10-30-2014, 11:30 PM
To try and support Reza's initiative in the La Liga thread about trying to encourage posters to contribute "articles" to a site, I thought I'd try my hand on writing a post in an article format to try and encourage others and in hope to see others contribute too. Please bear in mind I'm in no way a writer, have no training and therefore am just doing this for a little fun and the help a friend. Anyway...
A (not so) bright future
Ask many involved in Italian football and even many fans "What is the future of Serie A and Italian football?" and often the response will be rather dismissive or the question might even be considered offensive. However, it's hard to deny that this is a question that should be asked regularly, if simply to take an introspective look into the future of calcio and its growth.
Now, in a period when Italian football is at best considered to be in a state of transition or at worst considered to be in a state of unrecoverable decline, more than ever it seems this question needs to be asked. For the Italian game to return to its former glory, it would seemingly make sense that the issues within the game, both sporting and administrative, be assessed and the positive trends studied to work out a long term project to help the long term development of Italian football both in Italy and at a global level.
The first point of interest would surely be to take a look at Italy's competitiveness, both domestically, but also throughout Europe and on the International stage. Serie A, like most major leagues in Europe, appears to suffer from having distinct sub groups in the larger league. For example, it's generally been assumed that Juventus and Roma will fight for the Scudetto, while a number of teams including Milan, Inter, Napoli and Fiorentina will fight for third spot and Europa League places. At the other end of the table it is assumed the likes of Chievo, Sassuolo and the newly promoted teams from Serie B, Cesena, Empoli and Palermo, will generally be fighting a relegation battle. So far this season has pretty much followed the expected pattern, although with the odd anomalies such as Sampdoria exceeding expectations or Parma at the bottom of the table.
While the predictability does little to determine the quality of the league, more questions are asked when the top teams are playing in Europe. Juventus for years have been considered by some distance the best team in Serie A and have been regularly considered outside bets for Champions League success, yet in Europe have continually underwhelmed, most recently with the loss to Olympiakos. Roma too are under great scrutiny, as it was widely believed the investments made during the summer would help them compete with Juventus in Serie A and make headway in Europe, only for them to be humiliated 7-1 in the Champions League by Bayern Munich.
The disappointments on the continent have not been limited to the top two either, as Milan have been regular participants in the Champions League until this season and failed to make any notable impact in the competition, while Inter have struggled to make any mark in Europe following their historic success in 2010. However, the biggest issue Italy has faced is in its disregard for the Europa League, which has seen German clubs outperform Italian clubs for a number of years and has seen German football overtake Italy in UEFA coefficients, resulting in Italy losing European competition places to German sides.
With European and more specifically, Champions League, being a major source of income for many clubs, the loss of a space in the Champions League has had major repercussions for clubs. However, the financial struggles Italian football faces is due to a number of factors and not just related to lack of success on the continent. Calciopoli, the scandal which hit Italy in 2006 and saw Juventus relegated and many clubs, including Milan and Lazio, sanctioned was the start of a period in Italian football which saw numerous powerful and important clubs struggling. Following the scandal, the Italian and global economy suffered greatly, meaning the liquid assets within clubs were greatly reduced and the reputation of Italian football damaged. These events, along with the continued struggles clubs face financially, resulted in many star players leaving the peninsula, with the clubs struggled to replace those leaving with equally marketable names.
With the lack of star names and success at European level, the attendances at Serie A matches have continually dropped year on year, with clubs like Milan struggling to fill even half of the stadium on match days. Revenue from match day was always limited in Italy as no clubs other than Juventus own their stadium, usually meaning clubs were being forced to lease the stadium from the council and having limited income from match day ticket sales. This lack of development in infrastructure in Italy when compared to other major European leagues, especially England and Germany, is rather damning when looking towards the future. As if to add to the woes, the president of CONI (the Italian National Olympic Committee), Giovanni Malago, has recently announced that funding to the sport would be cut by €22.5m, making any hope of redevelopment an even more difficult and daunting prospect.
Not having the means to invest in top quality foreign talents into the Italian game should have seen more space and better investment being made towards developing young Italian players. However, as recent studies have found, Italy has the lowest number of home grown talents playing at the highest level in all of Europe's major leagues.
This is evident none more so than when looking at the achievements of the Italian national team since they last won the World Cup in 2006. For the most part the results have been disappointing, with Italy having been knocked out at the group stage in the last two World Cup competitions, with the only solace being found in the relative successful Euro 2012 where Italy reached the final, only to then be beaten heavily against Spain in the final.
Looking as to why this might be can be found when looking back at what calcio represented in the past and what it is today. Traditionally, Italian football was always considered a leader in modern football development, application and infrastructure. An example is Milan, who in the mid-2000's had a state of the art medical facility called MilanLab, which prolonged the careers of club legends such as Paolo Maldini and Alessandro Costacurta. However, budget cuts and the lack of growth of MilanLab has not only seen other clubs around Europe catch up, but has seen criticism directed towards it for numerous long term injuries to players at the club, with former Milan striker Pato most recently commenting on incorrect treatment for his injuries while at the club.
