class=”sc-29f61514-0 icZBHN”>
Italian football is rocked by a gambling scandal. The Public Prosecution Service has strong suspicions that active football players have bet on their own matches. Right in the middle: Serie A professionals and national players Nicolò Fagioli (22, Juventus), Nicolò Zaniolo (24, Aston Villa), Sandro Tonali (23, Newcastle) and Nicola Zalewski (21, Roma).
In the case of Fagioli, a decision has already been made: the midfielder received a seven-month suspension from the Italian football association FIGC and must also undergo therapy for his gambling addiction. An addiction that has gotten completely out of hand, as he now admits.
Millions of dollars in debt
Fagioli speaks publicly about his vice for the first time in “La Repubblica”. It all started quite innocently. “In the beginning I was a footballer with a lot of free time, but eventually I experienced the thrill of gambling to relieve the boredom,” he says. Little by little he became ‘obsessed’ with the competition.
“I thought I could quit if it got serious. But I started compulsively betting on everything related to sports. “Football too,” Fagioli admits. The compulsive gambling cost money and plunged him into a deep trap of debt. According to his own statements, he would have built up a mountain of debt worth more than three million euros in the spring.
Desert threats
Not only did he borrow a lot of money from fellow players, illegal gambling banks were also among Fagioli’s creditors. Over time, he also received serious threats from this environment. “They said to me: Pay, otherwise we will break your legs.” At night his only thought was to continue betting so that he could pay off his debts.
After his suspension became known, Fagioli spoke out on Instagram. He apologized to all sports fans for his “naive mistake”. His sentence includes carrying out educational work on the dangers of gambling in Italian youth training centers in the coming months. He will speak from the best experience – and should help protect tomorrow’s talents from making similar mistakes. (sbe)
|
team
|
SP
|
T.D
|
PT
|
||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
1
|
 AC Milan
|
8th
|
8th
|
21
|
|
|
2
|
 Inter Milan
|
8th
|
16
|
19
|
|
|
3
|
 Juventus Turin
|
8th
|
8th
|
17
|
|
|
4
|
 Fiorentina
|
8th
|
7
|
17
|
|
|
5
|
 SSC Napoli
|
8th
|
8th
|
14
|
|
|
6
|
 Atalanta BC
|
8th
|
5
|
13
|
|
|
7
|
 AC Monza
|
8th
|
1
|
12
|
|
|
8th
|
 Frosinon Calcio
|
8th
|
0
|
12
|
|
|
9
|
 American Lecce
|
8th
|
-1
|
12
|
|
|
10
|
 AS Rome
|
8th
|
7
|
11
|
|
|
11
|
 Bologna FC
|
8th
|
2
|
11
|
|
|
12
|
 Sassuolo Calcio
|
8th
|
-2
|
10
|
|
|
13
|
 Lazio Rome
|
8th
|
-2
|
10
|
|
|
14
|
 Torino FC
|
8th
|
-3
|
9
|
|
|
15
|
 Genoa CFC
|
8th
|
-2
|
8th
|
|
|
16
|
 Hellas Verona
|
8th
|
-3
|
8th
|
|
|
17
|
 Udinese Calcio
|
8th
|
-8th
|
5
|
|
|
18
|
 FC Empoli
|
8th
|
-15
|
4
|
|
|
19
|
 American Salernitana
|
8th
|
-13
|
3
|
|
|
20
|
 Cagliari Calcio
|
8th
|
-13
|
2
|
Source : Blick
I’m Emma Jack, a news website author at 24 News Reporters. I have been in the industry for over five years and it has been an incredible journey so far. I specialize in sports reporting and am highly knowledgeable about the latest trends and developments in this field.
