Consumers: unfair clauses found in subscriptions and tickets for nine Serie A football clubs
27 november 2020
The Italian Competition Authority has concluded nine proceedings relating to unfair clauses contained in the general contract conditions of the following Serie A (Premier League) football clubs: Atalanta Bergamasca Calcio S.p.A., Cagliari Calcio S.p.A., Genoa Cricket and Football Club S.p.A., F.C. Internazionale Milano S.p.A., S.S. Lazio S.p.A., A.C. Milan S.p.A., Juventus Football Club S.p.A., A.S. Roma S.p.A. and Udinese Calcio S.p.A..
For Atalanta Bergamasca Calcio S.p.A., Genoa Cricket and Football Club S.p.A., F.C. Internazionale Milano S.p.A., A.S. Roma S.p.A., Juventus Football Club S.p.A. and S.S. Lazio S.p.A., the Authority has ascertained the unfairness of certain clauses contained in the contractual conditions relating to the purchase of the annual subscription and of tickets for a single match; in particular, consumers were not recognised the right to: obtaining the reimbursement of part of the subscription or of the single ticket in the event of closure of the stadium or part of it; obtaining the reimbursement of the ticket for the access to the single match in the event of postponement of the event caused both by acts attributable to the club, and by circumstances other than the responsibility of the latter; being compensated for damages if these events are directly attributable to the club.
The Club Cagliari Calcio S.p.A. has issued a new wording of the clauses, suitable for resolving some of the issues investigated during the proceedings. However, the clauses excluding the reimbursement of the right of access in cases other than the guilty unfulfillment of the club are still to be considered unfair.
As regards the clubs A.C. Milan S.p.A. and Udinese Calcio S.p.A., the Authority has ascertained both the unfairness of the clauses under investigation as well as the removal of the unfair profiles in the new versions of the contractual conditions adopted after the notices of initiation of proceedings.
The Italian Competition Authority has also ordered that an extract of the decision be published on the homepage of the websites of the nine clubs for 30 consecutive days.
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