Fiorentina president Rocco Commisso shared his frustrations with the issues he believes are holding back Italian football.
The 73-year-old Italian-American businessman is no stranger to speaking out against the bureaucratic nature of football in Italy and his issues with the modern game, highlighting everything from struggles building stadiums to the lack of money available in Serie A, especially in comparison to the Premier League.
Commisso took over as Fiorentina owner in June 2019 after purchasing the club for around €160m. Whilst the team have struggled to find consistency in Serie A since his arrival, this season they’ve qualified for both the Coppa Italia and Europa Conference League finals, a strong sign of growth.
Speaking to La Repubblica via TMW, Commisso gave his thoughts on the issues limiting the growth of Italian football.
“I wonder why we can’t give players eight-year contracts, like in the Premier League. Then it’s not fair that you pay an Italian player much more than a foreign one, on whom there are much less taxes.
“The government should help and not hinder the development of Italian football, as is happening now. I really like the U23 model brought forward by Juventus.”
The Fiorentina owner then underlined his frustrated efforts trying to build a new stadium for the club.
“I love Italy, I love Florence. But bureaucracy is the bane of this country. In Florence I tried to make the new stadium, but they wouldn’t let me. Europe then blocked the €55 million for the redevelopment of the area around the stadium, which is valued as a monument.
“America helps you with public funds, here Europe, the Government, the Region, the Municipality, the Superintendency get in the way.
Finally, Commisso discussed his work building Fiorentina’s new training ground – the Viola Park.
“Yes, but there I could control almost everything and there wasn’t the bureaucracy that I found for the stadium.
“We redeveloped a degraded area. In July the first team will begin their first training camp there. Fiorentina never had anything of their own and the Viola Park will remain as a legacy.”