Lega Serie A President Lorenzo Casini raised the issue of Serie A and TV rights on Radio Anch’io on Rai Radio 1. Serie A 2022/2023 saw its epilogue with matchday 38, which ended on Sunday 4 June. On the table is the question of TV rights, which can be acquired by the various broadcasters for a maximum of five years and are now being brought into being. But also the Serie A calendar with many games.
“From a sporting point of view, it was a very good championship. Napoli is the fourth team to win the Scudetto in four years, but also the fourth in over 20 years: a very important result to increase the competitiveness of the championship – He declared himself President of the Lega Serie A. Then we led the playoffs that had disappeared in recent years and we don’t even have the playoffs between Spezia and Verona on purpose, they were missing since the 2004/05 season. Play-off scheduled for Sunday 11 June at 8.45pm: possible venue between Udine, Lecce, Florence and Reggio Emilia.
The President also touched on the exceptional results achieved by Italian teams at European level: “I have fond memories of the results in Europe. Roma were unlucky in the penalty shoot-out, but we’ve reached three European finals, which hasn’t happened since 1990.” “.
A 22/23 series logo
Lorenzo Casini also focused on the Serie A championship and the many games on the calendar: “The number of games is very high, Fiorentina is the team that will play the most games this year, 60 games in total.” I think Inter reaches 57, the same number as City and Real Madrid. The problem is that when domestic leagues reduce their games, the total number of these games does not decrease. That’s why we have to coordinate, it’s not a problem that can be solved as a single country. Let’s also remember that both the Premier League and La Liga have 20 teams. The teams have decided to keep this format for the time being for a number of reasons.
The President also underlines the economic importance of the championship: “More teams ensure higher overall revenue.” The second reason is historical, geographical: one between Bari and Cagliari, two important squares will be created, Genoa has emerged, another historic square of the Championship. In a 20-team Serie A, it’s more likely to be represented. And then there’s the position of the leagues when it comes to seeing what’s happening internationally. Here it depends on who takes the first step.”
The very important issue of TV rights was also raised. “The issuance of the call for rights is ongoing, the deadline for submitting offers is June 14. That process will begin next week and will involve several steps, including private negotiations with the person who submitted the bids. Now it’s time to wait. Sporting results in Europe certainly help. The free-to-air game is among the packages, as is the option to use the broadcaster or have an operator take over days after the Boxing Day model in the Premier League.”
Getty Olympic Stadium in Rome
The president also addresses the burning issue of the club’s debts but also underscores the virtuosity of some clubs including, coincidentally, Italian champions Napoli.
“It’s a problem that affects many clubs, but we also have virtuous realities, for example Napoli.” One issue in which UEFA has shown interest is the introduction of an even broader salary cap than the one currently being developed. For the time being, UEFA has set a maximum spending cap for all salaries, total spending must be 70% of the budget. A salary cap is examined, which, based on the American model, affects the salary of the individual football player. It could lead to further deleveraging.”
The point to the next championship. “We should have the calendar ready for the first week of July,” says Casini, adding that the asymmetrical calendar is likely to be confirmed next year as well. We want to improve the windows: Last year we introduced the eight Premier League model windows. we’ll try to get to seven.