The Italian government is set to pass a new law within the next month which will help the development of privately-owned stadiums, reports Sport Business. With the majority of Serie A teams still having to pay rental fees to city councils for the right to play in their stadia, the Juventus Arena represented Italy's first privately owned football venue when it opened last month.
In the wake of failed bids for both UEFA Euro 2012 and 2016, Italy's football venues have seen little improvement since the country hosted the 1990 FIFA World Cup.
Club officials have become increasingly concerned about the ability of Italian clubs to compete against their English and Spanish counterparts with teams still hamstrung by their inability to drive matchday revenues. However, the bureaucratic obstacles that have hitherto impeded stadium construction are now set to be lifted with the implementation of the new law.
"I'm very happy that the law relating to stadiums has been approved it's an important step," said junior government minister Rocco Crimi, according to AFP. "It will now pass into parliament and I hope that it will be quickly approved to give the country a framework that will allow sports societies to have modern, secure and efficient stadia."