Milan prosecutors drop referee probe: no fraud found in Rocchi-Inter case, files sent to sports justice

The investigation closes

After nearly two years of investigation, the Milan Public Prosecutor's Office has requested the dismissal of the case against former referee designator Gianluca Rocchi. Prosecutor Maurizio Ascione signed the request on the evening of 14 July 2026, following a series of meetings with deputy prosecutor Paolo Ielo and chief prosecutor Marcello Viola. The investigation, which began in October 2024 and became public in April 2025, examined whether Rocchi manipulated referee assignments for four matches to favour Inter Milan.

The prosecution's initial hypothesis was that Rocchi had committed sporting fraud in concert with unnamed Inter representatives. However, investigators concluded that the evidence gathered (wiretaps, witness testimony, and interrogations) was insufficient to sustain a trial with a reasonable probability of conviction, as required by the Cartabia reform.

No fraud in the assignments.

Inter Milan also cleared

A new development emerged on 15 July: Inter Milan as a club had been formally registered as a suspect under the law on administrative liability of entities (Law 231). The club was immediately cleared. The prosecution's dismissal for Inter is a direct consequence of the exclusion of the underlying criminal offence. The case file for Inter has been sent to the Milan General Prosecutor's Office, which has six months to contest the administrative violation if it disagrees with the assessment.

The four matches under scrutiny included Torino-Inter from the recently concluded season, Bologna-Inter from April 2025, and the Coppa Italia semi-final between Milan and Inter. Prosecutors alleged that Rocchi assigned referee Andrea Colombo to Bologna-Inter because he was considered acceptable to Inter, and assigned Daniele Doveri to the Milan-Inter semi-final to avoid his appointment for a potential final or subsequent league matches, where he was supposedly less welcome.

The historical existence of the facts has been reconstructed, but they are considered interference and not sporting fraud.

The Var room knocks

A separate strand of the investigation concerns alleged knocks on the door of the Serie A Var room in Lissone, in the province of Monza. This part of the case has been transferred to the Monza Prosecutor's Office, which has territorial jurisdiction. Five people are under investigation in total: Rocchi (self-suspended), Var supervisor Andrea Gervasoni (self-suspended), assistant Daniele Paterna, and Var room assistants Rodolfo Di Vuolo and Luigi Nasca.

Two specific incidents are cited. During Udinese-Parma on 1 March 2025, Rocchi allegedly violated the Var protocol by knocking and inducing Var official Paterna to call referee Fabio Maresca for an on-field review, leading to a penalty for Udinese, despite Paterna's differing opinion. In Salernitana-Modena on 8 March 2025, Gervasoni is accused of pressuring Var official Nasca to prompt referee Antonio Giua to review and change a decision on a penalty awarded to Modena.

Internal tensions and next steps

The investigation's conclusion was marked by internal disagreement within the prosecutor's office. Ascione, who leaves for the European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO) on 16 July, was reportedly convinced the evidence was sufficient for trial. Chief prosecutor Viola and deputy Ielo, who joined the case only in June 2026, believed the material did not meet the threshold for a probable conviction. Ascione ultimately signed the dismissal request after meetings on 14 July.

The case files will now be sent to the sporting justice bodies (the FIGC Federal Prosecutor's Office and the CONI General Prosecutor's Office for Sport) to evaluate any disciplinary violations. The documents will also be forwarded to the Parliamentary Anti-Mafia Commission, which intends to examine possible infiltrations or links with organised crime.