Italian Football Federation calls for suspension of betting sponsorship ban

The Italian Football Federation (FIGC) calls for the temporary suspension of the country’s betting sponsorship and advertising ban in order to allow the sports sector to recoup lost earnings.

A total ban on all forms of betting advertisements was applied in Italy in January 2019; but now the FIGC is calling for the ban to be temporarily lifted for a minimum of 2 years, until June 2023, and permit gambling sponsorship in football to allow the financial recovery of the sector.

Furthermore, Federcalcio has also suggested the creation of a Football Savings Fund, also with an end date of 30 June 2023. This would mean that 1% of all online and in-person sports bets in Italy would be sent to a national fund managed by the FIGC, with the goal of financing football projects throughout the country.

FIGC president Gabriele Gravina stated: “We are at a crossroads; we must act quickly to prevent the professional football crisis from obliging the clubs to block their activity, thus bringing the entire sports sector to its knees, the companies of the 12 product sectors connected to it and the entire country system, with an undesirable decrease in direct and indirect tax contributions".

“We did not ask the government for refreshments, rather to recognise the socio-economic importance that football has through the adoption of some urgent measures to relieve the clubs from the crisis generated by Covid-19. Football can play a decisive role in Italy’s overall recovery,” he also added.

Despite the ban, Italian football teams have been able to partner with companies in other markets outside of Italy and all deals signed prior to the implementation of the prohibition were allowed to reach their agreed-upon conclusions.