The penultimate round of the Serie A campaign promises an intriguing fight for places in next season’s UEFA Champions League, but a fixture scheduling stand-off between the league and local authorities left clubs and supporters in limbo until an agreement was reached.
Serie A rules require teams competing for the same objective to play simultaneously on the final two match days. On Monday, the organizers scheduled the five decisive fixtures for 12:30pm tomorrow.
The Rome derby was among them, and with the Italian Tennis Open men’s final taking place tomorrow at the Foro Italico, next door to the Stadio Olimpico, the early kick-off was chosen to avoid security complications.
Photo: Reuters
The Italian Open was interrupted on Wednesday when smoke from fireworks at the neighboring Stadio Olimpico drifted across the Foro Italico as Inter beat SS Lazio 2-0 in the Coppa Italia final.
However, Rome Prefect Lamberto Giannini disagreed. On Tuesday he ordered the AS Roma-Lazio game in Serie A to be moved to Monday night.
The Lega Serie A governing body appealed to the Regional Administrative Court of Lazio, but it declined to rule, instead inviting the parties to come to an agreement.
Photo: Reute
A decision was made late on Thursday to schedule the games for 12pm tomorrow, with a unified security coordination put in place to cover the Rome derby and the tennis.
Five points divide five clubs, with three spots available in Europe’s top club competition — champions Inter (85 points) are the only side assured of their place — with those who miss out heading for the UEFA Europa League.
SSC Napoli are second on 70 points, two ahead of Juventus, with AC Milan and Roma a further point back. Como, sixth on 65 points, have already secured European qualification for the first time and remain in contention for a top-four finish. They face Parma Calcio 1913 (42 points, 13th)
Last season’s champions Napoli know that a win against already-relegated Pisa (18 points, 20th and last) would secure a spot in Europe.
Milan are to play Genoa (41 points, 14th).
Juventus, on a 10-game unbeaten run, are expected to take all three points against ACF Fiorentina (38 points, 15th).
Double winners Inter host Serie B-bound Hellas Verona (20 points, 19th).
The relegation fight provides the weekend’s other drama, with three teams battling to avoid the final drop spot.
US Cremonese are third from bottom on 31 points and are away to Udinese (50 points, 10th). US Lecce, one point ahead of Cremonese in 17th, face US Sassuolo Calcio (49 points, 11th), while Cagliari (37 points, 16th) need a draw at home against Torino (44 points, 12th) to confirm safety.
On Monday, Atalanta BC (58 points, seventh) are to play Bologna (52 points, eighth).
Additional reporting by staff writer
Taiwan’s men’s table tennis team won bronze on Saturday at this year’s International Table Tennis Federation World Team Table Tennis Championships in London, matching the country’s best-ever finish at the regular tournament. Consisting of Lin Yun-ju, Taiwan’s top-ranked player at world No. 7, Feng Yi-hsin, Kuo Guan-hong, Hong Jing-kai and Hsu Hsien-chia, the team won bronze after losing 0-3 to Japan in the semifinals. In the opening match, 24-year-old Lin played the first game against world No. 3 Tomokazu Harimoto 11-5, but ultimately lost the next three closely contested games 9-11, 10-12 and 10-12. Feng then faced world No. 8 Sora Matsushima in
Taiwanese fire dancer Yang Li-wei advanced to the final of Britain’s Got Talent this weekend after receiving a Golden Buzzer during her live semi-final performance. Yang, a member of Taiwan’s Coming True Fire Group, awed judges and audiences with a high-intensity fire performance featuring flaming umbrellas, fire swallowing and spinning metal structures balanced with her legs. Judge Simon Cowell praised Yang as a star, while guest judge KSI reacted with amazement before pressing the Golden Buzzer, sending her to the finals. The dance group wrote on social media that the Golden Buzzer was “the highest honor” on the talent show, adding: “Twenty-three years
As Super Rugby fast approaches its playoff season it finds itself racing toward a reckoning with many issues that threaten the southern hemisphere tournament. A group of stakeholders met in the New Zealand city of Christchurch late last month to address problems that are making the future of the 31-year-old competition increasingly tenuous. The discussion was made more urgent by the decision by the owners of Moana Pasifika to fold the Auckland-based club for financial reasons. That followed the closure of the Melbourne Rebels at the end of the 2024 season, likewise because of financial difficulties. Problems addressed included player retention as more
Memphis Grizzlies forward Brandon Clarke, 29, has died, the NBA team said in a statement on Tuesday, while the family of Jason Collins, the first openly gay man to play in a major US pro sports league, announced the former Grizzlies and Brooklyn Nets player had died after a battle with brain cancer. “We are heartbroken by the tragic loss of Brandon Clarke,” the Grizzlies said in a statement posted on social media. “Brandon was an outstanding teammate and an even better person whose impact on the organization and the greater Memphis community will not be forgotten.” The statement did not provide
RSS