Four months into the Italian soccer season, the country’s top league is wrestling with a persistent problem: A series of players have again been victims of racist abuse in the country’s stadiums, groups of hard-core fans have defended their right to abuse anyone any way they choose, and certain clubs have denied that racism is even a problem.
Last month, one of the country’s highest-ranking soccer officials was accused of trying to conceal racist chanting rather than address it, and a powerful newspaper was criticized for its tone-deaf coverage of the issue.
So on Monday, Lega Serie A, the organization that oversees the country’s highest division, responded by launching a series of anti-racism initiatives.