Gabriele Gravina has been re-elected as the president of the FIGC, the Italian Football Association, as he defeated his contender Cosimo Sibilia, the boss of Serie D, capturing 73,45% of the votes. He will lead the institution until 2024. The outcome was expected since he was backed by the top three divisions, the player’s association and the coaches, while only the referees were neutral.
Gravina stated in his speech: “The second half of our match is about to begin, I thank everybody for the trust and the affection. I participated with a lot of effort, passion and absolute dedication up to this point. The consensus and the enthusiasm that you granted me solidified my platform. Now they have to turn into strength and determination to support our future projects.”
“Our industry has struggled on a human and social level because of the pandemic, even before the economic aspect. Our men and women, youngsters and families have been deeply affected, but they are also very eager to re-start. That is why we will not stop. I proposed a strategy that will be hard to pull off and that will lead to some tensions, but hard times bring out our best. We feel the weight of having to provide our youth with a better, more solid and more sustainable football.”
As few predecessors attempted before him, Gravina will now try to put together the long-awaited reform of the leagues, Repubblica reports. While a reduction of the Serie A roster seems unlikely, Serie B and Serie C could indeed see their format change in the not-so-distant future. He is also a big proponent of the playoffs at every level.