After the events of recent days, the position of the Trapani Shark basketball club is worsening. The Court of the Italian Basketball Federation, we read in a note, «applies to the member Valerio Antonini, president of the Trapani Shark company, the sanction of inhibition in the amount deemed appropriate of two years and to the Trapani Shark Company the penalty of three points to be served in the current championship». The penalty points for Trapani therefore become 8, considering the 5 already accumulated since the beginning of the season.
The two-year ban imposed on Antonini and the three-point penalty imposed on Trapani Shark derive from a series of serious regulatory, behavioral and administrative violations which have compromised the smooth running of the championship and the image of the Italian basketball movement. The Sicilian club had already accumulated penalties in the standings for irregularities in financial payments from the previous season and for a further failure to pay during the current championship.
The persistent financial defaults also led to the blocking of the market, preventing the company from replacing resigning coaches and players, with the consequent participation in multiple matches without the minimum number of members required by federal regulations and without respecting the “6+6” constraint. Added to this were the public statements released by the club’s top management, attributable to the ownership, judged by the Federation as seriously damaging the honor and image of the FIP and the Lega Basket Serie A.
In particular, the accusations of “vicious persecution”, the reference to alleged “double standards” and the threat to give up a championship match were considered behaviors incompatible with the duties of sporting loyalty and respect for the institutions. For these reasons, considering the behavior of the company and its representative seriously harmful to the credibility of the championship and the entire movement, the competent bodies have decided to ban Antonini for two years and to further penalize Trapani Shark by three points in the standings.
«The independent Commission for the verification of the economic and financial balance of professional sports clubs has sent a clarification note from the Revenue Agency, which highlights how the residual unhonoured debt, charged to the Trapani club, does not concern a debt position in terms of VAT, but is attributable to the debit amounts reported in the F24 forms with which the use of the aforementioned non-existent VAT credits was made, i.e. to Irpef withholdings (and related additional ones) and to contributions unpaid social security benefits”. This can be read in a second press release from the Italian Basketball Federation regarding the affair linked to the Trapani Shark company.
“This clarification further confirms the validity of the positions and measures adopted by the Federation since the beginning of the matter – continues the note – denying any repeated attempt at exploitation and specious opposition to the application of the Federal Rules”. The 3-point penalty to the Trapani Shark company was imposed, however, pursuant to article 61 of the FIP justice regulation, which provides for strict liability for acts of sporting fraud and sporting offence.