Abodi on youth players' playing time in Serie A: "We're considering adjustments to the norm."

The regulation regarding playing time for young players in Serie A is once again at the center of political debate. Minister of Sport Andrea Abodi intervened, defending the measure's structure in the Senate but open to a possible revision following the Marianucci case.

“Personally, I have worked hard to ensure that the legislation that acts as an incentive in this direction is implemented.”, Abodi said, stressing that “these reward mechanisms can and must contribute, on the one hand, to the technical growth of young footballers and to an ever-increasing presence of young talents in professional leagues and, on the other, to the growth of the competitiveness of the national football system, rewarding the work of those who invest in training”.

At the heart of the parliamentary question is the failure to recognize the contribution for Marianucci, currently at Napoli and formerly of Empoli, who was denied a playing time bonus by the Serie A League. “I will formally request Lega Serie A to provide me with evidence of any previous comparisons and to clarify in detail the reasons for the denial.”, the minister said.

Abodi highlighted a key point of the story: "In this case, the player has actually accrued three consecutive years of membership and is presumed to be entitled to the incentive, even though it was not recognized by the League." Hence the opening to a possible corrective intervention on the law. “I am committed to further evaluating a possible restructuring with stakeholders.”, he explained, specifying that the objective is “reduce the interpretability of the implementing decree, while fully respecting the primary legislation.”