:format(webp)/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/24348829/20130712_ajw_ae4_160.0_standard_783.0.0.jpg)
D.C. United and Inter Milan both announced today that the two clubs will be entering into a collaboration agreement, "which will include the sharing of team, organizational and competitive best practices." This would seem to be a formalization of what many of us assumed would happen, that D.C. United could learn of the way that Inter Milan operates both on and off the field. Even before this deal was announced, D.C. United seems to have been taking advantage of it: United COO Michael Williamson has taken a trip to Milan to exchange ideas and learn from the executives in Milan.
What we still do not know, of course, is whether this collaborative agreement will lead to any players being loaned from Inter Milan to D.C. United. Obviously, this would be one of the better parts of the arrangement and would give D.C. United a higher quality place to look for young players. With the issues that the team has had with identifying young foreign players over the past few years, having another set of eyes who have already looked at this players would be helpful. Without that kind of relationship, or other tangibles, today's announcement is barely news.
I am sure that more details will spill out about the particulars of this deal over the coming months, and we will keep you informed of them as they do.
