How – Italian women’s football is about to experience a turning point thanks to an innovative partnership that combines the power of technology and passion for sport. Mercury/13, the international group that promotes women’s football, has announced an agreement with WeAre8, a social media platform founded by tech entrepreneur Zoe Kalar. This agreement sees WeAre8 sponsor the club FC Como Women, owned by Mercury/13, with a unique sponsorship model in which 5% of advertising revenue generated by Italian companies on the platform will be allocated to supporting the club.
The agreement, which will officially start in January 2025, marks an important step in supporting women’s businesses in the growth of women’s football. With this collaboration, WeAre8 becomes one of the first non-Italian sponsors to enter Italian women’s football, supporting a club like FC Como Women, which is establishing itself as one of the most promising in Serie A. This partnership will not only help strengthen the position of FC Como Women, but will contribute to redesigning the future of women’s football through a new sponsorship model that directly involves the public.
Elena Mirandola, CEO FC Como Women said: “The new collaboration with WeAre8 is not just a sponsorship, but a shared vision: giving voice to change and women’s football as a catalyst for social impact. Together, let’s write a story of innovation and inclusiveness. We are thrilled to welcome WeAre8 to our team of partners who share our values, our second jersey sponsor with an all-female ownership. This sponsorship also confirms that our project is not only Italian, but its appeal transcends all territorial borders: WeAre8 is in fact an English company that is about to enter the Italian market and has chosen FC Como Women as the ideal partner for this expansion.”
A Revolutionary Sponsorship Model
What sets WeAre8 apart from other sponsors is its unique approach to monetizing advertising space. Every time a user chooses to watch an ad on the platform, a portion of the earnings is returned to the users themselves. In this way, WeAre8 creates a direct relationship between consumers and advertising, returning value to users instead of centralizing it in the hands of large companies. Furthermore, the platform is backed by high-profile investors such as the BBC and Channel 4, and already boasts a network of over 80 publishers, including The Independent and Marie Claire.
The Strength of Women’s Businesses
Another key aspect of this partnership is the fact that both WeAre8 and Casati Flock, FC Como Women’s back shirt partner, are both female-led companies. This underlines Mercury/13 and WeAre8’s commitment to supporting female empowerment and promoting positive change not only in the world of football, but also in the global business landscape.
The Presentation of the Jersey and the New Transmission Model
The official presentation of the new FC Como Women shirt sponsored by WeAre8 will take place on 4 January 2025, during a friendly match that the club will play against Olympique de Marseille Women. On this occasion, the club will also test a new broadcast format that includes exclusive content, such as interviews with players on the bench and footage of the changing rooms, designed to engage a younger audience passionate about women’s football.
Three questions to Zoe Kalar, Founder of WeAre8
How did the idea for WeAre8 come about and what impact do you hope to have in the world of social media and advertising?
We founded WeAre8 because we saw the damage that algorithms and toxic content on social platforms were causing to people’s mental health, along with broken advertising models that were making big tech companies billions of dollars without anything being shared with users. We wanted to build a radical transformation in this space and create a safe and positive social experience that puts the economic power of social media back into the hands of creators and people. We wanted to create a place where people could connect, share their opinions, ideas and their lives without fear of being judged. A place where everyone who uses our platform is not only protected from toxic content, but is seen by their friends, appreciated and compensated for their time, with money coming from advertisers for every ad view.
How does the sponsorship model with FC Como Women reflect WeAre8’s values and how do you think it can transform women’s football?
We don’t see FC Como Women just as a football team. We see the club and its players as “transformative and inspiring”, capable of uniting a community and becoming an example to the world of what is possible when a team with aligned values lives in a new “social home”. We see these women as “agents of radical change”, not just for football, but for society and community, redefining what it means to be “cool”, bringing freedom, positivity and economic liberation. 2025 will be a year of radical transformation in women’s football and social media, and the FC Como women’s team will be at the forefront of this process with us. This is the “David versus Goliath” moment that will demonstrate the strength of women, the power of transformed economic models, and the power of people to come together and change the world. Women will no longer have to fight to be seen and valued, but will become beacons of change and inspiration.
WeAre8 is rapidly expanding its user base and partners. What is your vision for the future of the platform and how do you think it will evolve in the coming years?
Social media should be a place that lifts people up, not brings them down. A place free from toxic content and harmful algorithms. A place where billions of dollars from advertisers are shared with people. A place where people are seen and heard. A place of freedom and economic liberation. And this is what we have built with WeAre8. This is a new era for women’s football and a new era for social media. The world is about to get a lot healthier.
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