The reason AC Milan acquired Luka Modric is strictly related to merchandise sales.
A big name like his generates a lot of sales and huge revenues.
I'm always curious where people get this data from. I've heard similar cases where a club signs a player from a specific country as a backup option, yet some claim it's for merc sales. How do you even track that?
If it's older players, I think signing for his experience/dressing room leadership makes more sense compared to merc sales (unless the sales volumes are incredibly high and verifiable).