4 Italian Soccer Teams Demoted for Match Fixing
Just days after winning its 4th World Cup soccer title, Italy suffered an all-time low as 4 top teams, including powerhouse Juventus, and top league officials and referees were sanctioned for match-fixing.
An Italian sports gambling tribunal demoted Juventus to Serie B and stripped it of its last two Serie A titles on Friday. Lazio and Fiorentina also were demoted to the second division, while AC Milan was spared relegation but was given a 15-point penalty in the top division and will not play in European tournaments this season.
Of the 26 officials or referees implicated in the scandal, nineteen received punishment ranging from the maximum 5-year ban to a warning; 5 were acquitted; and 2 were banned for life without prosecution because they resigned before being charged.
The penalties can be appealed within five days to a higher sports court. Hundreds of fans for Lazio, the capital's other team along with AS Roma, gathered outside a Rome hotel where judges read the verdicts in Italy's biggest sports trial.
July 15, 2006
Posted By Susan Torres
Staff Editor, CasinoGamblingWeb.com
Previous Page | Internet Gambling | Top Online Casinos | Submit News!