Referees in Italy will now receive the same legal protection as police officers and other officials, said Sports Minister Andrea Abodi, to start an increase in cases of abuse in sport such as football.
A change in the Criminal Code means much more difficult penalties, include potential prison, for acts of violence against match officials, including pushing, hitting or threatening. The move follows months of discussions between the government and the Italian football referee.
The law, part of a decision that the Italian government has been approved on Friday, is expanding the protection to all officials responsible for the reasonable of sporting luminaires.
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Abuse to match officials at all levels of Italian football has become a growing care. In December, Serie A referees emphasized the problem by wearing black spots on their cheeks during matches as a symbol of protest.
In one notorious example Last season, the 19-year-old referee Diego Alfonzetti was attacked when he took the lead on a youth match in Sicily.
Alfonzetti was invited to the field next to the competition officers before the Lazio-Rome Serie A Derby in April as an act of solidarity.
«Sport is loyalty and sharing. Those who do not accept it are warned: From tomorrow, violent behavior and aggression will be punished against referees without delay, even with prison,» said Senator Andrea Ostellari, a Minister of Justice.
