ROME – The match-fixing ban of Lazio captain Stefano Mauri has been cut from nine to six months, allowing him to start playing next month.
Mauri was banned for six months in early August for failing to report match-fixing in the Lecce-Lazio Serie A match in May 2011. Italy's soccer federation added three months to the ban in October after an appeal.
The reduction by Italy's sports arbitration court means the ban will expire Feb. 2 and Mauri can play Feb. 9 against rival Roma. The arbitration court is the third and final level of appeal in Italian sports justice, which will be reformed this year.
More than 50 people have been arrested in Italy for match-fixing since mid-2011, with matches under investigation by prosecutors in Cremona, Bari and Naples.
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