Decision 'confirmed' on Serie A fixtures following Pope Francis' death
A decision has reportedly been made on this weekend’s Serie A fixtures following the death of Pope Francis on Monday (April 21).
Following the news of the late Pope’s passing on Easter Monday, Serie A postponed all four of the day’s fixtures - Torino vs Udinese, Cagliari vs Fiorentina, Genoa vs Lazio and Parma vs Juventus.
On Monday, a statement by Serie A read: “Following the passing of His Holiness, Lega Nazionale Professionisti Serie A can confirm that today's league games in Serie A and Primavera 1 have been postponed. The date of the rearranged fixtures will be announced in due course.”
The league posted another statement about the rearranged dates for the postponed fixtures on Tuesday, which read: “RESCHEDULING MATCHES FOR MATCHDAY 33 #SerieA CAGLIARI vs. FIORENTINA
"GENOA vs. LAZIO
"PARMA vs JUVENTUS
"TORINO vs. UDINESE
“Wednesday, April 23, 2025 at 6:30 PM CEST.”
As reported by TGCOM24, future fixtures are also likely to be affected as Italy’s five-day period of mourning has already begun (on April 22) and will last until Saturday (April 26) when Pope Francis’ funeral is set to take place.
On Tuesday afternoon, Italian journalist Enrico Varriale issued an update on Serie A game week 34, he wrote: “Next Saturday, the Serie A championship will be suspended for the funeral of Pope Francis.
"The matches scheduled for April 26, including Inter vs Roma, will be played on Sunday. Rightly so.”
However, the league have not confirmed this at this time.
As reported by Sky Italia, "The President of CONI Giovanni Malagò has invited the National Sports Federations, the Associated Sports Disciplines and the Sports Promotion Bodies to suspend all sports activities scheduled for today and to observe a minute of silence in the competitive events scheduled in Italy for the rest of the week, to mourn the passing of the Holy Father Francis and honor his memory".
CONI Giovanni Malagò also posted a statement on X, which read: "Italian sport, deeply saddened, shares the inconsolable grief for the passing of the Holy Father Francis, Jorge Mario Bergoglio. The world has been left orphaned of a spiritual guide who was able to illuminate the path of the faithful and the entire community, thanks to his message inspired by brotherhood, mutuality and those values that represent the goal to aspire to in building a better society.
"Pope Francis has enlightened consciences by constantly demonstrating his closeness to our world, sharing its ideals and goals. There are many moments lived with him and occasions of reflection in which he wanted to gratify the various expressions of the system, stimulating us to understand the importance of the testimony offered in the exercise of sports as a behavioral model for the new generations and for anyone who knows how to be permeated by his authenticity. I remember with emotion and pride the 2014 audience in which he received the entire Italian sport in St. Peter's Basilica to celebrate the Centenary of CONI and our history, as well as the unconditional adhesion to the Olympic spirit that can contribute to reaching those goals of the soul to be pursued daily."
Luke Davies