“I hope that the stadium will be full for the Udinese game” proclaimed AC Milan CEO Adriano Galliani.
After having their stadium shut down by the Italian Football Federation (FIGC) for racially insulting chants, the Serie A giants are livid, as Galliani claimed the punishment is for chants nobody even heard.
“Without going into too much detail all I can say is that we will take our appeal against the decision to close our stadium to every possible tribunal” said Galliani. “The chants weren’t even audible. Not one single newspaper or TV station made any mention of the chants, as probably there weren’t any. They were apparently only heard by a handful of members of the Federal Prosecutor’s Office.”
Galliani said he would be “banned for life” if he expressed his true opinion, and left most of the talking to the team’s lawyer. Galliani also complained about Mario Balotelli being the subject of racist chants during their 3-2 away loss at Juventus Stadium, with no action taken against Juventus.
The decision by the FIGC is the latest blow to the Rossoneri, having already been forced to close a stand for a match earlier this season due to racist chants.
The FICG itself aren’t convinced the punishment is the way to properly handle the situation, with Serie A president Maurizio Beretta admitting the decision “risks giving the keys to the stadiums to the minorities.”
However, for now it is the best Italy has to deal with the situation, and AC Milan will suffer the consequences.