Guido Rossi creates chaos

FIGC fury at Rossi conflict Saturday 16 September, 2006

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The world of Italian football has reacted angrily to news that FIGC Commissioner Guido Rossi has taken charge of Telecom – a clear conflict of interest.

Appointed to lead the Federation through the Calciopoli scandal in May, Rossi stunned the sporting community when he was appointed President of troubled company Telecom Italia late last night.


Although he has not formally handed in his resignation from the FIGC – and CONI chief Gianni Petrucci confirmed he had only heard about the development through the news agencies – it would be practically impossible for him to continue in both positions.


“Rossi has no intention of leaving. I am convinced he’ll stay on,” FIGC Vice-President Vito Gamberale was quoted as saying in today’s newspapers.


But Rossi cannot lead Telecom through its controversial reconstruction plans and rewrite the Calcio rulebook, as it would be a clear conflict of interest – the very situation his appointment was meant to prevent.


Telecom Italia owns Alice (who show football on their mobile phone services), TIM (who sponsor Serie A and B) and La7 (a television channel that has 10 clubs in its digital pay-per-view package).


“How many posts can he hold? At this point I think it’s opportune for Rossi to resign, at the very least from his position as Extraordinary Commissioner for the FIGC,” said Minister for Justice Clemente Mastella.


“I am awaiting clarification,” added Minister for Sport Giovanna Melandri. “One thing has to be clear – the reformation of football must not be interrupted in any way.”


Now the race is on to find another man to lead the Federation – it would be the third such figure in five months, as Franco Carraro resigned in the wake of the Calciopoli scandal on May 16.


The appointment could either be with someone outside of the football world, in which case the prime candidates are Gianni Letta and Gamberale.


If the clubs choose a return to having the sport dictated by a person who knows the environment well, then current CONI chief Petrucci (who already took over temporarily in 2000) or Raffaele Pagnozzi (who was Extraordinary Commissioner from 1996 to 1997) are the most likely options.


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It should be worth noting the angelic Massimo Moratti, owner of Inter, has been a director of Telecom since 2001.

The Telecom board...

ex-Presidente
Marco Tronchetti Provera (1)

Presidente
Guido Rossi

Vice Presidente
Gilberto Benetton

Amministratori Delegati
Carlo Orazio Buora (CEO and GM of Pirelli- Inter's sponsor)
Riccardo Ruggiero (2)

Consiglieri
Paolo Baratta (indipendente) (3)
John Robert Sotheby Boas (indipendente)
Diana Bracco (indipendente)
Francesco Denozza (indipendente) (4)
Domenico De Sole (indipendente) (1) (4)
Luigi Fausti (indipendente) (3)
Guido Ferrarini (indipendente) (4)
Jean Paul Fitoussi (indipendente)
Enzo Grilli (indipendente)
Vittorio Merloni (indipendente)
Gianni Mion
Massimo Moratti
Marco Onado (indipendente) (1) (4)
Renato Pagliaro
Pasquale Pistorio (indipendente) (1) (3)
Carlo Alessandro Puri Negri
Luigi Roth (indipendente)


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Now it's no wonder that Inter's interceptions were not further pursued...and here I was, an idealist, thinking that Calciopoli was apolitical and a cleansing exercise.

The funny thing is Rossi has created this furore himself. He did not even try to hide it. What a pathetically arrogant man.

At least I can admit that the Milan-Juve duopoly was corrupt beyond belief. But what of Rossi? So is calcio really clean or has it been replaced by different power brokers?

Forza Italia!Forza Milan! wrote:FIGC fury at Rossi conflict Saturday 16 September, 2006

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The world of Italian football has reacted angrily to news that FIGC Commissioner Guido Rossi has taken charge of Telecom – a clear conflict of interest.

Appointed to lead the Federation through the Calciopoli scandal in May, Rossi stunned the sporting community when he was appointed President of troubled company Telecom Italia late last night.

Although he has not formally handed in his resignation from the FIGC – and CONI chief Gianni Petrucci confirmed he had only heard about the development through the news agencies – it would be practically impossible for him to continue in both positions.

“Rossi has no intention of leaving. I am convinced he’ll stay on,” FIGC Vice-President Vito Gamberale was quoted as saying in today’s newspapers.

