As recent revelations of the Scommessopoli – the latest Serie A match-fixing scandal –
unravel, the Footy Chat’s Editor-in-Chief made me an offer I couldn’t refuse.
Match-fixing is as
much part of the game as the football the players kick and pass around - and heavily
relies as much on the inanimate objects purpose as it does the players
involved. A very lucrative, yet intricate racket, match-fixing is usually
orchestrated by an organized crime syndicate, which bribes players and
officials to play to a predetermined score line – which leans one way or
another after being scrubbed against various betting lines - thus generating
maximum profits from all bets laid. The Serie A is deeply rooted in corruption
and exploitation; dating back to 1980, when a betting scandal involving two Italian
businessmen was exposed. And like that suppressed cold sore on your lip, when
it comes back, it comes back with a vengeance – and never really goes away...
it will always be there. As if
integrity in Italian football wasn’t already at an all time low; the ghosts of Calciopoli’s
past resurfaces.
Now there’s no point
in beating a dead horse, ‘cause you may find that dead horse’s head severed and
stuffed under your bed linens. But for quite some time, I’ve considered Serie A
football, as the lowest possible form of a professional sports league there is.
I’d much rather watch a nil-nil draw involving two MLS teams than watch two
Serie A teams vie for the Scudetto –
which says a lot when considering the delta of calibres. My disdain towards
this league runs deep; how anyone can ignore the profuse flopping is beyond
me. Flopping has tainted the beautiful
game. It’s an eye sore. It’s a pandemic that has spread throughout Europe
quicker than the Bubonic Plague. Watching a Serie A game is like watching a
pedestrian version of duck hunt. As far as I’m concerned, players who flop are
no better than the players behind match-fixing – they’re cut from the same corrupt cloth.
With Euro 2012 right
around the corner, this side-bar story has potential to flood the front pages
of news publications across the globe: Azzurri Obscurity – shrouded in
controversy and domestic debauchery. However, with all things considered, much to the contrary - history has a funny way of repeating itself - and when everything is said and done, this scandal may work in Italian Bench Boss, Cesare Prandelli's favor; as the last time a scandal of such magnitude broke before a major tournament (1982 & 2006), the Azzurri were the last team standing - emerging victorious and left hoisting the hardware. Whether it's a coincidence, publicity stunt or conspiracy theory, I’ll
tell you one thing, I can bet and predict that there’s going to be an
aroma of something brewing, and it’s not Nona’s marinara sauce.
