Speaking of Buffon, who, during the glory days of Juventus and the national team, was betting (as Felipe Melo recounts) even on Brazilian Serie C...
If there’s one thing I’m proud of, it’s always refusing to join the herd of sheep in the Palace. Like when Gravina brought Buffon into the national team, and everyone applauded: everyone except me
(Translated into English by Grok)
“Of course, courage, if one doesn’t have it, they can’t just conjure it up,” writes Alessandro Manzoni in Chapter XXV of The Betrothed. And perhaps dignity, too. For those in my profession, that of a journalist, it means above all not feeding lies to readers, especially if they’re inspired by the Palace. For instance, refusing to give enthusiastic approval to FIGC president Gravina’s decision to appoint Gigi Buffon to the national team’s leadership as head of delegation, testimonial, and figurehead for initiatives promoting sports values in schools and among young people.
It happened two years ago. Amid the applause and hymns of the uniformly aligned media. While to me, it didn’t seem appropriate. Because while there’s no doubt Buffon was a great—indeed, an extraordinary—goalkeeper, as for the rest, let’s draw a veil. And in Il Fatto Quotidiano, I wrote this article.
So, at 45, Gigi Buffon retires from football and joins the FIGC staff: he will be the head of delegation and, as La Gazzetta writes, being “universally adored by children and young people,” he will also be involved in initiatives promoted by the Football Federation in schools to promote the values of the national team. A perfect testimonial, one might say. Let’s see why.
SCHOOL. Buffon will tell young people dreaming of becoming footballers to believe in themselves but to prioritize their studies above all. That education is everything in life. He, who failed high school (accountancy) twice, went so far as to submit a fake high school diploma from an institute in Rome he never attended to enroll in the Law University in Parma, resulting in a fraud charge: this was in 1997, and he settled with a fine of 6.5 million lire.
EDUCATION. If education is important, respect and good manners are everything. The first commandment of a good citizen is “Do not blaspheme”: especially if you do it in Italian stadiums, often half-empty, where a blasphemy is broadcast worldwide, amplified, and risks fines and suspensions, as happened to the distracted Gigi during a Parma-Juventus match when he shouted a blasphemy aimed at young Portanova.
RESPECT FOR AUTHORITY. It’s also crucial to support referees, who have a difficult and essential role. If, for example, you encounter one who, at the last minute, calls a penalty against you that costs you qualification (like the English referee Oliver in Real Madrid-Juventus 1-3), you must maintain self-control, avoid protesting, getting sent off, or going on TV to say that “the referee has a garbage can instead of a heart.” You could face a three-match ban. It wouldn’t look good.
FAIRNESS. This is the foundational value of any sport: winning dishonestly is a defeat. If, for instance, you’re a goalkeeper and block a shot, say by Muntari, with the ball crossing the goal line by half a meter without the referee noticing, no harm done: tell the referee it was a goal, ball back to the center, and the game resumes. Sportsmanship and justice come first.
MISCONDUCT. If the shadow of “fixed” matches looms and your coach, say Antonio Conte, is investigated and banned for participating in rigged games, it’s important to distance yourself and never say that the saying “Better two injured than one dead,” which justifies illicit agreements in football, takes precedence over everything. That would be unseemly.
BETTING. Betting on matches is a serious offense for a footballer. It’s not allowed. Not even if you have a friend who owns a betting shop in Parma, named Massimo Alfieri, to whom you send 14 checks ranging from 50 to 200 million lire, totaling 1.5 billion, which are immediately transferred to Lottomatica’s account. Not even if this betting shop has an 83% win rate. It’s not done.
FASCISM & NAZISM. Finally, it’s very important not to send wrong or harmful messages. If, for example, you show up to a post-match interview wearing a shirt with the slogan “Boia chi molla” (a fascist motto) on your chest, or choose to play with the number 88 (which stands for HH, the abbreviation for Heil Hitler), or celebrate a World Cup triumph with a banner displaying a Celtic cross and the words “Proud to be Italian,” you’re not setting a good example.
Now Gigi Buffon will explain it all to everyone.
