Football clubs ready to block data used for betting if no more money is given. The possibility of having the betting sponsors on the shirts is being evaluated. According to what Tobia de Stefano reports on Verità&Affari, the first summit between Lega Calcio, the Ministry of Economy and the competent ministry, that of Sport, led by Andrea Abodi, should be held today. At the center of the discussion is the possibility of "transferring" a significant portion of the turnover that refers to the universe of sports betting into the world of football.
The Football League will ask Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti (Mef) for changes. “Today it sells the rights of the clubs (those that refer to live data, statistics, news and real-time processing) to betting companies for around 40 million euros. The point is that without these rights the betting system would not exist, a system that guarantees the State revenues in the millions. Just to be clear, in 2022 the overall collection in Italy for sports betting was 18,7 billion euros, of which 13,1 billion were played on the "ball". Not only. It is very clear - reasons those who ask the Minister of Economy for an effort - that football with its events represents the main driver of betting, that is, it also exponentially increases "bets" on other sports, as noted the existence of a European resolution that recognizes a percentage of the turnover for the use of the brands and the event where bets are placed".
There could be two possible paths.
A door to the classic withdrawal model. A percentage of the total betting business is established which is then passed on to the League and then to the clubs. The mechanism had been tested during Covid, but is considered very risky due to the unknown recourse.
The other path leads to a relaxation of the Dignity decree wanted by the Conte government. For example, only the logos and sponsorships of betting companies on the field and training uniforms or on electronic billboards at the stadium could be readmitted, leaving the ban on actual marketing initiatives unchanged. In this way, an overall turnover would be reopened which is calculated at between 500 and 600 million.
