Cividale has reached the Apu, here is the new A2 series with two Friulians

Twenty-eight teams from 9 regions to be divided into two groups, starting on 2 October: Fortitudo and Cremona raise the level and there will be six relegations

UDINE. The unprecedented Udine-Cividale provincial derby is undoubtedly one of the most exciting themes of the A2 2022/2023 series which has taken its almost final form with the promotions of Gesteco Cividale, Juvi Cremona, Basket Rimini and Fortitudo Agrigento.

The “almost” is linked to the sale of sports titles of companies in economic difficulties: it is all done for the handover between Bakery Piacenza and Npc Rieti, there are also rumors of a possible downsizing of Biella in favor of the Stella Azzurra Rome.

THE FORMULA

The next A2 tournament, starting on 2 October as the Serie A, will also mark the beginning of the reform wanted by the Fip to bring the second national league from the current 28 teams to 20 in the 2024/2025 championship. A slimming treatment that will be implemented with the passage from 4 to 6 relegations in B (2 direct and 4 via play-out), while from the cadet series only 2 teams will rise instead of 4. For the rest formula unchanged, with two groups of 14 teams , 26 regular season days and 4 on the clock. The first 8 of each group access the play-offs, with two promotions in the top flight up for grabs.

GEOGRAPHY

There are 9 Italian regions represented on the boot map. Veneto, Campania and Marche come out, with the promotion of Verona and Scafati and the relegation of Fabriano, while the Fvg doubles its contingent with Cividale alongside Udine.

The platoon of Lombard teams also increases by one unit: greeted Orzinuovi, here are the two teams from Cremona for another new derby. Agrigento replaces Capo d’Orlando in Sicily, Rimini does the same with Bakery Piacenza in Emilia Romagna and Rieti replaces the Blue Star Rome in Lazio.

On balance, the mileage of the trips does not increase for the APU, which will indeed have a comfortable transfer to Cividale instead of the trip to Verona.

POSSIBLE GIRONI

Let’s get ready for another geographical shuffling in the groups, given that a simple interchange between those who enter and those who leaves is unthinkable: in this way Cividale would take the place of Verona, but we would have the two Friulian teams separated. One hypothesis is a “unpacking” of the large platoon of Emilia Romagna, already implemented in the past. The topic will be a topic for the next Lega assemblies, and given the fuel costs it will not be a secondary topic.

THE CHALLENGES

The relegations of Fortitudo Bologna and Vanoli Cremona, combined with the missed promotions of Udine and Cantù and the presence of Turin, Pistoia and the always ambitious Forlì and Treviglio already suggests a good fight for the two promotions.

For the newly promoted Cividale it will be a big leap, because going to play on the fields of historic clubs like Cantù, “Effe” and Turin will be goosebumps. Attention also to the fight for salvation, because with the six relegations no one will be able to afford false starts or empty passes: it takes a moment to slip from eighth place that gives the play-offs to the tenth that condemns the play-outs.

We hope to see competitive teams in the lower half compared to last season, with too many games widely unbalanced already from the duo.

I COACH

An interesting aspect of the A2 series that will come is linked to the coaches: there are so many of them with great experience and media impact, and this is undoubtedly good for the category. Let’s scroll through the list: Meo Sacchetti, Demis Cavina, Matteo Boniciolli, Stefano Pillastrini, Franco Ciani and Antimo Martino, plus the possible returns in A2 of Attilio Caja and Lino Lardo. Names from a higher series, which show how much ambition there is also downstairs.

FRIULANI

The presence of Cividale only raises the interest of the Friulian people for the next A2. The market will designate new scenarios, but it is all too easy to predict that between Apu and Eagles there will be numerous exponents of the territory between the field, the bench and the grandstand. Add to this the transfer to Turin of Franco Ciani and old acquaintances such as “Dada” Pascolo (just to name one), and here the representation of Friulian basketball becomes even more numerous.