Juve must compensate Napoli fan

By Football Italia staff

In a bizarre legal precedent, a court has ordered Juventus to pay €3,000 damages to a Napoli fan offended by crowd chants.

The ruling was made by a justice of the peace from Torre Annunziata, near Naples, called Francesco Buonocore.

Lawyer Giovanni De Angelis must be compensated €305 for the cost of the ticket, his train fare and stay in Turin, plus €1,000 for moral damage and legal fees for the first and second trials.

In total, the club must shell out €3,000 to De Angelis, who was offended by chants during the Serie A game at the Juventus Stadium on November 10 2013.

The court ruled he was forced to leave the stadium early, as the atmosphere in the stadium had become “unbearable” due to repeated insults aimed at Neapolitans.

“During the first half, Juventus fans unveiled a banner calling for the eruption of Vesuvius and the death of the Neapolitan population.

“The banner remained initially at the centre of the Curva, then moved lower down the stands, without the stewards removing it.

“Juventus must bear responsibility because employees of the club did not take any steps to avoid or stop the shameful behaviour of their fans, even failing to invite them to cease via the tannoy system.

“This action would’ve given a clear show of dissent and condemnation towards this behaviour.”

In Italy the anti-Neapolitan chants are often treated the same way as racist insults, with full or partial bans on supporters for future games.

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