorous city. The fantastic atmosphere in the San Siro is famous for its riotous nature, partly due to the proximity of the stands which loom over the pitch and are a source of noise, smoke, and rampant calamity. The smoke is given off by flares which the AC fans are particularly fond of, and the sight of a full stadium of Milan fans is one you shouldn't miss if you ever get to that corner of northern Italy.