Italy may have won the World Cup, but it’s soccer scandal continues. Three teams have been demoted from Italy’s top league, Serie A, to Serie B. Juventus, of Turin, Fiorentina, and Lazio, of Rome, were all thrown into Italy’s “Junior League.” This is especially galling for Juventus, who won the last two Serie A titles. And those titles were also by the Italian sports tribunal that decided the case. AC Milan, another first division powerhouse, was penalized fifteen points and cannot compete in European matches during the next season.
Juventus was also penalized 30 points in the scandal. Points apparently have something to do with the rankings in soccer; if you get a lot of points you get promoted to a higher division and can earn more money.
I will be honest: I really don’t care much for soccer. But I do find the idea of sports courts quite intriguing. The verdicts, by the way, can be appealed to a “higher” sports tribunal. Can you imagine the US Supreme Court for Sports?