ADL: Fine failing teams!

By Football Italia staff

Napoli President Aurelio De Laurentiis has urged Serie A to start fining teams who finish bottom. “Why should Frosinone be given a slice of the pagnotta?”

The likes of Frosinone are regarded as ‘yo-yo’ clubs for continually dropping out of Serie A and returning, but De Laurentiis saw nothing romantic about smaller sides fighting for their lives.

“You finish first, you get €100m, for example,” he told the New York Times.

“You finish second, you earn €50m, and so on. But if you finish last, you pay a fine.

“Frosinone [arrived in Serie A] already relegated. Clubs like Frosinone do not draw fans, or interest, or broadcasters to the League.

“The problem is the small teams have the same rights as the big one. Why should Frosinone have a season in Serie A, be given a slice of the pagnotta and then be relegated back to the third division?

“If they cannot compete, if they finish last, they should have to pay a fine. They shouldn’t be given money for failing.

“Promotion and relegation is the biggest idiocy in soccer. Especially when you also have UEFA trying to force clubs to comply with Financial Fair Play rules.

“Clubs should be structured geographically, so they can all be self-sufficient. If they cannot survive financially, if they cannot be self-sufficient, they should be booted out.”

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