In May, we reported on the The Trophy for the Freedom of Peoples, an international exhibition run by the Non-Fifa Board, which saw Padania defeat Tebet. Padania went on to compete in the Viva World Cup last week, and Vanda Wilcox reports on the results.
In Italy recently, an unusual game took place as Tibet and Padania played in a game billed to raise attention on their contrasting independence struggles.
What is the relationship between the quality of refereeing decisions and respect for the referee? If referees are put under pressure by players, fans and the media how far does this affect their judgement? Vanda Wilcox compares England and Italy.
In Italy, the idea of supporting rival Italian clubs in European competition is not only largely unpopular, but there is on the contrary a tradition of actively supporting their opposition. The verb gufare means to support against, to wish bad luck upon. It comes from the noun gufo, meaning owl, since the owl in Italy (and Spain) is a symbol of bad luck. So football fans “owl” for another team. Vanda Wilcox explains.
Vanda Wilcox takes a second look at Italian football songs, this time explaining cori contro, songs against the enemy.
Continuing our look at the songs sung by football fans, Vanda Wilcox considers the traditions and culture of Italian club anthems.
How deeply has the culture of corruption embedded itself into Italian football? Vanda Wilcox says even children have lost their faith in fair play in football.
Why does racism persist as such a serious problem in Italian football? Our Rome-based writer, Vanda Wilcox, considers its context in Italian society and looks at possible solutions.
Editor’s note: As we’ve spent all week looking at non-league football in England, I asked our columnist in Italy, Vanda, to explain the world below Serie A and B there.
When it was suggested that I could write something about lower and non-league football in Italy, my initial reaction was Eek. Most Italian football fans are [...]
