It is no longer merely a journey in search of the grandparents' house or the town of origin. Roots Tourism is becoming one of Italy's most important strategies for strengthening the bond with the more than 80 million Italians, people of Italian descent and those of Italian ancestry scattered around the world, turning family memory into a concrete development opportunity for local areas. In this new phase the project finds an unexpected yet increasingly central ally: sport, with the Italian National Olympic Committee (CONI) at the forefront.
The subject was at the heart of the Conference of Italy's Consuls Worldwide, held in Rome on 12 and 13 June 2026, during which the Farnesina reaffirmed its intention to continue and strengthen the project, born thanks to NRRP funds. The most symbolic moment came on 14 June, when at Piazzale della Farnesina CONI, in collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, celebrated the conclusion of the project's first phase and launched the Trofeo CONI 2026.
The evening's true protagonists made the link between sport and roots tangible: the delegations of under-14 athletes from the Italian Communities Abroad in Argentina, Australia, Brazil, the United States, Switzerland and Venezuela, accompanied by coaches, by the CONI Delegates of the Italian communities abroad and by more than one hundred mayors of the Comuni delle Radici. The presence of a Swiss delegation carries particular weight for the Italian community in Switzerland, one of the largest in Europe, showing how the project can also speak to the new generations who grew up far from the villages of their forebears.
The youngsters took part in the Giochi CONI Fair Play, multidisciplinary sporting activities inspired by the International Olympic Committee's Olympic Values Education Programme (OVEP), and at the end of a dedicated course they were awarded the plaque of "Young Ambassadors of Sports Diplomacy". The ceremony, opened by the Mameli anthem performed by the Band of the Carabinieri, was attended by Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani, Tourism Minister Gianmarco Mazzi, CONI President Luciano Buonfiglio, Italian Swimming Federation President Paolo Barelli, Settebello head coach Sandro Campagna and former cycling star Vincenzo Nibali. Italian excellence was also on show, from the culinary demonstration by Michelin-starred chef Alessandro Circiello to the launch of Italian Pasta Day in the World.
In his address, Tajani announced the start of the programme's second phase, describing sport as a tool capable of uniting and of making thousands of young people of Italian origin around the world feel at home. It was CONI President Luciano Buonfiglio who closed the evening, asserting the leading role of the sports movement and its value as a vehicle of identity and national pride, summing up the meaning of the day in a clear phrase: sport, he said, "can make the world a better place".
The closing event held on 14 June at the Farnesina was a symbolic but also operational moment. In the presence of more than one hundred mayors of the so-called Comuni delle Radici, of the Italian consuls who came from all over the world, of the institutions and of the sector's operators, the Government outlined the programme's future prospects. Indeed, 200 million euros from the Development and Cohesion Fund may be used to strengthen Roots Tourism, resources that will make it possible to expand the projects already under way and involve a growing number of Italian areas.
The estimates presented at the institutional events confirm that Roots Tourism continues to grow. According to the data illustrated by the Farnesina, in 2024 roots tourists numbered around 6.6 million, while in 2026 more than 7.4 million travellers are expected, with total spending generated that could exceed 5.5 billion euros. Figures that show how this segment is now a strategic component of Italian tourism, with particularly positive effects for villages, inland areas and small municipalities often excluded from the major tourist flows. At the heart of the offer remains the Italea platform, aimed precisely at Italians abroad and people of Italian descent wishing to reconnect with their origins.
The Conference of Consuls also confirmed the central role of Italy's diplomatic network. Consulates are called upon not only to provide administrative services, but also to promote initiatives that strengthen the relationship between the Italian communities abroad and the territories of origin, facilitating participation in Roots Tourism programmes and helping to spread awareness of the opportunities offered by Italian municipalities.
Alongside the diplomatic network and the municipalities, an increasingly important role could also be played by the Italian sports movement around the world. CONI's overseas Delegations, present in numerous countries, form a widespread network capable of involving thousands of Italians living abroad and young people of Italian descent. In this context the CONI Delegation in Switzerland, which operates in one of the countries with the largest Italian community in Europe, can become a point of reference for promoting Roots Tourism through sporting events, cultural gatherings, youth exchanges and initiatives that bring together sport, identity and territory.
Sport, in fact, is much more than a competition: it is a tool for bringing people together, for passing on values and for strengthening the sense of belonging. Organising summer camps in Italian villages, tournaments dedicated to Italians abroad, twinning arrangements between sports clubs and towns of origin, or programmes that combine sporting activity with the rediscovery of one's roots could help bring the new generations closer to the land of their forebears. In particular, young people born abroad often know Italy through family stories, but have never visited their grandparents' town of origin. Sport can become the universal language capable of turning this emotional bond into a concrete experience, encouraging new tourist flows and consolidating the relationship with Italy's local areas.
Roots Tourism is not only about visiting the birthplaces of ancestors. More and more administrations are building dedicated experiences ranging from genealogical research in municipal archives to visits to the homes of the families of origin, from meetings with local communities to traditional cooking workshops, through to cultural and nature trails and the rediscovery of traditions, dialects and crafts. The aim is to offer an authentic experience, capable of turning the tourist into a guest who returns time and again and maintains a lasting bond with the area.
After the success of the Year of Roots and the projects funded by the NRRP, Roots Tourism is thus entering a new phase. The aim is to turn an emotional journey into a permanent instrument for economic development, cultural enhancement and the promotion of Made in Italy, with sport acting as a bridge between the Italian communities around the world and the territories of origin. For millions of Italians abroad and their descendants, returning to the land of their grandparents means rediscovering a part of their own identity. For Italy, on the other hand, it represents a great opportunity to revitalise its villages, support local economies and strengthen the bond with a community that continues to feel deeply Italian, even thousands of kilometres away.
