FNG Exclusive… FNG has learned that Australia based Retail FX broker IC Markets has launched a lawsuit against Italian Serie A football club Inter Milan, after Inter cancelled IC’s planned sponsorship of the club.

The IC Markets-Inter Milan sponsorship deal, signed in June of this year and reported exclusively at FNG (with an update on terms of the transaction also reported exclusively at FNG later in the summer), was to make IC Markets the “sleeve sponsor” of Inter Milan over a three-year period starting with the current 2020-21 season. The deal was going to see IC Markets paying €4.5 million in year one, €4.8 million in year two, and €5.0 million – totaling €14.3 million. There may have been additional bonus payments to be made to Inter, depending upon team results over the course of the sponsorship.

The deal as reported would have been the biggest sleeve sponsorship to date among Serie A teams.

Italian sports business site Calcio e Finanza is now reporting that Inter Milan cancelled the contract with IC Markets, citing that the sponsor (IC Markets) failed to comply with its contractual payment obligations. Inter apparently claims that IC Markets made an initial deposit on the agreement (€2.5 million), but did not follow up with next payments as required by the agreement between the two parties.

IC Markets then sued Inter Milan, for reimbursement of the €2.5 million already paid in addition to interest.

There is a first hearing on the matter scheduled before the Milan court for April 14, 2021.

Sports sponsorships – and in particular those involving top drawer European soccer clubs with global appeal such as Inter Milan – have become an increasingly important marketing and branding tool for Retail FX brokers. Just over the past few months we have reported on such sponsorships including GO Markets-Chelsea, Axi-Manchester City, XTB.com-Jose Mourinho, ICM.com-Newcastle United, Samtrade FX-Cardiff City, eToro-AS Monaco, Plus500-Atalanta, Plus500-Legia Warsaw, Libertex-Tottenham Hotspur, easyMarkets-Real Madrid, Scope Markets-West Ham United, and Plus500-BSC Young Boys FC.