What made AC Milan the right partner for Boomerang Partners at this stage of your growth? From a sponsorship perspective, what strategic objectives did you set when entering this partnership?
First and foremost, we are talking about a global brand and a true icon in the football world. It’s hard to find anyone who hasn’t heard of AC Milan, even if they don’t follow Italian football. The Club’s winning traditions, its impressive trophy collection – including seven Champions League titles – and its legendary players and coaches make it the perfect partner for a company that values long-term achievement.
It’s also worth noting that AC Milan has a huge and highly engaged fan base worldwide, totaling over 500 million people. In many countries outside Italy, it ranks as the number-one foreign club among local football fans. This aligns perfectly with our international ambitions.
Finally, negotiations with AC Milan were conducted at a highly professional level. Their expertise, commitment, and focus on creating a mutually beneficial partnership demonstrated a genuine win-win approach. Taken together, all of this makes our strategic partnership a logical and promising step for both sides.
From a sponsorship perspective, what strategic objectives did you set when entering this partnership?
From a sponsorship perspective, our strategic goals in entering this partnership were traditional for Boomerang Partners. We wanted to increase brand awareness and strengthen the loyalty of our affiliate partners and clients.
However, this collaboration holds even greater strategic significance for us. As we strive to become the number-one sports affiliate program in the industry, it’s crucial to partner with organizations of this caliber. With AC Milan, we’re not just forming a basic association – we gain the opportunity to execute inspiring and large-scale joint initiatives. These projects enhance our brand and create a unique experience for our target audience.
What were the key values or principles that both Boomerang Partners and AC Milan shared from the start?
From the very beginning, Boomerang Partners and AC Milan have shared key core values. Above all, this is a win-win approach, where collaboration is built on mutual benefit and respect for each party’s interests.
We also share a strong focus on audience experience – whether it’s fans, clients, or partners. Creating emotionally engaging and memorable experiences is a top priority for us. For example, thanks to AC Milan, we can offer our affiliate partners fully covered flights, accommodation, and tickets to the Club’s home matches at the iconic San Siro Stadium in Milan.
Ultimately, both sides value collaboration and creativity. Synergy, joint initiatives, and unconventional ideas enable us to execute projects that truly stand out in the market. We are delighted that AC Milan is highly receptive to our ideas and fully engaged in bringing them to life.
How has the AC Milan partnership changed the way affiliates perceive Boomerang Partners?
We’ve seen that for many of our affiliate partners, this partnership is no longer perceived as a “tick-the-box” collaboration. They have experienced its real value firsthand:
- by visiting the San Siro Stadium during the Golden Boomerang Awards 2025 (the award ceremony of our second annual affiliate traffic tournament);
- by attending AC Milan’s home matches;
- by observing increased customer engagement, as interest in the Club directly drives interest in the partner;
- and by seeing the initiatives we launch based on this partnership.
As a result, Boomerang Partners’ reputation among affiliates has grown significantly. They see us as a partner capable of creating genuine audience engagement opportunities, delivering unique experiences, and building long-term, valuable projects. This collaboration has proven that we are ready to go beyond standard partnerships and create truly impactful initiatives for the industry.
How do sponsorship activations translate into measurable performance like registrations, GGR, or traffic growth?
Of course, we do not disclose specific financial figures. Still, even at this early stage of the partnership, we are seeing significant growth and a positive impact of sponsorship activations on key metrics.
In the first year of our partnership with AC Milan, we recorded:
- A +194% increase in sports traffic within the Boomerang Partners affiliate ecosystem;
- An +81% growth in audience interest in sports content;
- A +23% increase in loyalty to the Boomerang brand;
- 30+ exclusive campaigns involving affiliates;
- Over 1,000 media mentions with a combined global audience of more than 320 million;
- Over 1 million impressions on Boomerang platforms for content related to AC Milan.
Additionally, results from the “Partner Satisfaction & Reputation Study” conducted by Boomerang Partners’ PR department in November 2025 among active affiliates showed:
- Partner Satisfaction Index (PSI): 9.27/10;
- Trust Index: 9.49/10;
- 94% of respondents would recommend working with Boomerang Partners;
- Awareness of the company’s activities reached 86.27%.
As you can see, these figures confirm that sponsorship activations with AC Milan not only create unique experiences but also directly drive audience engagement, sports traffic growth, interest in sports products, and brand trust.
Why are “money-can’t-buy” experiences so powerful for affiliate engagement?
The answer is simple – it’s because these are truly unique experiences that are hard to come by “just anywhere.” For example, meeting AC Milan Legends like Andrea Pirlo, Serginho, and Massimo Ambrosini; receiving collectible jerseys signed by players; gaining access to the pitch during team warm-ups; and much more. These activities create emotional value and leave a lasting impression. They set this experience apart from standard activations, significantly boosting affiliate partner engagement and loyalty.
How do you evaluate ROI when sponsorship impact goes beyond immediate conversions?
For us, it’s essential to evaluate not only ROI but also ROSI – return on sponsorship investments specifically. These metrics can’t always be measured down to the exact dollar, but we apply a wide range of data and methodologies to calculate them. This allows us to understand all the aspects: the impact of LED boards, a Club Legend attending our event, our booth at an industry conference, digital activations, and more.
In short, these indicators show significant returns and effectiveness of the contract, confirming the value and strategic benefit of the partnership. Here, apologies, without going into details.
What role will the AC Milan Hub play in the next phase of the partnership?
In the summer of 2025, the second year of our partnership with AC Milan commenced, introduced under the concept ‘Time to Win’. This is a philosophy that unites Boomerang Partners and the Club: a drive to win, set ambitious goals, and achieve them.
The central element of this concept will be the AC Milan Hub. This is a unique online platform that will serve as a single point of information about the partnership and all our activities. Here, affiliate partners and users will be able to follow partnership news, participate in quizzes and ticket giveaways for the Club’s home matches, and gain access to VIP experiences and exclusive prizes, such as a jersey from legendary footballer Luka Modrić.
What can affiliates and players expect that hasn’t been done before in similar partnerships?
Undoubtedly, we strive not only to meet expectations but to exceed them, creating a unique experience for our affiliate partners and players.
The activities we have planned through the end of this season, in our view, will provide a fresh and positive experience for both clients and affiliate partners. We’ve prepared truly exciting and large-scale projects, which we will start showcasing in January on the AC Milan Hub. Stay tuned – there’s a lot of impressive things ahead!
If you had to define success for this partnership in three years’ time, what would it look like?
I can highlight a few key aspects we are particularly focused on:
First, we want the “Boomerang = Milan” association to become top of mind for our audience. We want our partners and clients to immediately associate Boomerang with AC Milan, leveraging the Club’s emotional value and prestige, and ultimately, with sport itself.
Second, we expect a significant return on investment from this sponsorship. Partnering with such a strong international brand as AC Milan allows us to enhance Boomerang’s image, build trust in our brand, and expand our reach in key markets.
Ultimately, a successful partnership should result in higher conversions. When fans and affiliate partners see the unique initiatives emerging from our collaboration with the Club, it directly enhances engagement and performance for our affiliates.
So, success for us is a combination of strategic and commercial outcomes: strengthening the brand, fostering greater partner loyalty, and ensuring that every joint project delivers tangible value across the entire affiliate ecosystem.