Inter Business CEO Alessandro Antonello: “We’ll Earn €30M Per Year From Socios.Com Sponsorship” | OneFootball

Inter Business CEO Alessandro Antonello has given updates on some of the key financial issues at the Nerazzurri this summer.

Speaking to Italian broadcaster Radiocor, the CEO explained the finances involved in the new shirt sponsorship deal with Socios.com, announced today, with the club set to earn €30 million from the partnership.

He also talks about the financial effects of the pandemic, and the club’s hope to regain revenue which they have not been able to take in thanks to the lack of fans in stadiums.

The financial issues at the Nerazzurri are well-known, but as Antonello explains, there is a plan in place to bring the finances up to a better level, and the new sponsorship deal with Socios.com is a significant part of it.

“After 26 years of historical ties with Pirelli,” he explains, “we are moving on to a digital partnership, which testifies to the expansion of the fan base internationally.”

He also speaks about the effects of the loss of revenue from the lack of fans in stadiums, and the club’s ambitions to rebound:

“We will record a significant loss, it was the first full year in which we suffered the effects of Covid, about €70-80 million less in stadium revenues, so we hope – health protections permitting – that with the new season a reopening of the grounds with the use of the green pass. Otherwise it would be another heavy blow to absorb.”

The CEO moved on to another significant topic, Carlo Cottarelli’s InterSpac project for fan ownership of shares at the Nerazzurri:

“We see all initiatives promoted by our fans positively, but it is too early to evaluate the merits of the project. When a clear business plan is provided, it will be necessary to understand if it can be considered functional by the owners, who have always supported and will support the club in the long term.”

“Additionally,” he continued, “today we already have a minority shareholder, Lion Rock. I don’t see it as easy to do in the corporate context.”

On the revenues which will come from next season’s shirt sponsorships, he had this to say:

“Thanks to the new Global Main Jersey Partner Socios.com, and to Lenovo as back sponsor and Global Technology Partner, as well as to the possibility of a sleeve sponsor, we aim to raise around €30 million per year from the shirt, a significant increase compared to the past and an important outcome these days.”

Antonello explained what Socios.com is and how the partnership will benefit Inter outside of the finances involved.

He calls the company a “market leader of fan tokens, a digital tool that will greatly help fan-club interaction. An important element from an international perspective, especially given the strong growth of our brand, which will also allow Asian fans to be an active part of the club’s life.”

“At the end of the transfer market we will do the math,” were his words on what to expect from the Nerazzurri as far as finances in the market, with the club aiming to meet financial targets through sales and the offloading of fringe players from the wage bill.

On the need to refinance bonds worth €375 and maturing in December, he stated that “we are in the explotartory phase,” with a €50 million revolving credit line also intended to be renegotiated.