Italy was also the birth of many tactical evolutions in the sport, notably Catenaccio and high pressing game played by Arrigo Sacchi's Milan in the late 80's. However, in recent years the most famous coaches in the game are no longer Italian, with others like Guardiola and Mourinho taking the limelight. Coverciano, the famous training centre for coaches in Italy, is debatably no longer producing the number of top level coaches it once was and aside from Carlo Ancelotti, there is a dearth of Italian coaches at the highest level in the game.
Arguably the biggest problem Italian football faces is the stagnation in the modern game. Previously, Italy was always seen as a leader in the sport, yet now no club in Italy can really be considered pioneering when compared to their counterparts on the continent. Whereas other nations embrace modernity and change, Italy appears to have been happy to stick with the status quo, many times relying on the stadiums as they were from the 1990 World Cup, as well as former or ageing stars, such as Pirlo, Buffon, Totti, De Rossi, Alex and Essien, instead of investing, showing faith and giving opportunities to the new generations coming through.
This is also evident when looking at the leadership in Italy. While Juventus and Roma have fresh, relatively young and what are considered dynamic leaders in charge of the clubs, most of Italy's clubs are run by ageing managers from an era long gone. Perhaps the best evidence of this is at Milan, where other than Barbara Berlusconi, the club until only recently was run by the same group of directors from the early 90's. Berlusconi for her part also tried to change things at the club and take on Adriano Galliani, the long term CEO who has been in charge since Silvio Berlusconi brought the club back in the 80’s, by bringing in a new young group of directors to the club, the face of which was club legend Paolo Maldini. However, following an internal power struggle, Galliani has maintained his position in key areas of the club, albeit having to share his responsibilities with Berlusconi.
This objection to change is symptomatic across calcio, perhaps most evident as the controversial Carlo Tavecchio was recently voted in to lead the FIGC (the Italian football association). Tavecchio, who for many represents the old standards of Italian football, was supported by many of the older and experienced heads in the sport, despite younger directors, such as Andrea Agnelli, James Palotta and Barbara Berlusconi being clearly and vocally against Tavecchio's appointment.
With this in mind, it seems difficult to argue against calcio remaining as it has over the past 20 years. However, if recent evidence is anything to go by, that means continued decline in quality and its position in world football. There are glimpses of hope, as many would argue German football was in an even worse state a decade ago and has managed to turn things around, but mostly Italy's hope appears to be resting with young, dynamic leadership figures in the game finally bringing the change needed to rebuild. As it remains there is clear resistance from those who until now have been running the game in Italy.
When all is said and done and returning to the original question of what the future holds for the Italian game, it's hard to argue against rather bleak predictions as things stand, though understandably many will continue to hope to be wrong.
A (not so) bright future
Ask many involved in Italian football and even many fans "What is the future of Serie A and Italian football?" and often the response will be rather dismissive or the question might even be considered offensive. However, it's hard to deny that this is a question that should be asked regularly, if simply to take an introspective look into the future of calcio and its growth.
Now, in a period when Italian football is at best considered to be in a state of transition or at worst considered to be in a state of unrecoverable decline, more than ever it seems this question needs to be asked. For the Italian game to return to its former glory, it would seemingly make sense that the issues within the game, both sporting and administrative, be assessed and the positive trends studied to work out a long term project to help the long term development of Italian football both in Italy and at a global level.
The first point of interest would surely be to take a look at Italy's competitiveness, both domestically, but also throughout Europe and on the International stage. Serie A, like most major leagues in Europe, appears to suffer from having distinct sub groups in the larger league. For example, it's generally been assumed that Juventus and Roma will fight for the Scudetto, while a number of teams including Milan, Inter, Napoli and Fiorentina will fight for third spot and Europa League places. At the other end of the table it is assumed the likes of Chievo, Sassuolo and the newly promoted teams from Serie B, Cesena, Empoli and Palermo, will generally be fighting a relegation battle. So far this season has pretty much followed the expected pattern, although with the odd anomalies such as Sampdoria exceeding expectations or Parma at the bottom of the table.
While the predictability does little to determine the quality of the league, more questions are asked when the top teams are playing in Europe. Juventus for years have been considered by some distance the best team in Serie A and have been regularly considered outside bets for Champions League success, yet in Europe have continually underwhelmed, most recently with the loss to Olympiakos. Roma too are under great scrutiny, as it was widely believed the investments made during the summer would help them compete with Juventus in Serie A and make headway in Europe, only for them to be humiliated 7-1 in the Champions League by Bayern Munich.
The disappointments on the continent have not been limited to the top two either, as Milan have been regular participants in the Champions League until this season and failed to make any notable impact in the competition, while Inter have struggled to make any mark in Europe following their historic success in 2010. However, the biggest issue Italy has faced is in its disregard for the Europa League, which has seen German clubs outperform Italian clubs for a number of years and has seen German football overtake Italy in UEFA coefficients, resulting in Italy losing European competition places to German sides.
