The Italian Football Federation (FIGC) is urging the government of Prime Minister Mario Draghi to temporarily lift the ban on betting sponsorships and sports betting advertising to allow the industry to recoup losses from the pandemic.
Italian football teams have circumvented the law in markets outside of Italy.
The ban was imposed in January 2019. It encompasses commercial marketing, product placements, distribution of branded items and influencer marketing. FIGC is asking for a minimum two-years lifting of the ban to allow the industry to recover.
Meanwhile, the prime minister wants to shrink the industry and has threatened to decrease the number of gaming licenses from 85 to 50 by 2023.
This prompted the European Gaming and Betting Association (EGBA) to ask for an explanation from the European Commission.
FIGC President Gabriele Gravina commented on the sponsorship ban: “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.”
