UEFA has opened proceedings against Inter for violating the Financial Fair Play, but economic journalist Marco Belinazzo explains that the Nerazzurri are unlikely to be sanctioned.
Inter revealed the proceeding through an official statement of Inter Media and Communication.
“In October 2021, we submitted to UEFA our calculations in respect of the Financial Fair Play (“FFP”) break-even requirement as at June 30, 2021,” the statement read.
“Such calculations demonstrated that we have not fulfilled the break-even requirement as currently set, and as a result, UEFA requested additional information in November 2021.
“On December 17, 2021, UEFA officially communicated that the review performed by the CFCB First Chamber of the break-even information provided by us highlighted a significant aggregate break-even deficit for the monitoring period covering the reporting periods 2018, 2019, 2020 and 2021 and required the submission of our most updated projected break-even information for the reporting period ending in June 2022 (that we provided on January 20, 2022).
On February 14, 2022, UEFA communicated to us:
- Their decision to open proceedings in respect of our club in accordance with Article 12 (1) of the Procedural rules governing the UEFA Club Financial Control Body (“CFCB”) – Edition 2021.
- The appointment of a reporting member in charge of establishing the facts and collect all relevant evidence (including a business plan for the period FY23-FY25) pursuant to Article 12 (2) of the Procedural rules.
- The invitation to attend a hearing before the CFCB First Chamber in March 2022 (date to be confirmed) at the House of European Football in Nyon (Switzerland) once the reporting member will have issued his conclusions on our club’s case.
The announcement has caused concern for Inter fans who feared their club could be excluded from European competitions.
However, Italian economic journalist Marco Belinazzo has explained that the Serie A champions are unlikely to be sanctioned.
“The checks on Financial Fair play concern more than thirty European clubs (including Roma, Inter, Juve and Milan) and are a duty of UEFA considering the impact of the pandemic,” he wrote on Twitter.
“There are hardly any sanctions and by April the rules will be renewed for the 2024-25 season.”