Lazio has terminated its sponsorship agreement with Polymarket after Italian regulators reaffirmed that the prediction market platform falls within the country’s gambling framework. The Serie A club said the agreement was ended by “mutual agreement” following regulatory action that made the partnership difficult to continue.
The deal, announced in April, was worth a reported €22m and was scheduled to run until June 2028, with an option for another season. It ended Lazio’s near-three-year period without a main shirt sponsor.
However, Italy’s Customs and Monopolies Agency, the ADM, reinserted Polymarket onto its blacklist of websites considered unauthorised to offer gambling services to Italian consumers on 10 July.
By classifying Polymarket as a gambling operator, the sponsorship became incompatible with the Dignity Decree of 2018, which bans direct and indirect gambling advertising and sponsorship.
Court challenge failed to provide relief before the new Serie A season
Polymarket challenged the ADM decision before Italy’s Regional Administrative Court, arguing that prediction markets should be treated differently from conventional sports betting and gambling products.
The court declined to grant urgent relief while the legal challenge was considered, leaving Lazio unable to activate the sponsorship as planned. Lazio and Polymarket confirmed the termination in a joint statement:
“S.S. Lazio announces that it has reached a mutual agreement with Polymarket to terminate the sponsorship agreement entered into between the parties.
“The agreement has been reached in a spirit of mutual cooperation and allows for the early termination of the partnership through a mutually agreed solution that safeguards the interests of both parties, in light of the new measures adopted by the competent authorities affecting the applicable regulatory framework.
“As part of the settlement agreement, Polymarket will pay S.S. Lazio the full amount contractually due for the 2026/2027 sporting season.”
Lazio avoids immediate financial loss despite early termination
Polymarket will still pay the full amount due for the 2026/27 season, reported to be around €9.5m. This protects Lazio from an immediate financial hit despite losing its main shirt sponsor before the season begins.
The two parties have also left open the possibility of reviving the partnership if Italy changes its regulatory treatment of prediction markets. However, there is no exemption for gambling sponsorships in Italian football.
Dignity Decree remains central to football’s sponsorship dispute
Pressure around the Dignity Decree has increased again after Economy Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti called on AGCOM and the Guardia di Finanza to enforce Article 9 fully.
This provision prohibits gambling advertising “in any form”. Italian football clubs and gambling stakeholders continue lobbying for the decree to be repealed or replaced as part of wider reforms to sports funding and gambling regulation.
AGCOM has maintained that the current restrictions remain binding regardless of parliamentary discussions about replacing the decree with a dedicated gambling advertising code.
Lazio’s sponsorship collapse shows how quickly commercial partnerships can dissolve when regulation fails to catch up with new product categories. While the €9.5m payment softens its immediate blow, clubs will be far more cautious with prediction market deals till the government builds a legal framework.
Explore more:
Share
7 views
