Italian football thrown into chaos as club given chance to stay in division despite relegation already being confirmed in never-seen-before scenario
There is a chaotic end to the football season in Italy as an originally relegated side will now have a chance to stay up.
The 24/25 Serie A trophy was won by Napoli, with Sassuolo winning the Serie B title.
However, the other end of the table in the second tier is where the drama is happening.
Similar to the Premier League, the bottom three teams in the 20-team Serie B are automatically relegated to the third division following the end of the season.
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However, a fourth team is also dropped from Serie B to Serie C, with sides finishing in 16th and 17th taking part in a relegation play-off to decide who stays and who drops.
Originally, Sampdoria finished in 18th place, meaning they are automatically relegated to the third tier. They ended their season with a 0-0 draw with Juve Stabia.
However, it has now been confirmed that they will be moved up to 17th in the table, as 15th-placed Brescia have been handed a four-point deduction.
As a result, Sampdoria will now take on Salernitana for the rights to remain in Serie B.
Meanwhile, Frosinone, who originally finished in 16th, will no longer be required to play in a play-off as their place in Serie B has been confirmed by moving up to 15th.
Taking to social media, The Athletic wrote: "Brescia have been relegated to Italy’s Serie C after being deducted four points for financial irregularities, meaning Sampdoria will now take part in a relegation play-off game, despite finishing the season in the relegation places.
"Frosinone, who were originally scheduled to play Salernitana in the play-off on May 19, move up one place as a result of Brescia’s docked points and are now safe from relegation. Three teams are relegated automatically from Serie B, with 16th and 17th contesting a relegation play-off."
Sampdoria made history back in 1991 when they defied the odds and won the Serie A title with a side that boasted world class players including former Manchester City boss Roberto Mancini.
Marcus Chan