But Rossi cannot lead Telecom through its controversial reconstruction plans and rewrite the Calcio rulebook, as it would be a clear conflict of interest – the very situation his appointment was meant to prevent.

Telecom Italia owns Alice (who show football on their mobile phone services), TIM (who sponsor Serie A and B) and La7 (a television channel that has 10 clubs in its digital pay-per-view package).

“How many posts can he hold? At this point I think it’s opportune for Rossi to resign, at the very least from his position as Extraordinary Commissioner for the FIGC,” said Minister for Justice Clemente Mastella.

“I am awaiting clarification,” added Minister for Sport Giovanna Melandri. “One thing has to be clear – the reformation of football must not be interrupted in any way.”

Now the race is on to find another man to lead the Federation – it would be the third such figure in five months, as Franco Carraro resigned in the wake of the Calciopoli scandal on May 16.

The appointment could either be with someone outside of the football world, in which case the prime candidates are Gianni Letta and Gamberale.

If the clubs choose a return to having the sport dictated by a person who knows the environment well, then current CONI chief Petrucci (who already took over temporarily in 2000) or Raffaele Pagnozzi (who was Extraordinary Commissioner from 1996 to 1997) are the most likely options.

--------------------------------
It should be worth noting the angelic Massimo Moratti, owner of Inter, has been a director of Telecom since 2001.

I think this is the kiss of death for the "cleaning up" of Italian football. Irrespective of what Gamberale says, there is no way that Rossi will hold down the two positions. A pity, because he does seem to be a breath of fresh air with respect to his predecessors (and who cares if his general temperament seems to be that of an affectionate old granddad?!).

Impressed as I am with Giovanna Melandri (and her statement of defiance), I think the tell-tale signs have been evident in recent weeks, especially in the words of Antonio Matarrese, vice-president of the Lega Calcio, and a real old-school villain if ever there was one. Without directly criticising Rossi's approach, Matarrese has made several comments about how Rossi would be "ill-advised to change the rules radically with respect to the past".

Ci risiamo

merseyman wrote:

Forza Italia!Forza Milan! wrote:FIGC fury at Rossi conflict Saturday 16 September, 2006

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The world of Italian football has reacted angrily to news that FIGC Commissioner Guido Rossi has taken charge of Telecom – a clear conflict of interest.

Appointed to lead the Federation through the Calciopoli scandal in May, Rossi stunned the sporting community when he was appointed President of troubled company Telecom Italia late last night.

Although he has not formally handed in his resignation from the FIGC – and CONI chief Gianni Petrucci confirmed he had only heard about the development through the news agencies – it would be practically impossible for him to continue in both positions.

“Rossi has no intention of leaving. I am convinced he’ll stay on,” FIGC Vice-President Vito Gamberale was quoted as saying in today’s newspapers.

But Rossi cannot lead Telecom through its controversial reconstruction plans and rewrite the Calcio rulebook, as it would be a clear conflict of interest – the very situation his appointment was meant to prevent.

Telecom Italia owns Alice (who show football on their mobile phone services), TIM (who sponsor Serie A and B) and La7 (a television channel that has 10 clubs in its digital pay-per-view package).

“How many posts can he hold? At this point I think it’s opportune for Rossi to resign, at the very least from his position as Extraordinary Commissioner for the FIGC,” said Minister for Justice Clemente Mastella.

“I am awaiting clarification,” added Minister for Sport Giovanna Melandri. “One thing has to be clear – the reformation of football must not be interrupted in any way.”

Now the race is on to find another man to lead the Federation – it would be the third such figure in five months, as Franco Carraro resigned in the wake of the Calciopoli scandal on May 16.

The appointment could either be with someone outside of the football world, in which case the prime candidates are Gianni Letta and Gamberale.

If the clubs choose a return to having the sport dictated by a person who knows the environment well, then current CONI chief Petrucci (who already took over temporarily in 2000) or Raffaele Pagnozzi (who was Extraordinary Commissioner from 1996 to 1997) are the most likely options.

--------------------------------
It should be worth noting the angelic Massimo Moratti, owner of Inter, has been a director of Telecom since 2001.

