Fabio Capello Told He ‘Should Be Sued’ Over Controversial Referee ‘Mafia’ Comment
The 79-year-old made the bombshell remark in an interview with Marca.
Fabio Capello has been told he should be sued after he labelled referees as a ‘mafia’.
Fabio Capello’s Furious Referee Rant
The former AC Milan, Juventus and Real Madrid manager furiously criticised the standard of officiating in the modern day during an interview with Marca this month.
Capello warned that slowing down replays during VAR checks instead of watching incidents in real time made contact seem worse. He believes this has unnecessarily led to more incorrect decisions.
Summarising his thoughts, he brutally likened referees to the ‘mafia’ – and has since faced a stern backlash.
“Leave it, leave it, that’s a topic I get very angry about,” Capello had said.
“Referees are a mafia. They don’t want to have any former players involved with VAR. Those who know the movements in football, those movements that players make to stop themselves, to help themselves etc.
“A lot of times, they make decisions that are incorrect because they haven’t played themselves and they don’t recognise these movements.”
The 79-year-old soon released a statement clarifying his comments, but former referee Mario Mazzoleni believes legal action should still be taken, labelling the terminology ‘serious’ and ‘inappropriate’.
Earlier this week, Mazzoleni told Giornale Radio: “Fabio Capello’s statements about referees are extremely serious and appalling: he should be sued for what he said.
“Capello referred to referees as a ‘mafia,’ a term as serious as it is inappropriate.
“If the AIA (Italian Referee Association) were a more influential association, someone like that would be sued.
“A person who uses such words is ignorant, especially after having lived through the Calciopoli scandal. I expected a mature man to be a little more cautious. But today, all he needs are statements like that to get people talking.”
Fabio Capello Responds To ‘Mafia’ Controversy
Seeking to address the storm around his remarks, Capello issued a formal statement via the media.
It read: “With regards to the comments reported in the interview with Spanish newspaper Marca, Fabio Capello wants to specify that when he used the term ‘mafia’ in reference to referees, he only did so to make clear that Italian officials work like an extremely closed off organisation, who rarely accept moments of discussion.
“They do not seem open to allowing current or former sporting figures into the VAR room. This is something Capello has suggested many times, and which is made clear repeatedly in the rest of the interview.”
Earlier this season, Capello also scathingly insisted that officials don’t understand the game.
Dan Davis
Dan is an experienced sports journalist and part-time lecturer. An expert on Serie A and Italian football, he has produced content for the likes of the Daily Mail, Reach PLC, GiveMeSport, FourFourTwo and GRV Media. While Channel 4's iconic Football Italia was a bit before his time, the nostalgia - and pastries - fuelled his love of all things Calcio.
Our unbiased editorial policy
Despite ongoing collaborations with commercial affiliates, the details, information, and reviews we provide remain honest and unbiased. We keep this in check by implementing a stringent editorial policy.
Our policy implements strict editorial standards, ensuring the integrity and trustworthiness of our articles, news, and reviews. Only the highest-quality content reaches our pages. We achieve this through conducting thorough research on each topic, conveyed to you using unbiased reporting, to ensure we earn your trust and keep it.
