That’s when a group of bikers from Friuli Venezia Giulia, a region of northeast Italy, banded together to create the first annual Biker Fest International. They envisioned a show that could rival German Bike Week, Daytona, and Sturgis. Gaining that level of notoriety would take some time, though.
Beset by rainy weather, the inaugural installment drew a total of 850 visitors and 400 motorcycles. The only way was up, and BFI did just that. In 1990, attendance rose to 4,000. By the turn of the century, total participants totaled 32,000 and parked bikes reached 17,000. The festival only carried that momentum into the new millennium.
BFI’s continued growth called for several venue changes throughout the 2000s. In 2004, the show was held at San Daniele del Friuli before shifting to Sutrio the following year. After the commune of Osoppo played host in 2011, the rally found its true home, Lignano Sabbiadoro, in 2012. The resort town soon earned BFI the title of the “Italian Daytona.”
Even after Biker Fest International rebranded to Italian Bike Week in 2022, the event still returns to Lignano Sabbiadoro every year. It’s no different in 2025, but the show’s activities are more diverse than ever. Scenes from the fourth-annual IBW prove as much.
Another year has come and another Italian Bike Week has gone.
