Italian football is in the middle of an overhaul at the top, but it seems Inter’s most important figure will pick the new head of the Federation.
After failing to qualify for a third straight World Cup, it was always a certainty that heads would have to roll. Gabriele Gravina is no longer the president, so now new leadership is needed, while the search for a head coach is underway after Gennaro Gattuso’s resignation.
Malagò: A concern for Milan?
The future of Italian football will be written in the coming weeks and the new leader of the FIGC could be Giovanni Malagò. As reported in La Gazzetta dello Sport (via MilanPress), the former head of CONI is in fact the favourite of most Serie A clubs to take Gravina’s place as president of the federation.
As Calciomercato.com add, 11 yes votes are enough for a majority, but Inter president Beppe Marotta has already collected signatures from at least 14 clubs for the letter of commitment on the federal forms.
Verona, Sassuolo, Torino, Pisa, Parma and Lazio are still missing in giving their approval. Senator Claudio Lotito – the president of Lazio – opposes the proposal, partly because the Meloni government would prefer a commissioner rather than a president.
La Gazzetta go on to add that Milan tried to propose Adriano Galliani initially, before he declared himself out: “I’ve thought about it for a long time and I’m grateful to those clubs who considered me as a Lega Serie A candidate for the presidency of the federation, but I won’t accept the invitation. In fact, I believe that the best possible FIGC president is Giovanni Malagò.”
After the probable announcement of Malagò as a candidate, even if the deadline is May 13th we will have to wait until June 22nd, when all the members of the FIGC will be called to vote .
Serie A clubs are also reportedly ready to submit a document outlining their demands for reforming Italian football: tax breaks for revitalising youth teams and investing in new, club-owned stadiums, the lifting of the ban on advertising by betting sites and a tax on revenue from football betting.
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