Paolo Scaroni, President of AC Milan, and Giuseppe Castagna, CEO of Banco BPM, signed the renewal of the partnership that sees the banking group as Premium Partner and Official Bank of the Rossoneri Club this evening during an event held at Casa Milan. The event also saw Honorary Vice President Franco Baresi and Brand Ambassador Daniele Massaro in attendance.
The extension of the partnership strengthens the bond between two brands with a great history and a strong innovative spirit that have made them synonymous with constant excellence at an international level. A long-term path, which already rests its solid foundations on 10 seasons characterised by a virtuous collaboration capable of going beyond the sporting and business aspects: with deep roots in the sharing of values linked to sustainability, solidarity and inclusion, the alliance that unites Banco BPM and AC Milan continues with the commitment to generate together a positive impact on the territory, communities and stakeholders.
Alongside Banco BPM displays during matches and the joint initiatives that will be carried out to catalyse the passion of millions of fans and customers, the multi-year agreement consolidates the status of shirt sponsor of the Rossoneri Women's First Team. A confirmation that is part of a clear desire to support the entire women's football movement, with particular attention to the younger generations.
As part of the agreement, AC Milan and Banco BPM also renew their commitment and support for Fondazione Milan's projects and the Club's CSR initiatives, which have already involved thousands of people over the past few years. One example of this is the concrete support given to the activities of the neighbourhood HUB in Milan dedicated to young mothers in difficulty in collaboration with Terres des Hommes Italia Onlus: over the last few months alone, 25 underage girls from vulnerable backgrounds have been helped, more than 70 mothers have been provided with support, and 39 mothers have been given individual tutoring. In addition, the series of meetings 'All the Colours of Sport' was attended by more than 1,000 students who had the opportunity to listen to and discuss with male and female footballers, to spread the positive values of sport and combat all forms of prejudice.
Banco BPM has always shown great attention towards the world of youth, as evidenced by its constant presence within AC Milan's football schools. One example of this commitment is the "sponsorship" of the Milan Cup, an end-of-season event.
Starting this year, the partnership will be enriched with a new element, the cultural one: there will be initiatives in which the art collection belonging to Banco BPM will be made available to the Rossoneri community. Anticipating this further aspect of the collaboration, artist Fabrizio Vendramin - during the event that sanctioned the renewal of the partnership - created a work that encompasses the characterising elements of the two brands and that will later be auctioned off, with proceeds going to implement Fondazione Milan's activities within the HUB in via Appennini. The work will also bear the signature of Laura Fusetti, Christy Grimshaw, Rimante Jonusaite, Guðný Árnadóttir, Christian Pulisic, Marco Sportiello, Tommaso Pobega, Luka Romero and Coach Stefano Pioli.
"We are happy and, above all, proud to be able to continue a shared journey - says Paolo Scaroni, AC Milan's President - which places important values such as social responsibility at the centre, with a historical icon of Italian excellence like Banco BPM. I like to define this renewal of ours as resilient, especially in this historical period that we are all facing together: AC Milan is a great social and cultural institution that unites over 550 million fans around the world and, like Banco BPM, we always feel a strong duty to commit ourselves to contributing to bringing about positive change in society".
"The partnership that binds us to AC Milan, which we renew today," says Banco BPM's CEO, Giuseppe Castagna, "promotes a significant collaboration with a historical and successful entity in our own territorial context: a prestigious brand that is a global sports icon. This partnership allows us to share the values of sports such as teamwork, passion, and commitment, where sports represent education, training, social responsibility, and integration. Furthermore, this agreement once again focuses on the world of youth through our involvement with numerous football schools, engaging thousands of families, and through initiatives like 'All the Colours of Sport' that reach high school students. Similarly," Giuseppe Castagna continues, "the renewal of the sponsorship of the Women's Team represents an important opportunity to support gender equality and respect, essential values that our bank is promoting internally through targeted projects."
"This contract extension is an important achievement," added AC Milan's Chief Revenue Officer Casper Stylsvig, "but also a springboard for the near future that brings together two such historic and important brands. We will continue to respond to the needs of our stakeholders, be they fans or clients, doing that with passion and commitment to achieve ambitious goals together".
