The miracle of Abodi: Serie A, basketball, Gravina and Lotito, all united against the Account Control Agency
The draft reform makes everyone agree: chain protests over the change desired by the Minister of Sport
ROME – Put together the Serie A League, the basketball League, the Football Federation and the Federbasket, even Gravina and Lotito. It’s a political miracle. The Minister of Sport Andrea Abodi can name it: the draft decree establishing the birth of a government agency for economic and financial supervision and controlon professional sports clubs is a surprising glue. The reform – strenuously defended by the minister again this morning on Radio anch’io sport – has sparked chain protests, as noted in press releases.
The FIGC president Gravina was the first to intervene outright against the government’s move. And today he returned to reiterate his opposition to an agency “disrespectful towards three magistrates who are part of the Covisoc organization, extraordinary professionals, super partes”.
From the Football League front, after a meeting with all the clubs, Serie A “unanimously expressed its opposition, claiming the autonomy of the sporting system from politics”. “All the Serie A clubs have once again reiterated the need to proceed towards full autonomy of the Serie A League within the sporting system”.
Latest has arrived the angry reaction of basketball, a piece vilified by a treatment of superficial institutional neglect . The Italian Basketball Federation and the Lega Basket Serie A in fact say they are “extremely amazed not only at having been kept in the dark about this provision, which also concerns the Serie A basketball clubs, but also for having learned it, despite the evident direct involvement, from the press agencies, a completely irregular method. The tendency to mention basketball alone is therefore confirmed, with a total lack of consideration for the world of basketball. when it must contribute to expected charges to be borne by football clubs”.
“Not understanding the urgency of a measure like this, FIP and LBA anticipate as of now how the intention to pass on to the Serie A clubs the huge costs expected annually for the agency finds both subjects clearly also opposed by virtue of the fact that professional basketball, contrary to what the law provides, has for years been kept outside of the distribution of contributions that it would be entitled to under the Melandri Decree which, please note, applies to professional team sports.
These costs, if anything is to be conceded, should at least be divided proportionally between the two sports based on their respective turnovers, FIP and LBA, having only now had due visibility on the situation, we hope that the Government, before taking the measure, will question, call basketball to the table, like football, for all the appropriate considerations.”