The investigation is being conducted by the Milan Prosecutor’s Office: the accusation hypothesis would be the same as that which triggered “Calciopoli”. The spotlight on the events of March 1, 2025. At the level of sporting justice, the matter had been archived.
The designator of the Serie A and B referees Gianluca Rocchiwho declared himself self-suspended in the evening, is under investigation for “competition in sports fraud”. In addition to Rocchi, the Var supervisor Andrea Gervasoni is also under investigation. On April 24 – reports the Agi news agency, which released the news – he was notified of a notice of guarantee. According to the prosecutors, he would have chosen referees liked by Inter some games. A story on which he also intervenes the minister for sport Andrea Abodi. «I expect to formally receive information on the matter from CONI as soon as possible. In the event that responsibilities are ascertained, there cannot fail to be consequences” writes the minister in a post. “THEThe most serious aspect that emerges is the way in which the complaint itself was handled within the football system. So far no public feedback, as well We don’t know who received the complaint and which body was responsible for the matter to verify its existence”. Meanwhile too Ugo Taucer, head of the General Prosecutor’s Office for Sport asked the head of the FIGC Prosecutor’s Office Giuseppe Chinè a report on the matter. At the sporting justice level, the matter had been archived.
There are three charges in the notice of investigation. In one we read that Rocchi «as referee designator of the AIA, in competition with several people at the San Siro stadium, during the Italian Cup match the designation of the match director for the Serie A championship match Bologna-Inter was “combined” (20 April 2025) in the person of Andrea Colombosince «referee» appreciated by the visiting team, Interengaged in the fight for the championship, now in the final stages of the football season.”
In the second charge the scenario broadens. Rocchi, writes the prosecutor, «as a designator in competition with several people at the San Siro stadium, during the Italian Cup first leg (2 April 2025)«combined» or «shielded» the designation of race director Daniele Doveri, placing him in charge of the semi-final of the tournament (April 23, 2025) in order to then ensure different directions for Inter from the «unwelcome» Duties for the possible subsequent Italian Cup final and for the rest of the Serie A championship matches» which were of «greater interest for the Milanese team».
Finally, the third charge is reported in Udinese-Parma on March 1, 2025 when «as a Var supervisor, in collaboration with other people, during the match influenced the Var employee Daniele Paternthe race director Fabio Maresca induced him to the On Field Review for the purposes of awarding the penalty kick in favor of the Friulian teamalthough Paterna was of a different opinion”.
The investigation focuses on the 2024-2025 championship is conducted by the Milanese public prosecutor Maurizio Ascione: It has been smoldering since the summer of last year under the rubble of the Italian football crisis and is exploring all its components, from referees to the FIGC to clubs up to sports justice. The Prosecutor’s Office investigates for sports fraudthe same crime hypothesis around which the plot of “Calciopoli” unfolded culminating in Juventus’ relegation to Serie B. In this story there is an important date and a video which ended up in the records of the investigation conducted by the public prosecutor.
The match on March 1, 2025
March 1st 2025: the match is Udinese-Parmathe championship was then won by Napoli in a photo finish over Inter. We are in the Var room in Lissone. The three workers discuss, watch and re-watch an episode about a “possible hand”. «It doesn’t seem out of shape to me, look at the position of the arm, it seems to me to be on the body» says Daniele Paterna who seems inclined to exclude the awarding of the penalty. At a certain point he turns suddenly, looks back and from the lips you can see cclearly who states: «It’s rigor». A moment later he communicates to Fabio Marescathe referee on the pitch: «One moment Fabio, I’ll check the APP (Attacking Possesion Phase, i.e. the phase of the game monitored by the VAR). «It is possible penalty kick, Fabio, I advise you on field review for possible penalty kick». In the end the penalty is called. Who does Paterna turn towards? The hypothesis contained in Domenico Rocca’s complaint, later archived by the sports justice system, is that the designator Gianluca Rocchi «quickly gets up from his position to knock several times on the glass din the room of Paterna Var and Sozza Avar to draw their attention and who in turn will call the referee for an on field review”.
Bastoni’s elbow
In an invitation to appear sent in recent months to one of the Avars investigated for complicity in sports fraud, reference is made to the Inter-Verona match on 8 January 2024. The dubious episode is an elbow from the Nerazzurri defender Alessandro Bastoni to the Gialloblu player Duda. The dialogue between Michael Fabbri, referee, and Luigi Nasca, at VARwas revealed in full in the Coverciano meeting: «There is someone on the ground. No, wait. Whistle, whistle, but whistle for goodness sake. I want to see what happened. It all starts from here, maybe you can see the player falling, I’ll leave this room”, says Nasca, to which Fabbri replies: “I said that he (Duda, ed.) got up, looked at me and then went back down. He gets up, looks at me and then sits down again, this is cunning! While Fabbri is surrounded by Verona players, Nasca reviews the images of the contact between Bastoni and Duda and decides to validate Frattesi’s decisive goal: «Let me review everything. Flags, anything? No, no flag (to signal potential offsides, ed.). Go, go, go, go. Now let me review it. Everything is fine here. Let me review the shot. Good, go, come on quickly. Regular. Let me review for just a moment. Michael, I’m Gigi: regular goal, regular goal.”
Matches under consideration
The suspect, “in competition with others”, allegedly failed to call “On field review” at the time of Bastoni’s intentional foul committed in an area of the pitch distant from the game which was immediately followed by the home team’s goal, which was decisive for the final result. There are several matches from the last tournament under scrutiny by investigators who are about to close the investigation soon.
Daniele Paterna was summoned by the prosecutor in recent months as a witness. His testimony was interrupted when, also in light of the video, the magistrate considered that he was not telling the truth and was informed that his position had been transformed into that of being investigated for perjury. The door of the VAR room must be closed, no one can enter it or influence those called upon to make delicate decisions but it has a glass window from which it is possible to see all the operators inside and vice versa.
Broken relationships
After the complaint from Rocca elfollowing the report of Antonio Zappi, the then president of the AIA (Italian referees association)immediately forwarded the report to the FIGC Prosecutor’s Office and prepared a change in the regulations which was mandatory anyone who went to Lissone, starting with Rocchi, to draw up a detailed report in which he should have specified the type of activity carried out. From that moment on, none of Rocchi’s team went there anymore. Even the FIGC from that moment began sending inspectors from the Federal Prosecutor’s Office to check. Since then none of Rocchi’s team has gone to Lissone again relations between Zappi and Rocchi and the federal leaders have deteriorated and we began to hypothesize the split of the Can Serie A (national referee commission of Serie A) from the control of the AIA.
Rocchi defends himself: «I’m always correct»
«I have known Mr. Rocchi for years, he is a serious and correct person» he says instead the lawyer Antonio D’Avirro, of the Florence Bar, who defends Gianluca Rocchi. «At the moment I cannot make statements, because I have to study the papers – adds the lawyer – However, I can say that my client, with whom I spoke, disputes what he is accused of in the invitation to appear.”
