The verdict came on Massimo Cellino's seventieth birthday: the Court declared Brescia Calcio into liquidation, declaring it bankrupt and definitively closing the story of the club that, founded in 1911, wrote important pages in Italian football history with champions such as Roberto Baggio, Pep Guardiola, Andrea Pirlo, Gheorghe Hagi, Luca Toni, and Alessandro Altobelli.
The ruling represents the latest in a crisis that has escalated over the past eighteen months. It all began with the failure to pay salaries and contributions through tax credits that were later found to be non-existent. Since then , investigations by Covisoc have followed, along with objections from the Federal Prosecutor's Office, and the eight-point penalty that rewrites the Serie B standings, relegating Brescia and saving Sampdoria.
The already precarious financial situation rapidly worsened. Massimo Cellino decided not to register the team for the 2025-2026 Serie C championship, also forgoing the payment of the fees required to maintain the title. The FIGC thus revoked the team's national license , and Brescia, after 114 years of history, withdrew from professional football. In the following months, legal proceedings began.
The Brescia Public Prosecutor's Office requests the liquidation of the club, burdened by debts approaching €20 million. Cellino first attempts a restructuring plan, then a composition with creditors, and, at the same time, secures the reactivation of Brescia Calcio's historic registration number , a move deemed essential to avoiding bankruptcy and preserving the possibility of starting over in the amateur leagues. However, these attempts are not enough.
With today's ruling, the Bankruptcy Section of the Court of Brescia officially opened the liquidation process, appointing Alessandro Pernigotto as appointed judge and Luigi Meleleo as liquidator. From now on, the liquidator will manage the club's assets and the debt collection process. This concludes the tenure of Massimo Cellino, president since 2017, and brings to an end one of the most significant corporate crises in Italian football in recent years. On the sporting front, the city has already regained a professional team through the Union Brescia project, which this year aims for promotion from Serie C to Serie B, while the future of Brescia Calcio's historic brand and registration number will remain tied to the outcome of the bankruptcy proceedings.
(Unioneonline)