Share This Article
The Serie A is exerting pressure on the Government to amend the terms of the gambling advertising ban, enabling the sponsorship of football teams by betting and gambling operators in Italy.
The ban has become a major issue for Italian football teams, which now find themselves deprived of a significant source of income that was previously generated through sponsorship deals. With the Italian government having removed a major tax discount that Italian football teams benefited from to acquire foreign players, the Italian football association is now seeking:
- The softening of the gambling advertising ban, allowing for the sponsorship of football teams.
- The allocation of a portion of the proceeds generated by the sports betting sector to the football association.
Indeed, prior to the enforcement of the so-called Dignity Decree, which established the Italian gambling advertising ban, football teams were generating revenues in the range of €100 million per year from the gambling sector, which were suddenly lost.
The Italian football association is now advocating for at least a suspension of the ban for two to three seasons. This would allow gambling and betting operators to become jersey sponsors and to display their logos on advertising boards situated at the sidelines of football pitches. However, other types of advertisements and marketing initiatives involving football players and coaches would remain prohibited.
This issue had previously arisen during the pandemic, leading the Government to approve an additional temporary betting tax, which is currently the subject of significant disputes. Consequently, it is possible that football clubs might be satisfied with a mere temporary waiver of the ban.
A reduction in the scope of the Italian gambling advertising ban could be in the general interest, as it would permit soft marketing communications like sponsorship agreements. Simultaneously, it would better justify the considerably higher fees requested from online gambling and betting operators under the terms of the new tender for Italian licenses.
On the topic, you can read the following article “Draft rules on the award of new Italian online gambling licenses“.
