Is Italian football more corrupt, or do they just get caught more often?
Italy's judiciary has the
power to be proactive in seeking out possible wrongdoing, which is not the case
in Britain
Vicenza goalkeeper Paolo Acerbis, left, is
taken into custody in Cremona, Italy, yesterday as part of a wide-ranging
investigation into match-fixing in football. Photograph: Simone
Spada/AP
As police teams swoop
on the training team of the Italian national football team and the Squadra
Azzura threatens to be engulfed by yet another betting scandal, it's worth
remembering the events of 1980. Back then, Italian football was shocked by a
match-fixing scandal of even more devastating proportions. Players were arrested
in dressing rooms across the country. Some of those involved were extremely
famous, such as the striker Paolo Rossi. Those found guilty were given long
bans, although in the absence of laws about sporting fraud, the subsequent court
case saw most of the protagonists cleared. Fans and journalists were
scandalised, but then 1982 came around, Italy won the World Cup (with Rossi as
top scorer and national hero) and 1980 was quickly forgotten.
Over the next two decades, as TV money poured into the game, Italy's Serie A
went on to become the richest league in the world. All the top stars played
there, from Maradona to Platini to Gascoigne to Van Basten, and Italy's top
teams regularly won the European Cup and then the Champions League. But the rot
had set in even as the cash was stacking up. Financial management was often lax
(numerous clubs went bankrupt, including Napoli, Bologna and Fiorentina) and
dodgy transfers were the order of the day. Violent fans controlled large parts
of each stadium, and were often linked to organised crime.Meanwhile, a system of power developed at the heart of the game which controlled the transfer market, the referees and their selection, eliminating any risk of losing. This system came crashing down in 2006 thanks to the work of magistrates in Naples, and led to the relegation of Italy's best supported club, Juventus.
A clean-out of sorts then took place, with the resignation of most of those in charge of the game. But it wasn't enough. Today it looks like the Italian game has failed to learn the lessons of the scandal that took place only five years ago. A match-fixing ring of jaw-dropping proportions has been unmasked by magistrates in Cremona, Bari and (again) in Naples. Some players are said to have already confessed to their crimes, and the number of clubs involved is, by now, well over 20 (with more to come). It appears that large sums of money have been offered to players to throw games, and that many have accepted. Juventus's current manager, fresh from winning the championship, is also under investigation for his activities at his previous club, Siena. All this is having a destabilising effect on the national team's preparations for the European Championships, and one player has already had to withdraw from the squad.
Why is Italian football in so much trouble? One, easy answer is simply to point to Italian society as a whole. Hardly a day goes by without a corruption scandal hitting the world of politics in Italy, so why should football be any different? This is, in part, true. Let us also remember the baleful influence of a series of men without scruples who have been allowed to influence the national game: Silvio Berlusconi, Luciano Moggi, Luciano Gaucci.
But we should also take one other key factor into consideration: the power and independence of the Italian judiciary. Italian magistrates have the ability to set up phone taps and run long investigations into scandals of this kind. They are also proactive in seeking out possible wrongdoing and can order arrests and offer deals to those who confess. British police, for example, are much weaker and less interested in football-linked corruption. Illegal betting is an issue for every sport in today's globalised world, and has been for many years (in cricket above all, but also in numerous other sports including football). Italy is different, but we should not be complacent. What if the difference between Italian and British football is that people just get on with it over here, with no fear of being caught?
Italian football embroiled in new match-fixing scandal
Police arrest 16 people in Italy and Hungary over allegations of fixing results
HOW DO you solve a problem like Mauri? That is the question that should be
troubling the football authorities today. In case you missed it, Lazio captain
Stefano Mauri was arrested on Monday by police investigating match-fixing in
Italian football.
The 32-year-old Mauri wasn't the only influential figure to have his collar felt. Juventus coach Antonio Conte (pictured), whose side won the Serie A earlier this month, had his home searched and the BBC reports that the police "are searching more than 30 homes, including those of players, trainers and administrators of clubs in Serie A, Serie B and lower divisions".
In total, 11 current and former professional players were held following the raids and five people arrested in Hungary are also part of the investigation into an illegal international betting ring.
Conte has been dragged into the affair after one of his former players, Filippo Carobbio, accused him of complicity in fixing two matches when he was in charge of Siena in the 2010/11 season. But Conte, who won 35 caps for Italy in the 1990s, issued a vigorous denial of the allegations on Monday, saying: "My football history as a player and coach speaks volumes. You can ask my team-mates, my players and my opponents."
Conte isn't the only person now at Juventus caught up in the police investigation. The club's international centre-back Leonardo Bonucci stands accused of involvement in match-fixing during his time at Bari. According to former teammate, Andrea Masiello, who has admitted accepting money to score an own goal, Bonucci also had a hand in fixing results.
"This is a worrying affair for the football world and we're following it with apprehension and bitterness but that doesn't mean Antonio Conte is part of it," said Juve president Andrea Agnelli. "As a club Juventus and I personally are standing beside Antonio Conte and Leonardo Bonucci. We hope Leo will play a great European Championships. Antonio is and will be our coach next season in the Champions League."
