‘Crowds venues-players’ elixir of life’

Article posted by Coliseum, August 1^st, 2023

Image: Coliseum GSVA

Andrea Butti almost wears patriotism on his sleeves as his narrative was dominated by heaps-of-praises for his country Italy which he said is second to none when it comes to taking up the gauntlet (pertaining to the sports venue sector) and always rises to the occasion.

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Butti, who is the head of Lega Serie A, Italy, almost spoke impromptu with no data to buttress his speech as he puts in, “I do not believe in filling the screen with data which are readily available.”

Andrea Butti is in the role of Head of Competitions and Operations, Lega Serie A, Italy, since August 2019. He is proactively involved with the 2026 Winter Olympics to be held in Italy.

In an intriguing chat with ‘Coliseum’, Andrea Butti, Head of Competitions and Operations, Lega Serie A, Italy, asserted that humongous crowd in stadia act as a “huge morale booster” for the players. Butti also pointed out that right from the grassroots workers to the community on which a stadium sits are important players in the growth of a venue.

Serie A

The Serie A is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system.

Lega Serie A

Milan (Italy)-based the Lega Serie A (Serie A League) is the governing body that runs the major professional football competitions in Italy, most prominently the Serie A. It was founded on July 1^st, 2010.

Andrea Butti started off by stating that the two big challenges right now before Italy was to pip-to-the-post Turkey to host the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) EURO 2032. Both Turkey and Italy have thrown their hat into the EURO 2032 ring.

He added, “The second big challenge right now before us to put up a splendid show vis-à-vis hosting the 2026 Winter Olympics.”

UEFA

Nyon (Switzerland)-based the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) is one of six continental bodies of governance in association football. It governs football, futsal and beach football in Europe and the transcontinental countries of Turkey, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Kazakhstan, as well as some Asian countries such as Israel, Cyprus and Armenia. The UEFA consists of 55 national association members. Because of the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine, the FIFA and UEFA suspended all Russian national teams and clubs from any FIFA and UEFA competitions.

UEFA EURO 2032

The 2032 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as the UEFA EURO 2032 or simply EURO 2032, will be the 19^th UEFA European Championship, the quadrennial international football championship organized by UEFA for the senior men’s national teams of its member-associations. The host country is expected to be announced in October this year.

2026 Winter Olympics

The 2026 Winter Olympics, officially the XXV Olympic Winter Games and also known as Milano-Cortina 2026, is an upcoming international multisport event scheduled to take place from February 6^th to February 22^nd, 2026 in Milan and Cortina d’Ampezzo, Italy.

Butti informed that in his capacity as the Head of Competitions and Operations, “I ensure that the stadia offers the best-of-breed services to the fans as they are the soul of a venue and helps in keeping the financial wheels of venues well-oiled.”

Crowds are King

The top shot was elated over the fact that post-COVID “Crowds were coming to the stadia in huge numbers, in fact, more fans are thronging the venues in Italy and the figures are much higher than what it was pre-COVID. Stadia in Italy are packed-like-sardines and when it comes to the top-of-the-ladder Serie A teams Inter Milan, A.C. Milan and A.S. Roma games, it is simply a mindblowing turnout.”

Butti averred that the crowds’ chants in arenas is like “music to the ears of the players and is a huge morale-booster for them and galvanizes the players’ pack and invigorates the stadia ambience.”

He reiterated that the fans are the lifeline for the teams as well as the venue and they should be offered the most premium facilities when they come to the stadia – “Venue operators should put their best foot forward for fans.”

Sum-up

Andrea Butti summed up by stating, “Not only the fans but of equal importance are the foot soldiers, the stadia ground crew, the venue operators, and last but not the least, the community on which the facility sits.”

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