I think this is the kiss of death for the "cleaning up" of Italian football. Irrespective of what Gamberale says, there is no way that Rossi will hold down the two positions. A pity, because he does seem to be a breath of fresh air with respect to his predecessors (and who cares if his general temperament seems to be that of an affectionate old granddad?!).

Impressed as I am with Giovanna Melandri (and her statement of defiance), I think the tell-tale signs have been evident in recent weeks, especially in the words of Antonio Matarrese, vice-president of the Lega Calcio, and a real old-school villain if ever there was one. Without directly criticising Rossi's approach, Matarrese has made several comments about how Rossi would be "ill-advised to change the rules radically with respect to the past".

Ci risiamo

Si, ho letto.

Rossi has remained defiant until now. I am amazed that it took this long for someone to reply to this thread. IMO, this is huge news.

I did read those not-so-subtle words of intimidation by Matarrese. FIGC vs Lega, Public vs Private...always an interesting one.

Still, I like to think, that if nothing at least the Milan-Juve duopoly has been damaged if not destroyed. Juve are in Serie B and at least a new constitution can be worked towards.

But I fear even for that...did you know that Milan, Juve, Inter, Lazio and Roma sit atop 80% of TV rights in Italy??

If parliament does pass the collective TV rights bill then it will be a huge boost for the minnows and a big signal to the big clubs that changes are afoot.

However, with Silvio Berlusconi's Forza Italia still having a large influence on parliament and Prodi's own coalition skeptical of leadership (not least due to the fact that the left is comprised of so many parties) that seems a tough sell.

Time will tell. For now, one can at least breathe easier knowing that Juve are not above the law. Though their punishment seems rather cruel compared to the other quartet (Fio, Laz, Mil Reg), I can somewhat agree with the judicial system's distinction between Juve and the other 4 clubs.

Forza Italia!Forza Milan! wrote:The Telecom board...

ex-Presidente
Marco Tronchetti Provera (1)

Presidente
Guido Rossi

Vice Presidente
Gilberto Benetton

Amministratori Delegati
Carlo Orazio Buora (CEO and GM of Pirelli- Inter's sponsor)
Riccardo Ruggiero (2)

Consiglieri
Paolo Baratta (indipendente) (3)
John Robert Sotheby Boas (indipendente)
Diana Bracco (indipendente)
Francesco Denozza (indipendente) (4)
Domenico De Sole (indipendente) (1) (4)
Luigi Fausti (indipendente) (3)
Guido Ferrarini (indipendente) (4)
Jean Paul Fitoussi (indipendente)
Enzo Grilli (indipendente)
Vittorio Merloni (indipendente)
Gianni Mion
Massimo Moratti
Marco Onado (indipendente) (1) (4)
Renato Pagliaro
Pasquale Pistorio (indipendente) (1) (3)
Carlo Alessandro Puri Negri
Luigi Roth (indipendente)


--------------------------

Now it's no wonder that Inter's interceptions were not further pursued...and here I was, an idealist, thinking that Calciopoli was apolitical and a cleansing exercise.

The funny thing is Rossi has created this furore himself. He did not even try to hide it. What a pathetically arrogant man.

At least I can admit that the Milan-Juve duopoly was corrupt beyond belief. But what of Rossi? So is calcio really clean or has it been replaced by different power brokers?

did you really think the calciopoli was cleansing?i mean after the first verdicts it already showed that nothing had really changed.this is just another one for the books.

Yeah, this was a stupid move by Rossi, even tho I think he has done a very good job so far.

Stop trying to find conspiracies where none exist, my friend. Rossi has been like a breadth of fresh air for this league, its Materasse who appears to be trying to build a new "system" with his implied threats. If Rossi was Inter's puppet, why would he appoint Albertini as his assistant???

