Italian telco TIM has signed a last-minute deal as the new title sponsor of this year’s Coppa Italia.
Under the deal, TIM will title sponsor the semi-finals and final of the Coppa Italia, which will take place in April and May this year.
The deal was struck with cup organiser Lega Serie A, and will see the remainder of the competition rebranded as the TIM Cup.
TIM is already a sponsor of the Italian domestic league, Serie A, and had previously title sponsored the Coppa Italia from 1998-99 to 2017-18.
Last summer, when TIM’s Coppa Italia title deal expired, Italian state railway firm Trenitalia took over the role to promote its new high-speed rail line, Frecciarossa.
But the deal was ripped up by Trenitalia’s new chief executive, Orazio Iacono, only a week into the contract. Lacono also terminated Trenitalia’s smaller partnership with Serie A.
Danilo Toninelli, Italy’s minister of infrastructure and transport, later said that terminating the two deals had saved Trenitalia €20m ($22m) for the year – €15m for the Coppa Italia, and €5m for Serie A.