The ‘Hall of Dreams’ at the headquarters of Macron hosted the official celebration of the partnership with the Italian Basketball Federation, that It began on the 1st1 January this year, and the presentation of the new race kits that the The Azzurri National Team they will be wearing this season. The event was attended by Giovanni Petrucci, President of the FIP, Gianmarco Pozzecco, head coach of the men’s national team, Gianluca Pavanello, CEO of Macron, Giovanni Perosino, Marketing Manager at ITA Airways, alongside the players from the men’s national team, who will make their debut in their new kits on Thursday 23 February in Livorno against Ukraine. Also present were Cecilia Zandalasini, representing the women’s national team, and Rae D’Alie for the women’s 3×3 team.

President Petrucci and Gianluca Pavanello commented on this important partnership, which will see the Macron Hero logo feature prominently on the shirts of all the Italian national teams – senior, junior and 3×3, both men’s and women’s – for the next four years.

“The blue of the national team has a unique magic about it, and as an Italian company, we are proud to be the technical partner of the Italian Basketball Federation. – he declared Gianluca Pavanello, CEO of Macron – All the Italian national teams will be taking centre stage at prestigious international events, and we are committed to providing the athletes and staff with the very best in technical clothing, combined with the style and elegance characteristic of Italian design.  Italian spirit, a winning mentality, passion, commitment, respect for the environment and sustainability – these are all values that Macron and the F.I.P. fully share, and which we are delighted to champion together through this project”.

“The Maglia Azzurra holds immense symbolic value across all sports. It represents our colours, our country and, above all, it features in the dreams and imagination of every girl and boy who takes up any sport. Nowadays, it is also a means by which the federations tell their story, looking to the future with cutting-edge designs and materials. – he said Giovanni Petrucci, President of the F.I.P. – Combining tradition and innovation is not always easy, especially when it comes to such an iconic garment as the national team’s jersey, but Macron has succeeded in this endeavour thanks to the sensitivity of those whose mission is to pay close attention to detail. Take, for example, the gold detailing that adorns the 2023 vests – the year in which we celebrate the 40th anniversary of the victory at the European Championship in Nantes in 1983.
Today, Macron is a leader in its field, as evidenced by its numerous partnerships across all elite sports, from football to our national basketball team. The Macron-FIP partnership, achieved in part thanks to the excellent work of Master Group Sport, the Italian Basketball Federation’s commercial adviser, got off to a flying start with the two victories by the Senior Women’s National Team and the strong performance of our women’s 3×3 teams, and I hope it will continue along this path with the Senior Men’s National Team, the Youth National Teams and the entire FIP family, starting with the refereeing team. It is fair to say that the new Macron Azzurra training top symbolises our desire to showcase Italian culture to the world with a prestigious partner such as ITA Airways as shirt sponsor, and our commitment to paying ever greater attention to new technologies and the environment, just like our shorts sponsor, MG Motors.”.

Giovanni Perosino, As Marketing Director at ITA Airways, he highlighted how the national team’s blue kit is a powerful tool for raising the brand’s profile and building customer loyalty. “The partnership between ITA Airways and FIP over the past year has yielded excellent results in terms of visibility, brand awareness and commercial outcomes. Around 3 million television viewers watched all the 2022 matches on screen, whilst over 100,000 spectators attended the matches in person at the arenas, providing significant visibility for the ITA Airways brand. When the partnership was launched on social media, it reached over 10 million accounts, thanks mainly to collaboration with basketball-loving influencers, whilst the ITA Airways-branded stands in the arenas during matches generated around 1,000 new sign-ups to the Volare loyalty programme. It is very important to mention that basketball was featured in one of the scenes of the new ITA Airways safety video, receiving significant media coverage and being shown on board all long-haul aircraft in the ITA Airways fleet, whilst also generating substantial media exposure for the FIP.”.

Antonio Santa Maria, Managing Director of Master Group Sport, emphasised the importance of the agreement between Macron and the FIP. “For the past four years, we have been working alongside the Italian Basketball Federation to promote and develop the sport – said Santa Maria – “We are delighted that a leading Italian brand such as Macron has embraced the Azzurri project, and this demonstrates, once again, how Italbasket conveys passion and excitement. Linking one’s brand to the national team means embracing all the values that this sport embodies: excellence, determination, honesty and tenacity, with the aim of communicating and promoting the image of Italian basketball both at home and abroad.”.

