| MUMBAI:
A landmark split between Italy’s Serie A and Serie B has been approved by
the Italian Football League officials after a meeting on Tuesday.
The
top flight Seria A clubs had mooted the idea to split from the B division in a
bid to catch on with English Premier League and Spain’s La Liga. The move
is based on the English club’s 1992 breakaway which led to the formation
of the English Premier League that transformed the sport in the country.
The
leagues will split from the start of the 2010-11 season, meaning the Serie A clubs
will no longer have to pay any money to their Serie B counterparts. The two leagues
will run as separate entities, although Maurizio Beretta, former head of Italy's
employers' association, has been appointed as president of Serie A and B.
Over
the years, Italian football clubs haven’t tasted much such success in Europe’s
top football competition – the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Cup. The last
Italian club to win the UEFA Champions League was AC Milan in 2005 while Parma
won the UEFA Cup in 1999. In 2006, the League was hit by match-fixing scandals
which saw top teams like AC Milan and Juventus being penalised. | 
