Gianluca Rocchi, the man responsible for appointing referees in Italy’s top two football leagues, has suspended himself with immediate effect from his role.
This decision follows the initiation of a sports fraud investigation by Milan’s Public Prosecutor’s Office.
Andrea Gervasoni, a VAR supervisor, has also stepped aside under similar circumstances.
The probe is examining incidents from last season’s Serie A campaign. Italian media outlets have reported that Rocchi is accused of manipulating VAR protocols and selecting officials preferable to Inter Milan.
In a statement released to Italy’s referees’ association (AIA), Rocchi addressed his decision: “This choice, painful, difficult but shared with my family, is intended to allow the legal proceedings to run their course properly, from which I am sure I will come out unscathed and stronger than before.”
Inter Milan’s president, Giuseppe Marotta, expressed astonishment at the allegations.
Speaking to Sky Sports before his club’s match against Torino on Sunday, he stated: “We are learning everything from the media, so we are stunned by the declarations.”
Marotta firmly denied any wrongdoing, adding: “We do not have referees that we favour or are unfavourable towards, we are confident that we acted entirely fairly, which should reassure everyone. We are safe in the knowledge that Inter are not involved in this situation and will not be involved in the future.”
The unfolding situation has ignited concerns across Italy that the sport could be facing another major crisis.
Parallels are being drawn to the infamous Calciopoli match-fixing scandal of 2006, which led to Juventus being stripped of their 2004-05 Serie A title and relegated to Serie B, with AC Milan, Fiorentina, Lazio and Reggina also implicated.
Inter Milan went on to draw 2-2 with Torino on Sunday, and are on the brink of winning another Serie A title as they are currently 10 points clear of Napoli with four matches remaining.
