Referees, Zappi: “Autonomous AIA, VAR on call and a technical director”

The Italian Referees Association has its new president, the 36th in the history of the organization: he is the 59-year-old Antonio Zappi who beat, in the elections held in a hotel in the capital, Alfredo Trentalange with 72.3% of the votes (673) against his rival’s 26.4% (246), while the blank ballots were 11. The voters (in a electronic) were 930 out of 945 eligible.

budget

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The Hague therefore made a clear choice. A few days after an independence made official by the new FIGC Statute of last November 4th (there will no longer be a vote in the federal assemblies with consequent cancellation of representation in the Federal Council, an area in which a councilor was foreseen), but in fact sought several times by the same president Carlo Pacifici who held the position since April 2023. “An autonomous AIA means having the possibility of having financial resources to use with our ability to give ourselves a management organization – the words of Zappi after the election – Until today the FIGC has had total control over our budget availability, from now on the possibility of imagining a different future arises precisely from the autonomy of budget availability so as to no longer be subject to preventive and final checks”. Zappi’s team will be made up of Francesco Massini (deputy vice president), Michele Affinito (vice president), Marinella Caissutti, Valentina Finzi, Valentina Garoffolo, Emanuele Marchesi, Pierpaolo Perrone and Marcello Terzo (national committee).

programs

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There are many programs to develop. Ideas and good intentions for a sector that has historically always been under pressure. It will make use of a technical director, Zappi. “We will have this new figure that is borrowed from football: will he be the one to tell us who will be the designer of Can AB and Can C. Orsato? Of course, he would have the requirements to be the director, but in truth I have never been particularly in favor of players who immediately become coaches upon leaving the pitch…”. Defends the actions of the designator of A and B Rocchi (“It’s working well, addressing the need for generational change”), and seems to open up to a significant reduction in staff in top tournaments (“It could be useful, but given that the Can guys have invested years of their lives, neglecting other professional opportunities, if there were to be a reduction it cannot fail to be linked to severance pay for arbitration, other economic security or membership of forms of welfare”).

var and violence

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Finally, two current issues. The first is the possibility of VAR on call. “I am particularly in favor, I believe that substantial justice must prevail. I would like a captain or a coach to be able to raise his arm to ask for an “on field review”, I would like rugby to teach football this ability to open up to total transparency, while I would be in favor of the marketing of audio between referees and the VAR room, as happens with Formula 1 GPs. I would like to have a red and a green button that would allow us to understand the communication between the pitch and the VAR room to know the path that led to a decision.” Then, the phenomenon of violence which, particularly in Lazio, is devastating. “We need a tough and repressive response, Minister Abodi has assured commitment, I will speak with him”.