[Archived] Italian Refereeing Scandal

[InterRovers]

It would be the greatest irony to see that city of probity and good governance, Palermo, step into European competition as a result of all this! Of course, the CL would be further devalued as the 7th placed Italian club might get into the  bonanza although their European ranking points could be low enough so they would hopefully not be seeded in the 3rd Qualifying Round.

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It would be a little ironic if Palermo made it through playing clean, the city isn't renowned for that kind of thing. In terms of devaluing of the CL I have to say that if they didn't cheat and the clubs above them did, then they are there on merit. They would still have to get through the qualifiers - and if they do then they wouldn't devalue the CL in my opinion.

As an Interista obviously I'm hoping for a Juve relegation (they would lose €140m in TV rights for next year and €80m from the sponsorship of TAMOIL) and I'm hoping for AC Milan to be docked points meaning my replica shirt will have a little shield in green, white and red next year. In my opinion Inter have earned it, they play the best football in Italy and have (now unsurprisingly) been hit with incredibily hard decisions during the years I have been here.

As a sidenote every single Rovers game was broadcast on sky italia this year, at first I just had a trickle of Italian visitors to watch, now I regularly have 6-7 'tifosi' round to watch the lads!

[Flopsy]

im guessing lots of hand wringing will occur, lots of noise and a smack on the wrist to Juve and low and behold, nothing changes.

If ManU or Chelsea were found to have done the same thing in this country, what do you think would happen?

[Oklahoma]

I think Juve will be relegated... There are too many evidences now and if the case was overlooked, it would put italian football in a very low standard...

[Ronin]

They have to set an example and punish Juve to try and prevent this happening, so aye, they've got to relegate them; could just be a case of how far down they want to send them, as I don't think fines will make any difference to the clubs involved.

[Anti Euro Smiths Fan]

Chelsea have managed to drag the game into an even more sordid, festering pit of greed and self-indulgence by offering Ballack £30m, reportedly after tax, over 4 years.

I find Ballack's wages obscene Paul.

Link: Bayern Munich's general manager says that Ballack is only motivated by money

"It was always clear that Michael did not want to learn a new language or a new culture, but a new currency," says Uli Hoeness. "It was obviously only about money."

The culture of greed is ruining the game in my view - rampant exploitation of the fans and foreign mercenaries like Herr Ballack, who clearly doesn't give a damn that the supporters at Stamford Bridge have to cough up between £45-£60 for an adult ticket to pay for his exorbitant and offensive wages.

As for the latest Juventus refereeing scandal - I suspect this has been going on for many years in Italian football. In the 1973 European Cup semi final, when Juventus beat Derby County 3-1 on aggregate - Brian Clough was convinced that the West German ref had taken a bung - calling the Italians "cheating @#/?s".

There were strong allegations that the ref had taken bribes from Juventus, but UEFA tried to sweep it under the carpet.

Edited May 18, 2006 by Anti Euro Smiths Fan

[American]

Too lazy to post a link, but the Guardian says the Italian FA has been placed in administration...

[Paul]

"It was always clear that Michael did not want to learn a new language or a new culture, but a new currency," says Uli Hoeness. "It was obviously only about money."

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Nice quote Chris, I like that one

[Ronin]

Too lazy to post a link, but the Guardian says the Italian FA has been placed in administration...

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Bloody 'ell! Makes you wonder if they'll even be a next season if this investigation continues

[cn174]

Isn't the start of the Italian season always a farce anyway? If I remember correctly each team has to negotiate their own TV deal and the league cannot start without each team having a deal.

[yawnsie]

Like a lot of people on this thread, I grew up watching all the great Italian teams in the early 90s, so it's sad to see Serie A in such a bad state. The good news for them is that this surely gives them a pretty unique opportunity to really purge the league of corruption.

I hope that the Italian FA has the balls to punish any guilty clubs (they set a precedent with Milan and Lazio in 1980; you've gotta hope they follow it). I'm expecting G14 to stick their oar in sometime soon - they'll make a few noises about how much they condemn this kind of thing blahblah but they're a pretty shameless organisation and I can see Juve trying to drum up support within the organisation. I'd love to see them drop into Serie B (or lower) but I've got a horrible feeling they've got enough friends in high places to ensure that they only get a slapped wrist.

