Parma docked 5 points; Emanuele Calaio banned 2 years for match-fixing

Parma will begin Serie A with minus-five points and was fined €20,000 after veteran striker Emanuele Calaio was found guilty of match-fixing by Italy's National Federal Court and subsequently banned for two years.

The 36-year-old sent "suspicious messages" to Spezia's Filippo de Col and Claudio Terzi - Calaio's former teammates at the Liguria outfit - prior to their final match of the 2017-18 Serie B season, as quoted by BBC Sport. Parma won the game 2-0, confirming a third successive promotion and top-flight football for a club which was most successful in the 1990s.

Calaio previously played in Serie A for Torino, Napoli, Siena, and Genoa, but was denied the opportunity to do so with Parma due to his correspondence with players from the club he left in 2016. Spezia fans apparently reacted angrily to their team's final-day loss to Parma, with Alberto Gilardino singled out after he sent a penalty high and wide when Parma held a one-goal lead. Parma's Fabio Ceravolo was also alleged to have contacted Spezia players before the match, and scored the 11th-minute opener.

The victory meant Parma was promoted automatically behind Serie B champion Empoli, condemning Frosinone to the play-offs. Frosinone made it into the top flight, however, after overcoming Palermo 3-2 in a two-legged final.