Italy is the fourth-largest retail market in Europe, although given its size and the fact that it is comparatively wealthy, its retail industry is relatively underdeveloped. There are two reasons for this – excessively restrictive planning processes and a substantial gap in wealth between the prosperous north and the depressed south.

The Bersani Law, enacted in March 1998, was supposed to liberalise Italian retailing, but in practice it made little difference. It is still exceptionally difficult to develop modern large stores, particularly out-of-town, and Italian retailing is still underdeveloped and highly fragmented.

Sports participation is not particularly high but Italian men are notably football obsessed. But the major problem for the sector and for Italian retailing as a whole is the economy. Italy lurched into recession in 2004 and retail sales in the first five months of 2005 were below the previous year.

About Mintel’s report

Pooling together the latest market analysis and most sort-after trend data, Mintel’s report offers you a fresh and independent understanding of the sector and its retailers. Use Mintel’s research to inform your investment decisions, guide operating strategy, pinpoint areas of potential and to:

Gain fresh insight into the Italian sports goods market, its value and trends, its channels of distribution and the factors affecting it

Identify the market forces that serve to encourage or restrict market growth

Explore the market performance of specialist and non-specialist sports goods retailers operating in Italy, including Décathlon, Foot Locker, Giacomelli Sport, Sport 2000 International and INTERSPORT International Corporation

Evaluate leading retailer’s retail strategies and their operating strengths and

Discover ‘what’s next’ for the Italian sports goods sector with in-depth forecasts put together by Mintel’s skilled analysts.

Intriguing findings include:

Only just over a quarter of Italian adults actually take part in sporting activity more than once a week after they have left school. Naturally, this proportion tails off steadily with age. But even for a nationally popular sport such as football, the participation rates are quite low.