Pirelli will also take to the field alongside Javier Zanetti and the other great champions who made the history of soccer, in the charity initiative “Zanetti and Friends Match For Expo Milano 2015” which will take place at the Stadio Meazza on May 4th, 2015. The event, which from the field of San Siro wants to give a symbolic “kick off” to the Universal Exposition which begins on May 1st, sees Pirelli in the role of Top partner for the initiative and as jersey sponsor for the team that will go up against one carrying the Alfa Romeo brand, the match’s other Top partner.

The support for “Zanetti and Friends Match For Expo Milano 2015” reaffirms Pirelli’s commitment to the promotion and dissemination of sport as an instrument of integration and dialogue between different cultures and generations, as well as further strengthening the relationship between Pirelli and Expo. In 2014, in fact, Pirelli supported the “Inter-religious Match for Peace – promoted by Javier Zanetti’s Fondazione P.U.P.I. and by Scholas Occurrentes – to be an ambassador for the values of diversity, multiculturalism and dialogue, always central to Pirelli.

Being one of the protagonists of Expo also with this initiative is one of the ways in which Pirelli, in line with its international mission, wants to contribute to this great international event which for several months will transform the city into the centre of the world, a crossroads for different cultures and lifestyles. For this reason, Pirelli already supports the “Albero della Vita”, the exposition’s icon, as a symbol of creativity and industrial quality which characterizes the country within Expo. Further, Expo Milano 2015, has already supported Pirelli giving its patronage to “Form and Desirer”, the exhibition dedicated to the Pirelli Calendar which ended last month and was organized and produced by GAmm Giunti and Palazzo Reale, which hosted the show in its own rooms.

Pirelli’s commitment to “Zanetti and Friends Match For Expo Milano 2015” bears witness to the Company’s commitment to the creation of a society of solidarity and ethics, above all between young people, also through sport. The company’s passion began in 1895 in cycling, followed in 1913 by Pirelli’s entry into the world of motorcycles where it remained until 1956, only to return in at the end of the 1990s, becoming from 2004 sole supplier of the Superbike world championship. It began in motorsport in 1907 when Pirelli tyres were used on “Itala” which participated in the Peking-Pars raid. It was the beginning of an adventure which saw it also as a protagonist in the Mille Miglia, the world of Rallies, Grand Touring up to Formula 1 where Pirelli, since the 2011 season, has been the sole supplier for all the teams.

Beyond the world of motors, Pirelli’s most famous relationship with sport is that with the world of soccer. This began in 1877 when the production of articles in rubber for sport commenced and in 1922 it evolves into a patent for the rubber treatment of soccer balls. In 1926, Piero Pirelli – the company’s founder’s son – promotes the construction of the San Siro stadium, still one of Milan’s symbolic locations and which today hosts the “Zanetti and Friends Match For Expo Milano 2015”. But it is in 1995 that Pirelli’s relationship with soccer becomes even closer, when its history becomes entwined with that of Inter, one of the world’s most important and well known clubs. A relationship which sees Pirelli also as a supporter of the Inter Campus project, born in Italy and subsequently exported also to other countries of the world with the goal of helping children in difficulty setting them on thepath of scholastic and sporting education. Pirelli’s commitment to society is not limited to sport, but takes many forms of social involvement: since its foundation, in 1872, Pirelli has in fact promoted civic progress in all the communities where it operates, supporting social, environmental, cultural and sporting initiatives throughout the world in the context of health, education and training.