Italy's soccer clubs should not be forced to pay for the policing of their increasingly violent stadiums, head of the football league Franco Carraro said today.
Speaking the day after a policeman was seriously injured by a homemade bomb thrown from the terraces at a match in Bergamo, Carraro said he was grateful to thousands of officers who staff matches at the state's expense.
But he rejected calls for Italy's soccer clubs, among the richest in the world, to foot the bill. "We're quite prepared to sit down with the Treasury to examine how much football gives and how much it takes," Carraro, who speaks for the league's 38 Serie A and B clubs, told RAI state radio.
"The amount we cost to those who contribute to the game is not small but we put more into state coffers than we take out."
The incident in Bergamo was the latest in a series of violent acts which have plagued Italian soccer this season.
The policeman had to have a finger amputated after he picked up a homemade bomb hurled from the terraces during a Serie A clash between Atalanta Bergamo and Vicenza. The bomb exploded in his hand.
Three other officers were also hurt in the blast. One was wounded in the thigh and the other two were treated for shock and temporary deafness.
Violence also marred AS Roma's UEFA Cup clash against Liverpool on Thursday, when 10 travelling English fans were stabbed. Reuters