Inter and AC Milan to Join as Civil Plaintiffs in Ultras Trials
Milan: Serie A giants Inter and AC Milan will request to be admitted as civil plaintiffs in the criminal trials of leaders of the two clubs’ hardcore ‘ultra’ fans over alleged violence, intimidation, and other criminal activities, judicial sources said on Thursday. Two trials will commence shortly in relation to a significant investigation into the clubs’ ultras by State and finance police, resulting in 19 arrests on September 30. One trial will proceed immediately without preliminary hearings, while the other will be a fast-track trial.
According to Ansa News Agency, three of the defendants are scheduled to go on trial on February 20, while 16 others will face a preliminary hearings judge on March 4. The suspects include Inter ultra chiefs Marco Ferdico and Andrea Beretta and top Milan ultra Luca Lucci. Inter coach Simone Inzaghi was questioned in October by investigators about the case. His name appeared among those of officials and players listed in the case documents over alleged “pressure” they faced and their links with the ultras.
Prosecutors opened a “prevention procedure” against the two Milanese clubs, requiring them to demonstrate that they have severed ties with the ‘ultra’ world, particularly in the management of ticket sales. Court papers indicate that the clubs, especially Inter, granted illicit concessions in economic activities, including ticket sales, by “providing tickets to people who belong to criminal organizations who then resold them at a significant price markup”. This also involved individuals under investigation or convicted for “Mafia-Style criminal association who transferred the money to the Mafia family they belonged to”.
Investigators highlighted the stable relationship between the We Are Milano group led by Beretta and the club, as well as the regular stadium access of clan members without tickets following “strong acts of intimidation” against stewards, a situation persisting for years. The measures also cited a “meeting” between ultra leaders like Ferdico with former Inter defender Milan Skriniar and “contacts with coach” Inzaghi. Specifically, Ferdico “explicitly asked Inzaghi to intervene with the club, or directly with (Giuseppe) Marotta”, Inter’s president, “to obtain an additional 200 tickets” for the 2023 Champions League final in Istanbul, according to wiretapped conversations from May 2023 included in the arrest warrants.
Ferdico was allegedly promised by Inzaghi that he would discuss the matter with the club’s leadership, including Marotta, according to investigators. The probe allegedly revealed that Inter was in a “situation of subjugation towards members of the Curva Nord” football fan group, ultimately “granting them favours, even though it was forced to do so”.