Soccer “ultras” in Italy are being infiltrated by the Mafia

According to Italy’s top anti-mafia prosecutor, the far-right and Italian crime lords are taking advantage of the money-making and muscle-spinning operations of hardline “ultra” soccer supporters in a number of Italian cities. Mobsters are even attempting to seize control of certain smaller teams.

Ultra groups at Inter and AC Milan, two of the biggest names in Italian soccer, have allegedly merged with criminal gangs, according to an investigation conducted by Milan prosecutors and the office of the national anti-mafia prosecutor.

Prosecutors claim that extreme leaders with ties to the infamous ‘Ndrangheta mafia in Italy operate protection rackets and ticket scams on drink kiosks and parking lots near the city’s San Siro stadium, which is shared by both clubs.

The murder of Antonio Bellocco, a renowned Inter Milan ultra and a leading figure in the ‘Ndrangheta, outside a boxing gym in September heightened the urgency of the police investigation, which resulted in the arrest of 19 high-profile members of the clubs’ ultras.

Prosecutors found a direct connection between the leaders of Inter’s “Curva Nord,” the primary ultra organization at the Italian champions, and the “Ndrangheta,” the greatest organized crime gang in the nation, in a 568-page arrest document.

“Inter as a club is in a subservient position in its dealings with members of the Curva Nord,” the prosecutors said in the dossier that Reuters received.

A prominent AC Milan ultra has also been connected to suspected drug trafficking and the ‘Ndrangheta in later investigations.

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The records and interviews with two prosecutors reveal that criminal infiltration reaches far beyond Milan to several other Italian towns, with mobsters attempting to influence supporters and clubs at every level of the professional game.

Both AC Milan and Inter, who are controlled by American investors, have stated that they are working with the authorities.

In October, Giuseppe Marotta, the president of Inter, said broadcaster Sky, “I want to reassure all our fans that we are the injured party, as the authorities have said.” When contacted by Reuters, the club declined to speak further.

AC Milan claimed to have given all of the needed documentation to the authorities. “We’re continuing to follow the guidance of the experts from the prosecutor’s office to identify and work on the areas where we need to intervene,” the club stated in a statement.

“MILITARY CONTROL”

Groups of ultras, or fans, support the majority of Italian soccer teams. They bring banners, use megaphones to coordinate chanting, and set up mosaic-style displays during games. Across Europe, ardent fan clubs have imitated their customs.

These groups, which date back to the 1960s, have always been violent, fighting with other gangs and breaking up into many opposing factions.

“The stadium is a place where for a long time it was considered necessary to tolerate and at most contain examples of blatant illegality, governed by organized groups that exercise an almost military control over the stands,” said Giovanni Melillo, Chief Prosecutor for Anti-Mafia and Anti-Terrorism in Italy.

He told Reuters that these organizations employed “intimidation and violent retribution” to regulate commercial operations associated with soccer fields.

Following the killings of two Inter ultras leaders with connections to the criminal underworld in the last two years, prosecutors have intensified their inquiries into these organizations.

Melillo oversees four deputy prosecutors who are committed to identifying the connections between political radicalism, organized crime, and soccer throughout Italy.

“Investigations…show the interest of mafia groups in acquiring control of a football club, seen as an extraordinary vehicle for business expansion and social consensus,” he stated.

He claimed that this was especially true in the lower divisions, where clubs continue to have a sizable amount of business activity. Due to ongoing investigations, he refuses to name any clubs.

MILAN MURDERS

In September, 49-year-old Andrea Beretta, another Inter ultra leader, stabbed Bellocco to death in what appeared to be a score-settling incident. Beretta said he acted in self-defense.

Two judicial sources claim that Beretta, who is in jail and afraid for his life, has been moved to a prison outside of Milan and is assisting with investigations.

He could not be reached for comment by Reuters.

Two years prior, a 69-year-old Inter ultra commander with a lengthy criminal history, Vittorio Boiocchi, was shot dead outside his home in an unsolved murder.

When Reuters contacted Inter supporters at the San Siro prior to a Champions League game against German team RB Leipzig in late November, they were hesitant to talk about the ultras.

A 57-year-old Milanese man who wished to remain anonymous claimed that there was a strange vibe throughout the stadium.

“Everything is present on the Curva Nord, including drug and alcohol use, smoking, and most importantly, drumsticks. The sticks are longer and there are many more of them than they need to hit the drums,” he remarked.

“This is not support: it’s thuggery.”

The head of the Federation of Italian Soccer Supporters (FISSC), Antonio Ricciato, disputes the notion that regular fans have “no-go areas” in stadiums. According to him, several fan clubs contribute to the increased marketability of Italian soccer.

“There are parts of the ground where football is a different experience than in other areas and this is a fundamental part of the spectacle,” he stated.

Coaches and players under pressure

According to national prosecutor Melillo, coaches and athletes were subjected to intimidation by ardent supporters who have the power to ruin their careers.
“The relationship with these groups is considered in some cases crucial for the future of clubs, coaches and players.”

Investigations into these kinds of ties have previously been useful in exposing betting scandals, but he noted that the nature of contemporary gaming made it much more challenging.

“In a system where people even bet on the number of corners or offsides in a match, it is much more difficult to understand what is going on,” he stated.

The Italian Footballers’ Association president, Umberto Calcagno, a former player, stated in reports titled “Footballers under Fire” that his organization has been keeping an eye on the issue of intimidation for the last ten years.

“There has been an exponential increase in the last 10 seasons of incidents, intimidation, violence and threats suffered by footballers, and this really affects all leagues,” he stated.

Following his third-tier team’s defeat in a promotion playoff in June 2023, Davide Di Pasquale, the captain of Foggia, had his car shot at in one instance. The club’s stadium was where his vacant Jeep had been parked.

As they attempted to obtain more tickets for major games, which can be sold for several times their face value, the Milan inquiry demonstrates the extent of access ultras had.

In an attempt to persuade club administrators to provide the team additional tickets to the Champions League final versus Manchester City in Istanbul in June 2023—the highlight of European soccer—Inter ultra-Marco Ferdico called Inter coach Simone Inzaghi on his cell phone.

According to one of the judicial sources, Inzaghi, who is not being investigated, told prosecutors during an October witness interview that he did not feel threatened by the call.

OVER THE TERRACES

Prosecutors are also looking at the intersection of white supremacist, neo-Nazi, and ultra-nationalist groups.

Numerous neo-Nazis in Lombardy, which encompasses Milan, as well as the Veneto and Lazio areas were members of extreme groups, according to earlier investigations.

When the city of Amsterdam prohibited fans of Rome-based Lazio from going to a Europa League match against Ajax on December 12, it highlighted the worry about these purported connections.

In a statement, the city declared that “Lazio supporters are not welcome in Amsterdam.” “The risk of extreme-right, antisemitic, racist expressions and disturbances is too high.”

In response, Lazio referred to the remarks as “discriminatory and offensive” and stated that the club’s administration has always opposed racism.

Lazio supporters and fierce rivals AS Roma set aside their differences to target a political enemy in 2021, Melillo said, citing an attack on the headquarters of the Italian trades union CGIL amid protests over COVID regulations in Rome.

The local leader of the neofascist party Forza Nuova, supported by Roma and Lazio ultras, led a protest in which CGIL was chosen due to its left-wing inclinations.

Melillo emphasizes that organized crime and political extremists are eager to take advantage of ultras.

“It’s a European phenomenon, not just Italian, in which real paramilitary militias are growing, ready to be hired for other illicit purposes too, which have nothing to do with football,” he stated.

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