Bonucci will remain with the Italy squad as they prepare for next month's European Championships but Domenico Criscito has been removed following Monday's events. The 25-year-old left-back had his hotel room searched by police in a dawn raid and Italy coach Cesare Prandelli has deemed it best to stand him down. "I'm not taking Criscito bcause we would have had to face pressure that no human being could have handled, he's certainly not serene," said Prandelli.
The latest allegations are another heavy blow for the image of Italian football and Fifa and Uefa must start to consider what action should be taken. Like Pakistani cricket, there has been one scandal after another in recent years and the sanctions imposed by the Italian authorities are clearly not acting as a deterrent.
The 'Great Italian Football Scandal', in which it was revealed that Luciano Moggi, the then Juventus general director, was rigging matches on a regular basis, broke in 2006. That he was eventually caught was a result of a separate investigation by the Italian judiciary into the activities of the Camorra, the Neapolitan mafia, which uncovered evidence of an illegal betting ring involving some of the biggest clubs and most powerful men in football.
The four clubs at the heart of the scandal were Juventus, Fiorentina, Lazio and AC Milan, the latter of which was owned by Silvio Berlusconi, the Italian prime minister.
Juventus were relegated to Serie B as a punishment while the three other clubs had points deducted when the 2006-07 Serie A campaign began. Such relatively mild sentences appear to have had no effect on the integrity of the Italian game and it may now be time for Uefa to take a much tougher line and warn the clubs to take corruption seriously or risk being thrown out of European competition. ·
The 32-year-old Mauri wasn't the only influential figure to have his collar felt. Juventus coach Antonio Conte (pictured), whose side won the Serie A earlier this month, had his home searched and the BBC reports that the police "are searching more than 30 homes, including those of players, trainers and administrators of clubs in Serie A, Serie B and lower divisions".
In total, 11 current and former professional players were held following the raids and five people arrested in Hungary are also part of the investigation into an illegal international betting ring.
Conte has been dragged into the affair after one of his former players, Filippo Carobbio, accused him of complicity in fixing two matches when he was in charge of Siena in the 2010/11 season. But Conte, who won 35 caps for Italy in the 1990s, issued a vigorous denial of the allegations on Monday, saying: "My football history as a player and coach speaks volumes. You can ask my team-mates, my players and my opponents."
Conte isn't the only person now at Juventus caught up in the police investigation. The club's international centre-back Leonardo Bonucci stands accused of involvement in match-fixing during his time at Bari. According to former teammate, Andrea Masiello, who has admitted accepting money to score an own goal, Bonucci also had a hand in fixing results.
"This is a worrying affair for the football world and we're following it with apprehension and bitterness but that doesn't mean Antonio Conte is part of it," said Juve president Andrea Agnelli. "As a club Juventus and I personally are standing beside Antonio Conte and Leonardo Bonucci. We hope Leo will play a great European Championships. Antonio is and will be our coach next season in the Champions League."
Bonucci will remain with the Italy squad as they prepare for next month's European Championships but Domenico Criscito has been removed following Monday's events. The 25-year-old left-back had his hotel room searched by police in a dawn raid and Italy coach Cesare Prandelli has deemed it best to stand him down. "I'm not taking Criscito bcause we would have had to face pressure that no human being could have handled, he's certainly not serene," said Prandelli.
The latest allegations are another heavy blow for the image of Italian football and Fifa and Uefa must start to consider what action should be taken. Like Pakistani cricket, there has been one scandal after another in recent years and the sanctions imposed by the Italian authorities are clearly not acting as a deterrent.
The 'Great Italian Football Scandal', in which it was revealed that Luciano Moggi, the then Juventus general director, was rigging matches on a regular basis, broke in 2006. That he was eventually caught was a result of a separate investigation by the Italian judiciary into the activities of the Camorra, the Neapolitan mafia, which uncovered evidence of an illegal betting ring involving some of the biggest clubs and most powerful men in football.
The four clubs at the heart of the scandal were Juventus, Fiorentina, Lazio and AC Milan, the latter of which was owned by Silvio Berlusconi, the Italian prime minister.
Juventus were relegated to Serie B as a punishment while the three other clubs had points deducted when the 2006-07 Serie A campaign began. Such relatively mild sentences appear to have had no effect on the integrity of the Italian game and it may now be time for Uefa to take a much tougher line and warn the clubs to take corruption seriously or risk being thrown out of European competition. ·
Read more: http://www.theweek.co.uk/football/47151/italian-football-embroiled-new-match-fixing-scandal#ixzz2JLeDWIL0
Italy rocked by another match-fixing scandal as probe sees 19 investigated including Lazio captain Mauri and Juve boss Conte
By Sportsmail Reporter
|
Lazio captain Stefano Mauri and former Genoa midfielder Omar Milanetto are among 14 people arrested by police investigating allegations of a match-fixing scandal in Italy.
Juventus coach Antonio Conte and Italy defender Domenico Criscito have also been questioned by police.
Criscito has been excluded from the national squad for Euro 2012 as a result of the ongoing investigation.
