Revolution in Calcio as Serie A breaks away
Published 01 May, 2009, 19:15
Italy's Serie A is set to take its cue from the English Premier League and form a breakaway championship. The country's top football division will split from Serie B and establish the Lega Calcio Serie A.
The move arises from a dispute in financing with the lower league – Italy's only other professional division.
Italian clubs are desperately seeking to halt the dominance of English sides in Europe. One way of doing this, the new league states, will be by using the increased revenue from TV coverage to buy more top class players.
Serie A and Serie B have been run together by the Lega Calcio since 1946, but that has come to an end after 19 of the 20 top clubs voted to break away and form their own governing body. The move is similar to what happened back in England during the 1992 season when the Premier League was formed.
Maurizio Beretta will be the man given the task of overseeing the management of the Lega Serie A. Maurizio Zamaprini, chairman of Serie A, announced the move, but he is not sure if it will be best for Calcio.
“We have formed the new Lega Serie A. Am I satisfied? Not really, but it had to be done,” the chief told La Gazzetta Dello Sport.
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