ROME, ITALY – APRIL 13: A general view prior the Serie match between Lazio and Roma at Stadio Olimpico on April 13, 2025 in Rome, Italy. (Photo by Marco Rosi – SS Lazio/Getty Images)
Multiple sources in Italy claim that Lega Serie A wants the Rome Derby to be played on Sunday, even after the Rome Prefecture’s latest decision, with an urgent legal challenge in the works.
Lega Serie A will challenge the Rome Prefecture decision to move the upcoming Rome Derby between Roma and Lazio on Monday, May 18 at 20:45 CET (19:45 GMT).
Serie A refuses to play Rome derby on Monday, May 18
As reported by Calcio&Finanza and other reputable Italian media outlets, Serie A officials are preparing an urgent appeal to the Regional Administrative Court (TAR), seeking to overturn the Prefecture’s ruling.
Lega Serie A announced on Monday that the Roma-Lazio, Juventus-Fiorentina, Pisa-Napoli, Como-Parma, and Genoa-Milan would be played on Sunday, May 17, at 11:30 CET.
However, the Rome Prefecture changed the date and kickoff time of the Rome Derby for security reasons, with possible consequences for the other teams involved in the race for a Champions League spot.
Next Sunday the area around the Stadio Olimpico in Rome will be crowded with over 20,000 people arriving for the Italian Open Tennis Final, played on the central court next door to the Olimpico.
If the Rome derby is played on Sunday, May 17, at 12:30 CET, it would finish barely three hours before the beginning of the tennis final, posing security concerns for authorities and leading the Rome Prefecture to change the derby’s date and kick-off time.
The main concern for Lega Serie A is that Roma’s rivals for a Champions League placement, Milan, Juventus, Napoli and Como, must play at the same time as the Giallorossi in the last two rounds to ensure fairness and don’t give any advantage to any team.
Therefore, if Roma-Lazio is played on Monday, as the Rome Prefect has decided, Milan, Juventus, Napoli and Como games will have to be moved accordingly.
Lega Serie A, however, has not surrendered yet and is ready to appeal to TAR insisting its need to play those five games at the same time and public order concerns linked to moving so many matches to a Monday evening.
