Serie A postpones Saturday games due to Pope Francis’ funeral

Italian top flight Serie A has postponed Saturday’s three fixtures until Sunday due to Pope Francis’ funeral being held that day in Rome, the league said on Tuesday.

Earlier media reports had suggested that Serie A might make an exception for Inter Milan’s clash with visitors AS Roma to allow Simone Inzaghi’s side additional rest time ahead of their midweek Champions League semifinal at Barcelona.

But the league has confirmed that the game at San Siro will now kick off at 15.00 local time on Sunday.

Pope Francis, the first Latin American leader of the Roman Catholic Church, died on Monday aged 88. His funeral will be held at St Peter’s Square in front of the Basilica of St Peter before the burial in the Basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore.

Lazio were to play Parma in Rome on Saturday, which has been rescheduled for Monday at 20.45 local, while Como’s home game with Genoa has been moved to Sunday at 1230 (1030 GMT).

Serie A postponed Monday’s matches after the Pope’s death, with the games rescheduled for Wednesday, and on Tuesday Italy’s National Olympic Committee (CONI) called for the suspension of all sporting events scheduled for Saturday.

Information from Reuters was used in this story.