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CORONAVIRUS PUSHES ITALY TO PLAY SERIE A MATCHES IN EMPTY STADIUMS

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Italy is likely to order all top-flight Serie A games to be played behind closed doors in efforts to curb Europe’s worst coronavirus outbreak, the sports minister said yesterday.

‘We are heading towards that decision,’ Vincenzo Spadafora told reporters when asked if the government was thinking of barring fans.

The government last month banned sporting events in the worst-affected northern regions. So far, 10 Serie A matches have been postponed as well as two in the Coppa Italia. 

However, Italy’s epidemic has spread, with 79 dead and 2,502 cases, and ministers are considering new measures.

The Turin city government has called off the Juventus v AC Milan Coppa Italia semi-final second leg, which had been scheduled for Wednesday, because it could not enforce a ban on fans from affected regions.

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Thursday’s Napoli v Inter Milan Coppa Italia semi-final match is also off.

Spadafora’s announcement came as Serie A bosses were meeting to discuss the situation. Until now, they have preferred to postpone matches rather than play behind closed doors.

But with an already crowded fixture list, the league is running out of dates for rescheduled matches. 

Kunle Solaja is the author of landmark books on sports and journalism as well as being a multiple award-winning journalist and editor of long standing. He is easily Nigeria’s foremost soccer diarist and Africa's most capped FIFA World Cup journalist, having attended all FIFA World Cup finals from Italia ’90 to Qatar 2022. He was honoured at the Qatar 2022 World Cup by FIFA and AIPS.

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