Let the curtain open on Sanremo 2023. From Tuesday 7 to Saturday 11 February the 73rd edition of the most loved (and in recent years again most followed) Festival by Italians will take place at the Ariston Theater. Landlord, as in the three previous editions, will be Amadeus, flanked by Gianni Morandi and 4 co-hosts, including the digital entrepreneur and influencer Chiara Ferragni.
The wait, for what it promises to be a blockbuster edition, is skyrocketing. On the other hand, for weeks throughout the country there has been talk of nothing else. The list of singers in the competition and the eagerly awaited evening of duets, the super international guests who finally return to the Ariston stage (the Black Eyed Peas in the second evening, i Maneskin in the third, but above all i Depeche Mode in the last one), the sponsors, the stylists who will dress the protagonists of the singing festival. There is no shortage of controversy either, which this year focused on the compensation donated to charity by Chiara Ferragni, but above all on the possible speech by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, a participation that even moved the Government.
Sanremo 2023: costs and revenues
In short, the ingredients for a Sanremo 2023 to remember are all there. Something that has not escaped the spectators, with tickets for the five evenings practically sold out, nor the sponsors who, thanks to the increase in price lists and the new consolidated text which further reduces advertising crowding, have mandated Rai Advertising overbooked.
The result? What is about to begin could be one of the richest editions of recent years, considering that according to estimates i Costs will remain substantially stable, while i revenues they could even rise by 20% compared to last year, when Rai collected 42 million euros in advertising sales, astounding everyone.
Before talking about all the figures of Sanremo 2023, it is worth making a brief summary of the previous episodes. Let's start by saying that the Festival hasn't always been a money maker. Indeed, the exact opposite. Just to give an example, in the three editions from 2009 to 2012, Rai disbursed over 20 million euros each year, eventually collecting more than half of it and accumulating losses that weighed on the company's balance sheets. At that point, it was understood that in order to survive Sanremo had to change course. To do this, it was not only thought of carrying out a "spending review", but above all of refresh the format, trying to bring back the ratings in the meantime dropped dramatically to the glories of the past, and to attract an ever younger audience, involving social networks in the mechanism (just think of the thousands of people who participate in the We will fantasize).
The cure worked. L'2020 edition closed with a profit of 19 million, with 18 million costs and 37 million in turnover, that of 2021 with total costs of 17,4 million euros and revenues equal to 38 million of euros, that of 2022 with an expenditure of just over 17,3 million and an advertising revenue of 42 million.
The costs of Sanremo 2023: conductors, hosts, guests, singers. How much do they earn and how much does Rai spend?
Let's start by saying that these are rumors, given that there are no confirmations on the fees received by individuals, nor on general expenses. According to estimates, however, the cost of Sanremo 2023 should be in line with that of the previous edition, i.e. 17,3-17,4 million euros, even if the return of international guests (Black Eyed Peas and Depeche Mode, for which we are talking about fees of around 800 thousand euros, but also Maneskin), could push the number up a bit. The Italian guests? Al Bano, Massimo Ranieri, the Poohs, Ornella Vanoni and so on should earn around 50 thousand euros for their presence.
The curiosity of the spectators is concentrated above all on the cachet of conductors and conductors. The host Amadeus, who plays the double role of conductor and artistic director of the Festival, should receive, as in previous years, a fee of approx 500-600 thousand euro, a figure that takes into account the 5 hosting evenings, but also the commitments carried out in the last 5 months as artistic director. Fiorello won't be supporting him this year, but rather Gianni Morandi to which they will go 60 thousand euros per evening, 300 thousand in total.
Let's move on to co-hosts: this year, in addition to Chiara Ferragni, the face of "Belve" will take the Ariston stage Francesca Fagnani (Wednesday 8 February), the volleyball player paola egono (Thursday 9) and the actress and presenter Clare Francini (Friday 10). They should go to 25 thousand euros per evening. More "expensive" instead Chiara Ferragni, who, according to rumors, will receive a fee of 100 euros which, however, will be donated entirely to charity.
How much do competing singers earn? All of them will receive a reimbursement of expenses equal to 48 thousand euros.
The revenues of Sanremo 2023: how much does Rai collect?
As mentioned, this year Rai could reach record advertising revenue. According to the estimates of the Sun 24 Hours, in fact, in 2023 the collection could exceed 50 million euro, a figure that represents a 20% increase from the 42 million reached last year.
How is it possible? Various factors contribute to inflating Rai's takings which, put together, promise sparks. The first concerns without a doubt you listen to them. Last year, the Sanremo Festival was seen, on average, by 11 million spectators, with an average share of 58% which, on the last evening, even rose to 66%. This year, according to expectations, ratings could rise by a further 3%, provided that the aggressive counter-programming implemented by Mediaset does not achieve the desired results (by Pier Silvio Berlusconi, obviously not by Rai).
The second factor, on the other hand, depends solely and exclusively on Rai: the company in viale Mazzini has in fact increased list prices of advertising space by 28%. In the meantime, the list of commercial partners has also lengthened: in addition to Eni Plenitude, Suzuki and Costa Crociere, there will also be Generali, Banca Ifis, Dyson and Veralab, the cosmetic brand of Cristina Fogazzi (known on social networks as the Beautician Cynical).
Last factor, but not least, concerns the changes imposed by the new Consolidated Law they have cut advertising crowds. In other words: in the time slot between 18 and 24 there will be less time available for advertising: from 25 minutes and 12 seconds in 2022 to 21 minutes and 36 seconds in 2023 with a drop of about 3 and a half minutes. This should have also reduced the takings but no: because despite the times being shorter, advertising demand has risen, which allowed Rai to raise the prices of individual advertising spaces.
Sanremo 2023: how much do tickets cost?
Alongside the advertising proceeds there will be those from tickets to attend the five evenings from the stalls or from the gallery of the Ariston Theater. How much do they cost? L'public subscription for all five evening costs 1.290 €, while the cost to assist from the gallery will 672 €. Each person could request a maximum of two season tickets. THE single tickets free of charge they were (we are speaking in the past tense, since seats are now sold out) exclusively available to the physically disabled.
