Milan prosecutors clear Serie A referee chief Rocchi of VAR interference charges

Milan prosecutors have dismissed sports fraud charges against Gianluca Rocchi, the former head of referees for Serie A and Serie B, and his deputy Andrea Gervasoni, closing an investigation that had run since April into allegations of VAR interference and manipulated referee appointments.

The Milan Public Prosecutor’s Office announced on Wednesday that it found “no evidence of a structured system aimed at interfering with appointments,” effectively exonerating Rocchi of the most serious accusations levelled against him.

Rocchi had faced two principal allegations relating to the 2024-25 season. The first concerned the alleged replacement of a match official assigned to an Inter Milan fixture with one considered more favourable to the club. Inter, who finished a point behind Serie A champions Napoli that season, were not themselves implicated in the inquiry.

The second allegation centred on a Serie A match between Udinese and Parma on 1 March 2025, during which Rocchi was accused of knocking on the VAR booth window and urging the on-field referee to review a potential penalty decision. Documents relating to that specific incident have been referred to the Monza Public Prosecutor’s Office, which holds jurisdiction over the VAR operations room involved.

Rocchi stepped down from his role during the investigation. He was succeeded first by Dino Tommasi and then by former international referee Daniele Orsato.

His lawyer, Antonio D’Avirro, welcomed the outcome. “I’ve spoken to him and he is very pleased; now we will consider our next steps,” D’Avirro said, adding that he was due to meet Rocchi to discuss the matter in detail. D’Avirro also questioned the legal basis of the original allegations: “I fail to see how those ‘knocks’ could constitute sporting fraud; they were intended to correct a serious error the referee was making, certainly not to alter the match result.”

The case had cast a shadow over Italian football’s officiating structures at a sensitive time. Inter went on to win the Serie A title in their first season under Cristian Chivu, finishing nine points clear of Napoli, though they were eliminated from the Champions League in the play-off round by Norwegian club Bodø/Glimt.

The 2026-27 Serie A season is scheduled to begin on 23 August, with Inter seeking to defend their title against a Napoli side and an AC Milan squad both operating under new managers.