Why are AS Roma fans boycotting matches? Why are fans upset with owner Dan Friedkin? Why did the CEO resign?

Many AS Roma fans are continuing their protest against the club's ownership and dismissal of Daniele De Rossi, after the club legend was sacked just three months after his contract was extended to 2027. Some supporters are refusing to attend the Serie A club's matches to express their disapproval of president Dan Friedkin, who is on the brink of buying a majority share in Everton.

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AS Roma fans are staging a protest against the club’s ownership, after the controversial sacking of Daniele De Rossi.

The fans figuratively made their voices heard in their 3-0 Serie A victory over Udinese on Sunday, with the Curva Sud announcing they would not enter the ground until 30 minutes of play had elapsed.

Other fan groups decided not to unveil banners or flags until half-time, with the official attendance recorded as 63,499 in the 72,698-capacity Stadio Olimpico.

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The rift between Roma and their supporters is due to the sacking of club legend and ex-manager Daniele De Rossi, who departed after less than nine months at the helm.

Roma were winless at the start of this season before their clash with Udinese, but De Rossi’s dismissal came as a massive shock, given the 41-year-old only signed a three-year contract extension in June.

Sections of the support staged a protest on Saturday evening, holding up a banner criticising Roma’s US-born president Dan Friedkin.

The empty Curva Sud against Udinese

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This precipitated the resignation of CEO Lina Souloukou the following day, as Roma released a brief statement confirming her departure.

"We thank Lina for her dedicated service during a critical period for the club and wish her the best in her future endeavours," read the post on the club’s official website.

Former Torino boss Ivan Juric was appointed as De Rossi’s replacement, but even a dominant win over Udinese has not quelled the fans’ anger.

Posters adorned with De Rossi’s image were displayed in the Italian capital on Thursday morning, accompanied with the captions ‘De Rossi is our pride’ in Italian and ‘Yankee go home’ in English.

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Friedkin on brink of Everton takeover

Despite talks collapsing in July over the sale of Everton to The Friedkin Group, it was announced on Monday that an agreement has been reached to sell Farhad Moshiri’s majority stake to the US-based consortium.

The takeover is still dependent on regulatory approval, but Everton manager Sean Dyche commented that the “early signs look favourable” on Thursday.

Moshiri has been looking to sell the Merseyside club for well over a year, agreeing to a deal with 777 Partners in September 2023.

The American investment fund ultimately failed to meet the takeover deadline in June 2024, and Dyche was relieved that the long-running saga may be about to reach its conclusion.

“It looks like a stronger situation from the past," said Dyche in a press conference. "There is a long way to go to get everything to a final point, but the early signs look favourable in the situation but we will we will have to wait and see.

“Openly speaking, [the takeover will bring] more of the stability. It has been on unsettled ground for such a long time now, with varying situations and various opinions.

"It will clear up the noise that surrounds Everton Football Club."

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