The Italian top football league, Lega Serie A, has filed an emergency appeal to move five Serie A fixtures scheduled for Monday evening to Sunday morning. This comes after their initial proposal to reschedule the matches, including the highly anticipated Roma-Lazio derby, was rejected.
The current scheduling chaos leaves ten teams uncertain about the exact date and time of their Week 37 league encounters. The urgency to find a solution stems from the fiercely competitive race for a Champions League qualification spot, which necessitates that all games involving Roma, Milan, Juventus, Napoli, and Como must be played simultaneously to ensure fairness.
The primary cause of this scheduling dilemma is the Rome Derby. Concerns over public safety, heightened by the intense rivalry between Roma and Lazio fans, coupled with the coinciding Italian Open men’s singles tennis final at the Foro Italico (located within the same complex as the Stadio Olimpico), have created a complex logistical challenge.
Lega Serie A’s initial plan was to play these five crucial games on Sunday at 11:30 AM UK time (12:30 PM CEST). However, local authorities deemed this timing too close to the tennis tournament, posing a risk to public safety.
Consequently, the Prefect ordered the matches to be postponed to Monday at 7:45 PM UK time (8:45 PM CEST), which in turn required the rescheduling of the other four affected games.
Lega Serie A then proposed an alternative solution: kicking off the games at 11:00 AM UK time (12:00 PM CEST) and delaying the start of the Italian Open until 5:30 PM UK time (6:30 PM CEST). Unfortunately, Rome’s local authorities have already dismissed this revised proposal as unworkable.
In response, Lega Serie A has officially lodged an appeal with the TAR tribunal, hoping for a resolution on the match schedule by tomorrow.
English Translation
The Lega Serie A has lodged an appeal to have Roma-Lazio, and consequently another four Serie A games, moved from Monday evening to Sunday morning, after their proposal was rejected.
The chaotic situation means that 10 teams are going into the weekend not knowing on which day or at which time they will be playing their Week 37 fixtures.
Because the race for a Champions League spot is so tight, the games featuring Roma, Milan, Juventus, Napoli and Como all have to be played simultaneously to ensure fairness.
The kick-off battle is all about Roma vs. Lazio, as this is the fixture causing all the problems due to fears over public safety with two such bitter sets of fans, plus the presence of the Italian Open men’s singles tennis final at the Foro Italico, the same complex as the Stadio Olimpico.
The Lega Serie A wants to play these games all on Sunday at 11:30 UK time (12:30 CEST), but the local authorities ruled that was too close to the tennis tournament and therefore bad for public safety.
The Prefect ordered it be moved to Monday at 19:45 UK time (20:45 CEST), so the other four games must move too.
Lega Serie A proposed an alternative today, kicking off at 11:00 UK (12:00 CEST) and delaying the start of the Italian Open until 17:30 UK (18:30 CEST).
However, the local authorities in Rome have already rejected that as unfeasible.
It means Lega Serie A has now lodged a formal appeal to the TAR tribunal, hoping to get a response tomorrow on when these matches are meant to be played.