Welcome to issue #085 of Contemporary Football, your inside look at how the game really works behind the scenes.
Monday to Friday, you’ll uncover a new perspective on football business, and sometimes a deeper story that sharpens your thinking and gives you an edge in the beautiful game.
If you need support on your football journey, just write me.
Every weekend, millions of people bet on football.
Matches.
Goals.
Corners.
Results.
The industry is massive.
In Italy alone, sports betting reached €22.8 billion last year.
Around €16 billion of that comes from football.
So here’s a simple question.
If football generates the product…why doesn’t it participate in the economics?
The missing link
Football clubs produce the event.
The betting industry monetises it.
The State taxes it.
And football?
Mostly watches from the side.
This is not a moral debate.
In most industries, the creator of the product captures part of the value.
In football betting, that link is weak.
What other countries understood
Several countries have already addressed this.
Not by banning betting.
By connecting it to the ecosystem.
Different models. Same idea.
France
A small percentage of betting turnover flows back into sport.
Not to clubs directly.
But to infrastructure, grassroots, and athlete support.
The logic is clear:
If betting depends on sport, sport must be reinvested.
Portugal
More direct.
A percentage of bets goes straight to:
the federation
the league
In some cases, it represents a meaningful part of their revenue.
Greece
Even more interesting.
A share of winnings is redistributed to sport.
Which creates a different dynamic.
The more people win, the more sport gets funded.
Turkey
A centralised model.
Clubs are effectively paid for the use of their name and presence in betting systems.
More visibility → more revenue.
Plus a redistribution mechanism to support lower divisions.
Italy’s position
In Italy, with three consecutive World Cup missed, sports executives are looking for solutions to accelerate talent development.
Is it the right time to recognise 1% of football betting turnover?
Roughly €160M per year.
Not for transfers. Or salaries.
For:
academies
infrastructure
accessibility
In other words, long-term assets.
Why this matters more than it seems
This is not just about adding €160M.
It’s about changing the structure of football financing.
Today, most clubs depend on:
owners
TV rights
transfers
All volatile.
This introduces something different.
A revenue stream linked to activity, not performance
Matches happen regardless of results.
Betting volume doesn’t depend on whether a club wins or loses.
That’s a rare characteristic in football economics.
The risk
There is an obvious counterpoint.
Dependency.
If football starts relying on betting revenues, it creates a new exposure.
Regulation changes.
Public pressure.
Market shifts.
We’ve already seen this with sponsorships.
Categories that overpay…then disappear.
So the question is not just:
“Should football receive a share?”
But:
“How much should it depend on it?”
The shift
This debate reveals something bigger.
Football is starting to realise that it’s not just a sport but a platform others monetise
Media companies.
Sponsors.
Betting operators.
For years, football captured part of that value.
Not all of it.
Now the conversation is changing.
The decision ahead
There are two ways to look at this.
Option 1:
Betting is external.
Leave it as it is.
Option 2:
Betting is built on football.
Align incentives.
Most of Europe has already chosen.
Italy is still deciding.
Have a great end of the week!
Federico