Forza Italia!Forza Milan! wrote:The Telecom board...

ex-Presidente
Marco Tronchetti Provera (1)

Presidente
Guido Rossi

Vice Presidente
Gilberto Benetton

Amministratori Delegati
Carlo Orazio Buora (CEO and GM of Pirelli- Inter's sponsor)
Riccardo Ruggiero (2)

Consiglieri
Paolo Baratta (indipendente) (3)
John Robert Sotheby Boas (indipendente)
Diana Bracco (indipendente)
Francesco Denozza (indipendente) (4)
Domenico De Sole (indipendente) (1) (4)
Luigi Fausti (indipendente) (3)
Guido Ferrarini (indipendente) (4)
Jean Paul Fitoussi (indipendente)
Enzo Grilli (indipendente)
Vittorio Merloni (indipendente)
Gianni Mion
Massimo Moratti
Marco Onado (indipendente) (1) (4)
Renato Pagliaro
Pasquale Pistorio (indipendente) (1) (3)
Carlo Alessandro Puri Negri
Luigi Roth (indipendente)


--------------------------

Now it's no wonder that Inter's interceptions were not further pursued...and here I was, an idealist, thinking that Calciopoli was apolitical and a cleansing exercise.

The funny thing is Rossi has created this furore himself. He did not even try to hide it. What a pathetically arrogant man.

At least I can admit that the Milan-Juve duopoly was corrupt beyond belief. But what of Rossi? So is calcio really clean or has it been replaced by different power brokers?

The good work to continue hopefully.

Hmmm... so Albertini thinks very highly of Rossi... does that make Albertini also an Interista in disguise?


Albertini ready to serve FIGC
Tuesday 19 September, 2006

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Demetrio Albertini has said he is willing to continue aiding the Italian Football Federation following the resignation of FIGC Commissioner Guido Rossi.

The latter decided to leave his post on Monday night and was followed by his assistants Vito Gamberale, Paolo Nicoletti and Albertini after Rossi’s appointment as head of Telecom Italia.

“I totally agree with the decisions and the general policy lines of Professor Rossi,” said Albertini in an official note.

“I now remit my mandate to the Italian Olympic Committee [CONI] to evaluate together the conditions for the continuation of this project.

“I am available to help out in this transition phase and I am willing to offer my services to football and Italian sport,” added the former Milan man.

Albertini’s message leaves the door open for a future dialogue with CONI President Gianni Petrucci, who is now the main candidate to replace Rossi on a temporary basis.

“Everything will be solved, I am very tranquil and I will expose my ideas to the CONI council,” said Petrucci.

“We will take our time to decide, but I am sure that Italian football will finally turn over a new leaf,” he concluded.

Rossi was expected to appear on Tuesday in front of CONI to present a detailed report on his time at the FIGC, but there is presently no guarantee that he will attend the meeting.

In the meantime, it has been confirmed that Massimo Coccia, who was chosen by Rossi to rewrite the game’s regulations following Calciopoli, has not resigned and continues in his job

bluenine wrote:The good work to continue hopefully.

Hmmm... so Albertini thinks very highly of Rossi... does that make Albertini also an Interista in disguise?


Albertini ready to serve FIGC
Tuesday 19 September, 2006

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Demetrio Albertini has said he is willing to continue aiding the Italian Football Federation following the resignation of FIGC Commissioner Guido Rossi.

The latter decided to leave his post on Monday night and was followed by his assistants Vito Gamberale, Paolo Nicoletti and Albertini after Rossi’s appointment as head of Telecom Italia.

“I totally agree with the decisions and the general policy lines of Professor Rossi,” said Albertini in an official note.

“I now remit my mandate to the Italian Olympic Committee [CONI] to evaluate together the conditions for the continuation of this project.

“I am available to help out in this transition phase and I am willing to offer my services to football and Italian sport,” added the former Milan man.

Albertini’s message leaves the door open for a future dialogue with CONI President Gianni Petrucci, who is now the main candidate to replace Rossi on a temporary basis.

“Everything will be solved, I am very tranquil and I will expose my ideas to the CONI council,” said Petrucci.

“We will take our time to decide, but I am sure that Italian football will finally turn over a new leaf,” he concluded.

Rossi was expected to appear on Tuesday in front of CONI to present a detailed report on his time at the FIGC, but there is presently no guarantee that he will attend the meeting.

In the meantime, it has been confirmed that Massimo Coccia, who was chosen by Rossi to rewrite the game’s regulations following Calciopoli, has not resigned and continues in his job

Albertini has to remain diplomatic.

That calcio needed a cleanup was obvious. That Rossi was completely impartial is unclear.