Carraro wins appeal

Former FIGC President Franco Carraro has seen his four-year suspension quashed in Arbitration, turning it into just a fine.

Carraro was one of the first to resign when the Calciopoli scandal exploded back in May, as the incidents of alleged pressure on refereeing designators happened under his ‘watch’.

He had been suspended for four years and six months with a fine of £53,600 in the first trial this summer. However, those charges have now been quashed in the CONI Arbitration, leaving just the financial penalty.

The judges decided, “There was no proof Carraro acted in any way other than in the interests of the Federation, nor that he took informal procedures to rebuke the refereeing section.”

Carraro has long been a key figure in Italian football’s hierarchy, first becoming FIGC Vice-President in 1973 and President from 1976 to ’78. He was in charge of the Italian Olympic Committee (CONI) from 1878 to 1987, then at the head of the Federation again from 1986-87 and 2001-2006.