Seria A, the League doubles commercial revenues

Tonight at a sold-out Stadio Olimpico, AC Milan and Bologna will compete for the Coppa Italia, an event that is increasingly central to the marketing strategies of the Serie A League. However, raising the Cup, even given their respective positions in the league, will not be irrelevant for the two teams. In a competition which, from the round of 16 onwards, has a total prize fund of almost 25 million, winning the trophy will allow them to get their hands on a cheque for around 4.5 million and a pass for the next Europa League (with a 'guaranteed' European bonus of at least 20 million).

Yesterday, delegations from the two clubs, the Lega Serie A and the FIGC were received by the President of the Republic, Sergio Mattarella, and greeted with these words: 'Always remember that you are a reference point for many young people in our country and in the other countries you come from. Your behaviour is exemplary for boys and girls, because the sport of women's football is also growing, as is well known, and this shows how it is a phenomenon around which our national community gathers'. An ethical appeal that was appreciated and echoed during the ceremony at the Quirinale by the president of the Lega Calcio, Ezio Maria Simonelli: 'Football contributes significantly to GDP, employment and also to representing Italy abroad. It unites people from different walks of life, it excites, it speaks of passion and sharing that are necessary values to build the future'.

Also yesterday, the trophy was transported by train to the capital by a large team of legends, from Roberto Baggio to Cristian Vieri. A Frecciarossa train, of course, sponsor of the Coppa Italia. "We are proud to accompany for the fourth consecutive year the Frecciarossa Coppa Italia, an event that represents the values in which the Ferrovie dello Stato Group strongly believes - underlined Gianpiero Striciuglio, CEO of Trenitalia -. Proximity to the territories, to people and shared passion. With Trenitalia we want to contribute to making travel an integral part of the sporting experience, sustainable and accessible to all. We give passengers the opportunity to travel to special events with discounts of up to 75%, and we have increased travel with discounted fares 10-fold in recent years'.

Speaking of commercial strategies, in the last three years, the League, led by CEO Luigi De Siervo and Commercial & marketing Director Michele Ciccarese, has inaugurated a path based on the creation of a new 'inventory', with the differentiation of competitions and prizes, which has brought collective commercial revenues from 30 to over 75 million in the last three years.

For over 20 years, the League has in fact had three major partners. Today it has four different 'title partners', one for each competition: Enilive for the league, Frecciarossa for the Coppa Italia, EA Sport for the Supercoppa and Goleador for the eSerie A. And again, three 'official awards' - again EA Sport for 'player of the month', Panini for 'player of the match' and Philadelphia for 'coach of the month' - as well as six official partners: Iliad (Innovation and technology partner), Puma, Onefotball, Bancomat, Ita (Italian Trade Agency) and Tgi Sport.