Sampdoria handed relegation lifeline as former Italian champions look to avoid new low | OneFootball

Former Italian champions Sampdoria have been handed a dramatic relegation reprieve despite finishing the season in the bottom three after Brescia were dealt a points deduction.

The club appeared to have sealed their fate of a first-ever demotion to the Italian third tier when ending the Serie B campaign in 18th, one of three automatic relegation places.

However, Brescia have now suffered a four-point deduction for financial irregularities, meaning Sampdoria have leapt above them into the relegation play-off, which are contest between 16th and 17th.

Having never competed outside of Italy’s top two divisions in their 79-year history, the club will now have the chance to avoid an ignominious new low against Salernitana, who are hoping to avoid back-to-back relegations after finishing rock bottom of Serie A in 2023/24.

Sampdoria are not the only beneficiary of Brescia’s punishment, with Frosinone - originally due to vie for survival in the play-off on May 19 - moving one place up and out of the play-off places.

Italian football watchdog Covisoc’s investigation of Brescia threw Serie B relegation proceedings into disarray, informing the league of their probe into the club five days after the conclusion of the regular season.

This led to the play-off to be suspended amid the uncertainty of Brescia’s status in the league.

On top of the four-point deduction in the 2024/25 campaign, Brescia will also start their 2025/26 Serie C season with a four-point penalty. Their owner, former Leeds United chief Massimo Cellino, and his son and board member Edoardo, have been handed sixth-month bans.

Sampdoria won Serie A in 1991 and last played in the top flight in 2023, having spent 18 of their last 19 seasons at the highest level of Italian football.

Despite teetering on the brink of a first-ever relegation to Serie C, their squad boasts notable ex-Premier League stars in former Liverpool and Sunderland striker Fabio Borini, as well as M’Baye Niang, once of Watford and AC Milan.