Danone SpA has signed an agreement to become an Official Partner of the Italian National Team for the three-year period between 2020 and 2022.

The agreement comes after years of collaboration between Danone and the FIGC in the Danone Nations Cup (www.u12femminile.it), an international tournament for Under-12s which is reserved solely for the women’s team in Italy, with Danone taking an even bigger step into the world of football from this year onwards. From 2020, Danone will accompany the Azzurri, the Azzurre and all of Italy’s fans at their upcoming international fixtures and competitions, with European Championships for both senior teams and the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. Actimel, Hipro and Danette will be the brands involved, but Actimel will be the main focus of a message preaching positivity and resilience, with the goal of reflecting support and passion through a true symbol of Italy: the Italian National Team.

Actimel has already been the subject of a series of activities aimed at spreading a message of resilience through sport, which is why Actimel’s message as an Official Partner of the Italian National Team will be: “Strong inside. Stronger together.”

“This is a partnership that allows Danone to continue building its commitment to the world of sport in line with the company’s values. In this difficult time but positive period of return to normal life, we wanted to provide an important sign of our support for the national sporting set-up through a strong partnership,” were the words of Alberto Salvia, CEO of Danone SpA. “We like to think that we can contribute in enhancing those transversal skills that sport and football can develop in young people and future generations, both for boys and girls. We’re talking about the sense of responsibility connected to our own role as a ‘Game Changer’, which is even more important today in overcoming this difficult period in the best way possible, as true sportsmen and women. Our company has been running in this spirit for over 100 years, in line with the One Planet vision. One Health, which sees the wellbeing of both people and our planet strongly intertwined. Just a few days ago, we received our BCorp certification, a big step for our company and a push to keep on going, continuing to effect positive change for people and the environment.”

“We’re delighted to have finalised this fruitful partnership with Danone, who over recent years have held the development and growth of women’s football within youth teams and schools as one of their central focuses,” said FIGC General Secretary Marco Brunelli. “Today, our partnership is being further expanded within both the men’s and women’s National Teams, sharing new projects and objectives in our joint pursuit of big goals, on both a national and international level.”