Andrea Bartolomeo – MG’s Country Manager for Italy – expressed his connection to FIP in these words: “We are We are very proud to be supporting the men’s and women’s national basketball teams, not only because we love sport and share the values of commitment, determination and passion, but also because, just like these young people, we love to tackle everyday challenges through teamwork and fair play.”

The importance of high-performance technical kit that also embodies the ‘Azzurri’ spirit, in the words of the coach Gianmarco Pozzecco. “Blue has always been a defining colour in my playing career, and it is all the more so now that I am the head coach of the Italian national basketball team. Wearing the Azzurro, I was fortunate enough to win a silver medal at the Olympic Games, and it was also in the Azzurro that I experienced one of the most bitter disappointments of my playing career – not being selected for the squad. This is to say that this is not just any old jersey. It is an aspiration, a reason to constantly improve, and a huge responsibility for anyone who is privileged enough to wear it. Even more so for those who, like me and my fellow coaches, are tasked with selecting the players best suited to represent Italy in major competitions,” he said. Pozzecco, He went on to add: ‘I like to think that, in designing and producing the 2023 version of the Azzurri vest, Macron has applied the same attention to detail that the team puts into every single training session.’ Representing Italy on the world stage is a source of pride, but precisely for this reason, in addition to passion, we need meticulous preparation, respect for the history of this sport and a drive towards the future. This year, our main goal is the World Cup. We’re delighted to be able to tackle it in our new Azzurri kits!”.

Following the guests‘ speeches, the spotlight turned to the day’s most eagerly awaited ’stars’, the new race kits which the players of the Italian national teams will wear from their next official fixtures onwards. The athletes present, representing both the men’s and women’s teams, were the ideal models to unveil the new uniforms ‘Home Kit’ and ‘Away Kit’, presented alongside the warm-up top. The new vests combine the blue and white that have always characterised the national team with golden details, which bring to mind the 40th anniversary of the victory in the 1983 Men’s European Championship in Nantes, and convey a strong message of sustainability and respect for the environment. The race kits are, in fact, made from Eco Fabric fabric, made from 100% polyester recycled from PET.

Amedeo Iossa, Head of Style & Design at Macron, outlined the technical and design features of the national team’s new kits. “‘The new vests represent the pinnacle of technical innovation and offer outstanding performance. Crafted from Eco Fabric and with meticulous attention to detail, they fully embody the Italian style of Macron and the ’Azzurri” spirit they embody.”.

The new ‘Home Kit’ of the national team is blue with a crew neck and sleeves featuring white edging, inside which there is a light blue line surrounded by two thin gold lines. On the right-hand side of the chest, one below the other and in silicone print, are the logos of the FIP and in gold the Macron the Hero. The light blue shorts feature a wide white band at the top, with a light blue stripe and two thin gold stripes inside it – the same colour combination found on the thigh band.

The version ‘Away’ It uses the same graphic layout, with the difference that the dominant colour is white and the neckline and sleeve hems are light blue with three gold-white-gold stripes on the inside. These colours are repeated on the top hem of the shorts and around the thigh. On the right-hand side of the chest is the Federation logo, alongside the Macron Hero in blue. Both shirts have a regular fit and feature inserts in ecomesh It ensures the garment is extremely lightweight and perfectly breathable.

The warm-up top pre-race, or shooting shirt, is blue It has a white crew neck and features two wide white bands across the shoulders, with a light blue stripe inside them flanked by two narrower gold stripes. This design is also repeated on the vertical white bands down the sides.

Along with the match kits and the warm-up top, Macron has produced the following for the FIP a complete range of products, which includes training vests in a range of colours, cotton T-shirts, tracksuits, sweatshirts, smart short- and long-sleeved polo shirts for both men and women, formal tracksuits, technical hooded sweatshirts, rain jackets, bomber jackets and padded jackets, and a comfortable and stylish parka.

The new national basketball team jerseys go on sale today and are available, alongside the items from the collection designed by Macron for the Italian Basketball Federation, in the section dedicated to the FIP, at Macron.com/italbasket.