Infront invests in athletics with Italian federation deal

The Infront agency has agreed a six-year media, marketing and commercial rights partnership with the Italian Athletics Federation (FIDAL).

The contract is worth a guaranteed €12.9m ($15.1m) to FIDAL and will see the two parties collaborate at all levels of the federation’s events and projects until 2024.

Infront will handle all marketing and commercial rights for the federation, including the sponsorship of national team jerseys and the organisation of major elite events including the Golden Gala Pietro Mennea and Rome Half Marathon Via Pacis.

The deal includes a revenue share agreement for the Runcard project, with Infront to enrich the platform with new content and features and provide all members with better services and an enhanced user experience.

FIDAL will be able to utilise Infront’s production and post-production centre, offering a wide range of digital production services. Furthermore, a dedicated project team will be created, with an integrated communications plan set to be developed in order to raise FIDAL’s profile and grow its visibility and popularity.

Infront Italy president and chief executive, Luigi De Siervo, said: “We strongly believe in this project and we want to act as protagonist in the world of athletics, which has always been considered the ‘queen of all sports’.

“After two years of discussions, we could have not chosen a better moment to invest in the movement, which is experiencing a great renaissance thanks to the work done by the federation and the excellent results achieved by Italian athletes.

“Our goal is to grow the partnership with FIDAL, increase participation in the sport and elevate the movement of Italian athletics in order to keep developing our growth strategy in the field of mass participation sports, both in Italy and internationally.”