the italian gambling team: keeping the seat warm

Potito Starace has barely gotten out of a six-week suspension for betting on tennis matches and there’s already another Italian in the hot seat.

According to the AP, Federico Luzzi put down 273 bets on 836 matches between May 2004 and April 2007. He even placed a bet on himself for $4.50. The investigation found no evidence that he tried to influence the result of that match.

Luzzi will be out 200 days and $50,000.

The other Italians who’ve been through the wringer:

• Giorgio Galimberti began a 100 day suspension on February 18. He also got slapped with a $35,000. All this for betting on matches from 2003 to 2006.
• Starace’s ban started January 1, 2008; six weeks and $35,000
• Daniele Bracciali was banned for three months and fined $20,000
• Alesso Di Mauro‘s nine-month suspension started in November and cost him $60,000.

Scoreline: By the way, Starace lost to top seed David Nalbandian 3-6, 3-6 in the quarterfinals of the Abierto Mexicano Telcel in Acapulco, Mexico.

(photo by Getty Images)