As a policeman was killed during a Serie A game between Catania
and Palermo on Friday, Italy suspended the country's international
and domestic soccer matches.
(Xinhua/Reuters
Photo)
The Italian soccer federation (FIGC) quickly declared that all
the weekend's matches were suspended, then clarified that the
suspension was indefinite and that it also applied to the national
team.
A 38-year-old police officer died shortly after a rioter tossed
an explosive into his car, outside the Serie A match in Catania,
police said.
About 100 people were wounded, between officers and fans, in
clashes led by hooded rioters who hurled fireworks and lashed out
at police with metal bars. Police said they arrested nine people
and had detained 23 others.
The bloodshed stunned the nation and the government called a
high-level crisis meeting for Monday to hammer out emergency
measures to halt the violence.
"We must send a clear message that we must stop the kind of
degeneration of sport that unfortunately happens so often," Italian
Prime Minister Romano Prodi said in a statement.
Italy had been scheduled to welcome Romania for a friendly on
Wednesday.
The world champions are due to host Scotland in a Euro 2008
qualifier on March 28. They are third in Group B two points behind
the Scotland and France.
(Xinhua News Agency February 3, 2007)
