Juventus Ready to Leave Delle Alpi Stadium
Copyright � 1999 Nando Media
Copyright � 1999 Agence France-Presse
TURIN, Italy (November 4, 1999 8:59 a.m. EST http://www.sportserver.com) - Juventus is preparing to quit the Delle Alpi and build a stadium of its own at nearby Borgaro, Tuttosport reported on Thurday, as the club's battle with Turin city council continues.
In a country where soccer grounds are owned by the local authorities, Juventus and neighbors Torino have talked about leaving the shared Delle Alpi for their own stadia for the past five years.
But a tug of war with Turin city officials is now expected to reach breaking point at a council meeting on Monday night, just 24 hours after this weekend's derby in the Serie A.
Juventus revealed last March that they wanted to demolish the 100 million dollar Delle Alpi and build their own $200 million stadium, cinema, restaurant and conference complex 50 metres away.
The council appeared to go along with the idea but are now planning to make the non-stadium part of the development a public invitation to tender.
But a Juventus official told Tuttosport: "We cannot allow a third party to exploit our investment in the stadium."
And the club have now found enough land at Borgaro for the former world champions to build whatever they like.
However, in the tit-for-tat world of local Italian politics, city officials are already laying banana skins in the way of Juventus.
Councillor Ugo Perone said of Borgaro that: "The city of Turin certainly couldn't provide its traffic police or build new tramlines in order to guarantee that supporters could get there."
Juventus and Torino, who are hoping to have their demolished Filadelfia stadium re-built, are expected to make their positions clear during Monday's council vote on the future of the Delle Alpi.
The unloved stadium has been an expensive flop and dubbed "The Monument to Waste" by the Italian press.
Along with the building cost, which was triple the original estimate, its annual running costs of 1.75 million dollars and unused athletics track have made it unpopular with club officials and soccer fans alike.