Scroll down for video
No looking: Stefano Mauri hides his face from
photographers
A police statement said they searched 30 homes of players, trainers and administrators of clubs in Serie A, Serie B and Lega Pro, on suspicion of involvement in match-fixing.
Police in the northern city of Cremona said they were investigating Conte, fresh from his triumph in leading Juventus to the Italian Serie A championship for the first time since the club was relegated in 2006 in an earlier match-fixing scandal.
'Conte's reaction is that of someone who's completely innocent and strongly determined to prove his total innocence,' Conte's lawyer, Antonio De Rencis, said.
Making their move: An Italian police car arrives at the
Coverciano site center where the Italy national team are training
Siena president Massimo Mezzaroma has also been placed under investigation.
Zenit St. Petersburg defender Criscito is also being investigated, a week before the national team leaves for the European Championship in Poland and Ukraine.
Two police cars arrived at the national team's training site at around 6:25am local time (0425 GMT) and left more than two hours later. Criscito's house in Genoa was also searched.
Criscito, who did not take part in Italy's training session, has reportedly asked to be heard by the authorities as soon as possible.
Into custody: Mauri has been arrested
Action has been taken against 19 people, 11 of whom are footballers or former footballers - 14 have been arrested, three have been placed under house arrest and two others are to present themselves to authorities.
'It's devastating news,' former Italy and current Ireland coach Giovanni Trapattoni told Gazzetta dello Sport. 'If the magistrates are doing something, it is because there is some truth in this.
'I, who have travelled abroad for some time, must say that we give an ugly image of our football.
Crackdown: Cremona prosecutor Roberto di Martino listens
to Cremona police commissioner Antonio Bufano as they attend a news conference
about a police operation which was part of 'Last Bet' an investigation into
match-fixing in Italian football
'As an Italian, the first feeling is that we are mocked abroad, we are always linked to illicit dealings and are considered mafia members.
'This only damages us because I can claim to have paid the price for an attitude that affects everyone.'
He added: 'It's clear that certain stories provoke anger. But it could also give a push (to the team) to prove the clean face of football.'
Police action: Juventus' coach Antonio Conte is under
investigation
Monday's operation was part of 'Last Bet', a wider investigation into match-fixing in Italian soccer which has already seen a number of arrests of current and former Italian players.
'In this part of the investigation, indications have emerged of manipulation in matches from the 2010-11 Serie A championship, including games between Lazio and Genoa and Lecce and Lazio,' Raffale Grassi, director of SCO, the police service responsible for the investigation told SkyTG24 television.
Five people have also been arrested in Hungary on suspicion of being part of an illegal international betting ring.
Mauri has been accused of sporting fraud. Most of the footballers accused now play in Serie B or lower leagues, although Omar Milanetto spent five years at Genoa before joining Padova in 2011.
Under suspicion: Stefano Mauri (right) in action for
Lazio
Numerous others have had their houses searched, including Chievo Verona's Sergio Pellissier.
More than 50 people have now been arrested in Italy in the past year as part of the probe started by judicial authorities in Cremona.
Former Atalanta captain Cristiano Doni was banned from football for three and a half years last summer, and former Lazio captain Giuseppe Signori was also arrested.
Serie A clubs Atalanta, Novara and Siena were among the 22 Italian teams notified at the beginning of this month that they are being investigated by sports authorities.
Prosecutors in Cremona have detailed an extensive match-fixing ring stretching as far as Singapore and South America that was allegedly in operation for more than 10 years.
Italian Olympic Committee vice-president Luca Pancalli was equally saddened by the latest football scandal to rock the nation.
'The courage to speak must be there in order to put an end to this issue and to start again,' he said to Gazzetta.
'As a man of sport and as a citizen I feel infinite sadness. The sporting justice has other time limits with respect to the ordinary justice and it's clear that there will be (sporting) repercussions.'
Criscito's agent Andrea D'Amico insists his client is not concerned.
He said to Gazzetta dello Sport: 'I have spoken to Mimmo (Domenico) this morning and he is absolutely calm.
'Mimmo is ready to explain anything that may have caused him to be under the spotlight.
Investigated: Domenico Criscito (right) at Italy
training
'Our legal team is working in order for the magistrates to listen to him as soon as possible.'
Italian Football Federation (FIGC) vice-president Demetrio Albertini announced the former Genoa player will not go to Poland and Ukraine.
'Criscito will not be with us at the European Championship,' Albertini said in a press conference.
'He is in a hurry to end this current situation and that is his aim.
'He is disappointed to have caused this situation although he reiterates he has nothing to do with it.
Albertini added: 'We are disappointed but we have to remain close to the player.
'The decision not to include Criscito is a collective decision. The Federation has given Prandelli its support over this decision.
'Arrests have been made today but until proven otherwise, we are talking about innocent people even though they are considered suspects.
'I know Domenico and he is incredulous. He is an extraordinary guy and he has already seen his lawyers this morning.
'It is a strange day for us. These are things that we would not like to have had to go through.'
Video: Italian police release video of arrests in match-fixing scandal
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-2150943/Italy-match-fixing-scandal-19-investigated-including-Antonio-Conte.html#ixzz2JLed77Mt
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