ITALY Law and Practice Contributed by: Maurizio Marullo, Giorgio Vagnoni and Francesco Amoresano, LAWP Studio legale e tributario
moting gender equality in sports management and administration roles. Most importantly, due to the introduction of the “sports worker” figure, all sportswomen are now eli - gible for welfare, retirement and social security protec - tions (including those related to pregnancy and mater - nity) that the law had not historically granted to any amateur or female athletes (see 7.1 Sports-Related Employment Contracts ). 8.2 Organisations and Initiatives to Promote Women’s Sport Most of the initiatives to accelerate the development of women’s sport locally have been realised following inputs from federations, specifically in sports usually dominated by male participation. For instance, in football, federal regulations intro - duced at a national level forced football clubs with a professional male team to also develop a young sector of women’s athletes through the execution of partnerships with local teams, and involve local sport communities. Other initiatives were developed independently from the male football clubs; an example is a women’s amateur football club established in Milan in Novem - ber 2025, which operates independently from any men’s section and is expressly designed as a sport - ing, social and educational hub dedicated to female athletes. The initiative also promotes partnerships with schools, families and local associations and the development of a dedicated women’s sports centre in co-operation with the Municipality of Milan. 9. Esports 9.1 Development and Growth of Esports Esports in Italy has grown steadily in recent years but remains only partially regulated. There is currently no specific legislation defining esports as a recognised sport or providing a statutory definition of “profes - sional esports player”. As a result, traditional pro - fessional sports law does not automatically apply. Pro-players are generally treated as self-employed individuals, unless their activity falls within the scope
of the sports worker regime under Legislative Decree 36/2021, where applicable. A key development occurred in July 2024, when CONI resolved to recognise the Italian Esports Federation as an Associazione Benemerita , effective from 1 Janu - ary 2025. While this does not equate to full federation status, it represents a significant step towards insti - tutional integration of esports within the Italian sports system. Minor participation is subject to general labour law limitations. In the absence of sector-specific regu - lation, issues such as education compliance, rest periods and age classifications remain governed by general rules. Nonetheless, sports organisations are exploring the world of esports (eg, the Italian “Lega Serie A” organ - ises the “E-Serie A”, a virtual Serie A football cham - pionship). 9.2 Key Trends and Notable Deals in Esports Recent trends in Italy show increasing institutional consolidation and commercial expansion – especially in the football sector, which is by far the most devel - oped. The forthcoming CONI recognition is expected to strengthen governance structures and facilitate inte - gration with the broader sports regulatory framework, including safeguarding and organisational compliance requirements. From a commercial perspective, nota - ble trends include: • the continued development of eSerie A and similar league-backed competitions, also for lower series; • growing partnerships between esport teams and traditional clubs; and • sponsorship agreements primarily involving tech - nology, telecoms and digital brands. The above trends are boosted by the involvement of primary traditional football clubs through the structur - ing of agreements with esports organisations, where the esports team provides the roster and management while the football club provides the brand and visibil - ity. Other clubs (especially of lower series) select their
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