Yesterday was not the best day for Calcio Storico Fiorentino. The second semifinal match between the Azzurri (Blues) of Santa Croce and Bianchi (Whites) of Santo Spirito stopped after only 20 minutes of play. The game was interrupted by the judges for some fouls and after this things continued to go downhill.
Three players from the Azzurri were disqualified and told to leave the field, two left but the third refused to go. The Bianchi protested for this disregard for the rules, and soon three referees were hit in the face and a knee by two players. Thankfully no serious damage was done, but by this time, the judges saw no other choice than to suspend the game.
After that point, the city councilman for Sport Andrea Vannucci entered the field along with police in riot gear to make sure the entire episode didn’t evolve into further chaos. The entire Bianchi team left the field when asked to do so, while the Azzurri remained and refused to leave.
Today, the city decided the final match will be played on June 24th between the Rossi of Santa Maria Novella who won Saturday’s semifinal and the Bianchi. The disciplinary committee is meeting today to decide the sanctions to give to individual players that violated game rules.
It is trully a sad story to see these types of behaviors by calcianti because it isn’t the first time they have happened. Games have been suspended and even not played at all as penalties for past behavior… and it seems some people never learn!
If you read some Italian, you can follow the news and check out more photos on the Corriere Fiorentino here.
