This archive report was first published on 18 November 2019.
On November 17, 2019, Italian youth football team Invictasauro made headlines with a 27-0 thrashing of Marina Calcio in a match that would have far-reaching consequences for the team's coach, Massimiliano Riccini.
However, in a shocking turn of events, Invictasauro president Paulo Brogelli announced that Riccini had been sacked for being 'disrespectful' towards their opponents, despite the team's emphatic victory.
According to a statement by Brogelli, as reported by Football Italia, the coach had violated the values of youth football by failing to show respect to their opponents, and even went on to apologize to the home side.
"We were stunned and deeply regretful when hearing that our Juniores team had beaten Marina Calcio 27-0," Brogelli said.
"The values of youth team football are antithetical to such a thing. The opponent must always be respected and that did not happen today. As president, I sincerely apologise to the Marina club. I announce that our directors decided, unanimously, to sack coach Riccini," he added.
Riccini has since defended his team's actions, insisting that they had no intention of humiliating their opponents.
"No-one in the Invictasauro has ever thought of humiliating or ridiculing the adversary voluntarily," he told Italian publication GrossetoSport.
