Italian football boss hits out at stadiums

2 Feb 2012, 11:08 am   -   Source: AAP
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One of the biggest problems in Italian football, is not having stadiums that are well-equipped, says Italian Football Federation president Giancarlo Abete.

Italian Football Federation president Giancarlo Abete has hit out at the state of stadiums in the country following the postponement of a raft of mid-week games.

Snow caused Tuesday night's Parma-Juventus clash to be called off, while two games - Siena-Catania and Bologna-Fiorentina - have already fallen victim to wintry conditions on Wednesday.

With temperatures expected to plummet to as low as minus 10 degrees Celsius in the north this weekend, AC Milan chief executive Adriano Galliani has even asked for his team's clash with Napoli to be postponed days in advance.

"One of the problems, if not the biggest in Italian football, is not having stadiums that are well-equipped," said Abete.

"We need structures that are more accessible for the fans and the spectacle of football. Although television is fundamental, sport only lives if there are fans in the stadiums."

Fans in Italy have long complained that stadiums are not very welcoming places and attendances are often embarrassing, with sell-out crowds an extreme rarity.

Juventus moved into their own stadium this season to become the first team in Italy to have a privately-owned ground.

And Juve general manager Giuseppe Marotta was particularly critical of authorities after his side's game at Parma was called off.

"It's absurd that we play in such obsolete and run-down stadiums," he moaned.

"It's time for the politicians to get moving and promote the new laws on stadiums. It's not possible to keep postponing matches."

One reason Juve are the only side to have built their own ground is the excessive bureaucratic regulation that needs to be passed before a club can start to do so.

For many years, the federation and clubs have been petitioning the government to pass a law that will remove the red tape and facilitate such moves, but progress has thus far been painstakingly slow.

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