Added value: fewer sponsors gain more visibility – Milan stars to support client campaigns – Exclusive hospitality programme
Milan, Italy – A.C. Milan and Infront Sports & Media, the club’s official marketing partner, have presented a new marketing concept for the world’s most successful football club - starting with the 2010/2011 season. The most significant changes are the reduction from 42 to only 32 sponsors and the introduction of a clear, four-tier sponsorship hierarchy - Top Sponsors, Premium Sponsors, Official Partners and Official Suppliers. Overall, the new concept improves the presentation and visibility of the partners, their brands and messages as well as further increasing the level of exclusivity.
Infront, one of the leading international sports marketing agencies has a strong track-record in streamlining the marketing programmes of major sport properties, including the majority of FIS World Cup competitions and the DFB Cup in Germany. The concept introduced for A.C. Milan strictly follows the philosophy of “less is more” and offers a much higher level of exclusivity to commercial partners. A.C. Milan’s Top Sponsors will be guaranteed a four times increase in TV-visibility compared to the previous seasons. In addition, each of the Top Sponsors will benefit from four dedicated A.C. Milan star players promoting their respective brand image and associating it with the club in TV commercials, print advertisements and other communication campaigns.
The new strategy for A.C. Milan also includes a revised Corporate Hospitality offering for the club’s home matches in the Serie A and Tim Cup (Coppa Italia). Designated areas offering a panoramic view of the pitch, outdoor terraces and first class catering services for lunch and dinner will exclusively be reserved for sponsors and their guests.
“Added value for commercial partners”
“The new and innovative sponsorship strategy created by Infront will offer much added value for A.C. Milan’s commercial partners”, said Adriano Galliano, Deputy Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of A.C. Milan. “Today, A.C. Milan has one of the strongest brand values among the Italian clubs. The opportunity to take advantage of Infront’s worldwide network and expertise enables us to close the gap in comparison to other European clubs’ sponsorship and commercial revenues.”
Marco Bogarelli, Member of the Infront Board of Directors and President of Infront Italy, added: “Infront came up with a really innovative formula for A.C. Milan’s commercial partnerships. Companies that wish to associate their brands with the premium football brand A.C. Milan are offered ad hoc solutions that enhance their visibility in a highly attractive environment. Infront provides A.C. Milan with its comprehensive local as well as international experience – gathered in the field of football and many other sports.”
A.C. Milan and Infront will also continue to improve the club’s online and new media strategy. The partners will mainly focus on the development of the “Milan Media Factory”, an integrated pool of top quality content about A.C. Milan - tailored for various platforms including broadcast, online (websites, webTV, social networks) and mobile media.
About Infront Sports & Media – a renowned player in football
Infront Sports & Media, based in Zug, Switzerland, is an experienced international full service sports marketing company with a capacity for innovation that is helping to transform the industry. These innovations have enhanced every area of sports marketing, including distribution of rights, host broadcast, programme production, event operations, brand development, sponsorship and even online entertainment. Infront has 500 employees across 24 offices in 10 countries.
Infront has an extensive football portfolio: The Group is partner to many of the top European football leagues, including Italy’s Lega Calcio and the French Football League (Ligue 1) – handling the host broadcast for the first division up until 2011/2012. Infront also handles national football associations including the DFB in Germany and several clubs like Werder Bremen, FC Schalke 04, U.S. Città di Palermo and S.S. Lazio Rome. The company is best known for working with the sport’s governing bodies. It successfully delivered the global media rights sales and host broadcast of the 2002 and 2006 FIFA World Cup™. Today, Infront is involved in the distribution of the Asian media rights to the 2010 and 2014 FIFA World Cup™ (in a joint venture with Dentsu). The company’s dedicated and highly specialised host broadcast organisation Host Broadcast Services (HBS), is handling the host broadcast of the 2010 and 2014 FIFA World Cup™ and also contributes to UEFA Euro™ events.
