Rome Derby Stays on Sunday After Serie A Reaches Deal with Authorities
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| The Stadio Olimpico sits just a short distance from the Italian Open men’s final venue |
The original order to move the game was made to avoid a clash with the Italian Open men’s final at the Foro Italico.
Roma’s hardcore fan groups plan to boycott the derby in protest after a chaotic season of fixture changes...
The Rome derby between Roma and Lazio will go ahead on Sunday afternoon after Serie A and Rome authorities agreed to shift the kick-off forward by 30 minutes. The deal ends a dispute that had left both clubs unsure about the timing of a match vital to Champions League qualification.
Five fixtures, including the derby, will now start at 12:00 local time instead of 12:30. The change overturns an earlier order from the Rome Prefect that had pushed the game to Monday night.
The change also impacted Como, Juventus, AC Milan and Napoli. With all five games involving teams chasing a top-four spot required to kick off simultaneously, the dispute between Serie A and public security officials dragged on for days.
Serie A said the new kick-off time was confirmed following talks with Italy’s top football league, the Rome Prefect, and local police.
The Prefect originally ordered the derby to be moved to avoid a clash with the Italian Open men’s final, set for 17:00 local time on Sunday. The tennis final takes place just a short distance from the Stadio Olimpico, where Roma and Lazio play.
Thousands of tennis fans will gather at the Foro Italico while police work to prevent clashes between Roma and Lazio supporters only a few hundred metres away.
The Roma-Lazio derby is one of Italy’s fiercest rivalries, and crowd violence around the Stadio Olimpico on derby days has been a recurring problem.
Clash with Italian Open
The way football can disrupt the Italian Open became obvious on Wednesday night. The Italian Cup final was scheduled at the same time as Luciano Darderi’s tennis quarter-final against Rafael Jodar, one of the ATP Masters 1000’s marquee events.
Darderi’s match didn’t get underway until 23:00 local time after a lengthy rain delay late in the afternoon, and he went on to win in three sets.
Play was halted again when fireworks from the Olimpico roof lit up the sky after Inter Milan beat Lazio to lift the cup. The smoke drifted over centre court and lingered in the humid air.
The situation turned absurd on Thursday after Rome’s administrative court declined to rule on Serie A’s appeal against the Prefect’s original order. Instead, the court told both sides to reach an agreement themselves.
Frustration among fans has been building all season, with many calling it one of the worst in Italian football’s recent memory. Roma’s ultras said they would boycott the derby in protest.
Roma said they “fully understand” the decision in a club statement, but also hinted they hoped supporters would reconsider given what’s at stake.
Roma sit level with AC Milan on 67 points in fourth. They haven’t featured in the Champions League since a last-16 exit to Porto in 2019.
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