What's good about this is that it will hopefully make a few other clubs in other countries nervous - I hate to say it, but it's hard to imagine that this kind of thing doesn't go on elsewhere. It's UEFA and FIFA's duty to ensure that the action is decisive enough to make others think twice about match fixing - otherwise, when the first bad decision goes against us next season, we'll start to wonder...

[herbergeehh]

Juventus simply can't get away with this, with the amount of evidence available - a relegation seems inevitable. Their friends in high places are also on their way / already gone.

[Billy Castell]

Don't be so sure, these things have a habit of leading to half-arsed punishment. Just look at all the aggro in Italy, and the racism in Spain. The 'Big' clubs get away with it the most.

[james19830822]

As for Juve, what I interested in is whether Rovers will rush in the bargain for some of their best players if they are forced to be relegated. Suppose Zlatan Ibrahimovic play in blue n white alongside Bellamy. It sounds crazy and impossible but it's really exciting! Wish the board could back Sparky if such excellent players are available.

As for the scandal, I believe there are such scandals in the football circle all over the world, but most of them have never be disclosed and will never be disclosed, I think some so called "big clubs" in Premiership have done the similiar things in the past years with their money, power and background.

[Ronin]

If I remember, ex-ref Jeff Winter has already said that the refs do favour the bigger clubs.

[Seggie]

Rather Scary thought involving one of our own, in 2002 Vrati Gresko made a defensive error which cost Inter Milan the title and handed it to Juve.

http://soccernet.espn.go.com/players/profile?id=9434&cc=5739

[herbergeehh]

I've seen that, nothing to frighten there. One of the reasons he left Inter in the first place..

[philipl]

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,1072-2198864,00.html

The foul stink of Italian football. When I read that list of Parma v Juve grievances, I cannot help but think that it is like Rovers v Mancs- only differs by degree.

[blue phil]

As for Juve, what I interested in is whether Rovers will rush in the bargain for some of their best players if they are forced to be relegated. Suppose Zlatan Ibrahimovic play in blue n white alongside Bellamy. It sounds crazy and impossible but it's really exciting! Wish the board could back Sparky if such excellent players are available.

Let's hope they do a bit more research in the Italian market than they did last time ......

[frosty]

Suppose Zlatan Ibrahimovic play in blue n white alongside Bellamy. It

Hmmm... top players coming from one of the biggest clubs in Europe to a small town team which has a 20,000 crowd every week?

Very unlikely, but it is Hughesy....

[roversmum]

Let's hope they do a bit more research in the Italian market than they did last time ......

Really? I thought young Raffaelle was doing rather well........................

Edited May 27, 2006 by roversmum

[philipl]

Guido Rossi responsible for investigating and deciding the punishments has issued his first report: "nothing works as it should in Italian football".

Perhaps he will decide they are all crooks and relegate them all? Result=status quo and pass the buck to UEFA.

First off the sinking ship is Patrick Viera who wants to go back to Arsenal.

[blue phil]

Really? I thought young Raffaelle was doing rather well........................

Whoops ....I'm not up to date with the up and comers !!

Handsome devil isn't he ...

[philipl]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/e...v_2/5024980.stm

League 2 game match fixing allegation to be examined by FA

[philipl]

http://football.guardian.co.uk/worldcup200...1784740,00.html

Round-up of the Italian situation and its impact on the World Cup.

[Billy Castell]

Italian football needs to be cleaned up in terms of corruption and hooliganism. If the current scandal continues to grow, UEFA should be man enough to ban Italian teams from Europe. The consistent bad behaviour from the fans, and the rank corruption pollute European competition. Bribery is the Italian way, as Mr. Rossi in the 1980's shows. And were their rumours Juventus bought the ref at a European match against Nottingham Forest ?. The hardest possible punishment should be dealt, but it never will be.