With European and more specifically, Champions League, being a major source of income for many clubs, the loss of a space in the Champions League has had major repercussions for clubs. However, the financial struggles Italian football faces is due to a number of factors and not just related to lack of success on the continent. Calciopoli, the scandal which hit Italy in 2006 and saw Juventus relegated and many clubs, including Milan and Lazio, sanctioned was the start of a period in Italian football which saw numerous powerful and important clubs struggling. Following the scandal, the Italian and global economy suffered greatly, meaning the liquid assets within clubs were greatly reduced and the reputation of Italian football damaged. These events, along with the continued struggles clubs face financially, resulted in many star players leaving the peninsula, with the clubs struggled to replace those leaving with equally marketable names.
With the lack of star names and success at European level, the attendances at Serie A matches have continually dropped year on year, with clubs like Milan struggling to fill even half of the stadium on match days. Revenue from match day was always limited in Italy as no clubs other than Juventus own their stadium, usually meaning clubs were being forced to lease the stadium from the council and having limited income from match day ticket sales. This lack of development in infrastructure in Italy when compared to other major European leagues, especially England and Germany, is rather damning when looking towards the future. As if to add to the woes, the president of CONI (the Italian National Olympic Committee), Giovanni Malago, has recently announced that funding to the sport would be cut by €22.5m, making any hope of redevelopment an even more difficult and daunting prospect.
Not having the means to invest in top quality foreign talents into the Italian game should have seen more space and better investment being made towards developing young Italian players. However, as recent studies have found, Italy has the lowest number of home grown talents playing at the highest level in all of Europe's major leagues.
This is evident none more so than when looking at the achievements of the Italian national team since they last won the World Cup in 2006. For the most part the results have been disappointing, with Italy having been knocked out at the group stage in the last two World Cup competitions, with the only solace being found in the relative successful Euro 2012 where Italy reached the final, only to then be beaten heavily against Spain in the final.
Looking as to why this might be can be found when looking back at what calcio represented in the past and what it is today. Traditionally, Italian football was always considered a leader in modern football development, application and infrastructure. An example is Milan, who in the mid-2000's had a state of the art medical facility called MilanLab, which prolonged the careers of club legends such as Paolo Maldini and Alessandro Costacurta. However, budget cuts and the lack of growth of MilanLab has not only seen other clubs around Europe catch up, but has seen criticism directed towards it for numerous long term injuries to players at the club, with former Milan striker Pato most recently commenting on incorrect treatment for his injuries while at the club.
Italy was also the birth of many tactical evolutions in the sport, notably Catenaccio and high pressing game played by Arrigo Sacchi's Milan in the late 80's. However, in recent years the most famous coaches in the game are no longer Italian, with others like Guardiola and Mourinho taking the limelight. Coverciano, the famous training centre for coaches in Italy, is debatably no longer producing the number of top level coaches it once was and aside from Carlo Ancelotti, there is a dearth of Italian coaches at the highest level in the game.
Arguably the biggest problem Italian football faces is the stagnation in the modern game. Previously, Italy was always seen as a leader in the sport, yet now no club in Italy can really be considered pioneering when compared to their counterparts on the continent. Whereas other nations embrace modernity and change, Italy appears to have been happy to stick with the status quo, many times relying on the stadiums as they were from the 1990 World Cup, as well as former or ageing stars, such as Pirlo, Buffon, Totti, De Rossi, Alex and Essien, instead of investing, showing faith and giving opportunities to the new generations coming through.
This is also evident when looking at the leadership in Italy. While Juventus and Roma have fresh, relatively young and what are considered dynamic leaders in charge of the clubs, most of Italy's clubs are run by ageing managers from an era long gone. Perhaps the best evidence of this is at Milan, where other than Barbara Berlusconi, the club until only recently was run by the same group of directors from the early 90's. Berlusconi for her part also tried to change things at the club and take on Adriano Galliani, the long term CEO who has been in charge since Silvio Berlusconi brought the club back in the 80’s, by bringing in a new young group of directors to the club, the face of which was club legend Paolo Maldini. However, following an internal power struggle, Galliani has maintained his position in key areas of the club, albeit having to share his responsibilities with Berlusconi.
This objection to change is symptomatic across calcio, perhaps most evident as the controversial Carlo Tavecchio was recently voted in to lead the FIGC (the Italian football association). Tavecchio, who for many represents the old standards of Italian football, was supported by many of the older and experienced heads in the sport, despite younger directors, such as Andrea Agnelli, James Palotta and Barbara Berlusconi being clearly and vocally against Tavecchio's appointment.
With this in mind, it seems difficult to argue against calcio remaining as it has over the past 20 years. However, if recent evidence is anything to go by, that means continued decline in quality and its position in world football. There are glimpses of hope, as many would argue German football was in an even worse state a decade ago and has managed to turn things around, but mostly Italy's hope appears to be resting with young, dynamic leadership figures in the game finally bringing the change needed to rebuild. As it remains there is clear resistance from those who until now have been running the game in Italy.
When all is said and done and returning to the original question of what the future holds for the Italian game, it's hard to argue against rather bleak predictions as things stand, though understandably many will continue to hope to be wrong.