#3 Fiorentina
What is it with Italian clubs, corrupt and greedy owners, and insolvency? Footballing history is littered with Italian clubs biting the dust thanks to the greed of their owners, who saw the football club as an easy road to financial success.
The 2 time Serie-A winners and 1 time European Cup runners-up were essentially disbanded in 2002 when their financial crisis came out into the open. Their poor financial state was masked by glorious on-field performances by the players. They won the Coppa Italia in 2001 and qualified for the UEFA Cup and everything seemed rosy. However, it was revealed that the club was in debt to the tune of £32 million, big money in those days, and were unable to pay their players on a regular basis.
Such crippling debt eventually took its toll and they were relegated from Serie A at the end of the season. Much like Parma, Fiorentina had too heavy a debt burden to be allowed entry into Serie B, and they had to start from the 4th tier of Italian football.
However, due to the ‘Catania’ case and the subsequent unforeseen circumstances prevailing in Italian football at that time, Fiorentina were allowed to bypass Serie C1 having moved up from Serie C2, and they were back in Serie A at the end of the 2003/04 season.
