The prosecutor has asked for Juventus to be relegated to the third division, Serie C, but it is widely expected that the club will be relegated to Serie B, in a deal cut with the prosecutors. In return, the club will not appeal the verdict. Lazio and Fiorentina are likely to suffer severe points deductions but remain in Serie A, while AC Milan will receive a comparatively slim penalty. The clubs will have a week in which to appeal any verdict.
The appeals process for any club or person found guilty must be completed by the July 25 deadline set by Uefa for the Italian Football Federation to submit its list of teams to compete in the 2006-07 Champions League and Uefa Cup competitions.
Giovanna Melandri, the Italian minister of sport, speaking at the national council of the Italian National Olympic Committee said that whatever the result of the trial, the government and football authorities “must rewrite the rules on the controls, while saving the autonomy of football.”
