the sports press market | Italy

1.1 Definition and scope of study

The sports press includes titles that deal with sports and sports news. Sports press titles are found in both the magazine and newspaper segments, with a wide variety of formats  and publication rhythms: daily, weekly, or monthly. Sports press does not include automotive and motorcycle press. 

The worldwide sport print market is very specific to different continents. The print format is very popular in China and India, two giants in terms of ratings. However, in Europe and North America, the print format is gradually losing ground to digital. 

The Italian sports press market has been strongly affected by the advent of satellite TV, and then of digital terrestrial TV, which has allowed sports news to be broadcast much more quickly, putting a strain on the business model of sports presses that are unable to publish news, at least in paper format, in near-real time. The same problem was subsequently underlined by the advent of social media, characterized by a high level of immediacy and speed in the communication and diffusion of news.  

Despite this, the use of online forms of communication based on the use of the internet represents a great opportunity for growth for the sports press market. In fact, there is a growing inclination of the population, especially the younger ones, towards digital formats of press. In this regard, however, it should also be pointed out the incessant proliferation of blogs dedicated to the publication of sports news, which, although not particularly significant, still represent a threat to the development of the sports press market. 

Among the most established titles on the Italian scene there are "La Gazzetta dello Sport", "Il Corriere dello Sport" and "Tuttosport", which enjoy a high level of popularity especially among the older population. Furthermore, the sports press market in Italy is currently under heavy criticism for its lack of innovation and poor quality. In fact, there is growing concern about this market, especially with regard to the reliability of sources used by journalists.