Napoli President's Outburst at Champions League Eve Sparks Official Complaints

On Monday, March 11th, in Barcelona, on the eve of the Champions League match, Aurelio De Laurentiis interrupted Matteo Politano's live interview on Sky because it was being conducted by a journalist disliked by the Napoli president and then struck the camera of a cameraman. This episode was reported by the National Council of the Order of Journalists to the Naples Police Commissioner Maurizio Agricola, to the president of the Italian Football Federation Gabriele Gravina, and to the president of the Serie A League Lorenzo Casini. A meeting with the Ministers of the Interior, Matteo Piantedosi, and of Sport, Andrea Abodi, was also requested. This is the statement from the Council: "The CNOG condemns the behavior of the president of the Napoli Football Club, Aurelio De Laurentiis, who, beyond the unacceptable demand to choose his players' interviewer, has crossed, with an attitude unprecedented, a red line of aggressiveness towards a television crew in Barcelona on the eve of a Champions League match. The videos available on the web and viewed by the entire National Council, gathered in Rome, will be formally transmitted to the FIGC, the Football League, and the Naples Police Commissioner, so that, within their respective competences, they evaluate the initiatives to be undertaken to protect journalists. From what has been seen, no possible responsibilities emerge to be submitted to the examination of the disciplinary councils by registered members, but the occasion is useful to invite all those who work in the press offices of sports clubs to cooperate solidly with colleagues who are active in the field and, as far as possible, to also perform a guarantee function for free information within their companies. In light of the recent recognition in the Constitution of the educational and social value of sports activities, it is necessary to recall the responsibility of those who operate in this sector. The Barcelona incident is only the latest and most striking of nearly a hundred intimidating episodes that journalists have been victims of in 2023. In relation to the events described above, the president of the CNOG Carlo Bartoli will request a meeting with the Ministers of the Interior and Sport."