Pope moves Samp-Juve date
Tuesday 22 April, 2008
Sampdoria-Juventus in the final round of the season could be moved forward to Saturday May 17 because of a visit by the Pope.
The last four rounds of the Serie A campaign are traditionally played simultaneously so no teams can have the advantage of knowing the other results beforehand.
The problem this time is that Pope Benedict XVI will make an official visit to the city of Genoa on May 18.
Due to security concerns and excess traffic in the area, the authorities have agreed to move Sampdoria-Juventus forward to Saturday May 17.
This means that if the result is connected to any of the races for qualification into the Champions League or UEFA Cup, then those other teams affected must also bring their games forward.
An even bigger situation could occur in Week 37, as if Fiorentina reach the UEFA Cup Final then their game with Parma must be played a day early so they can better prepare for the tournament.
Again, if this result is connected to any races – and it is extremely likely it will affect both the Champions League and relegation battles – then all those games would also have to be played on Saturday May 10.
At first glance that would include Juventus-Catania, Livorno-Torino, Napoli-Milan, Reggina-Empoli and Udinese-Cagliari, plus possibly Inter-Siena.
from : Channel4.com