All 20 Serie A captains signed a letter warning they’ll strike for the opening weekend of the season unless the collective bargaining contract is signed.
There were threats of a strike last year over this same issue and they agreed to postpone the action to give more time for negotiations.

However, the season is set to begin on August 27-28 and the Lega Serie A (the union of clubs) has still not signed the deal with the Players’ Association.

“The Serie A players want to make the public aware of the disconcerting situation around the collective bargaining contract,” read the open letter released by the AIC.

“The agreement reached by the delegation of the AIC and the Lega Serie A, certified by the FIGC in December 2010, were ignored by the clubs with a surprising and unacceptable decision.

“As a consequence, the inadmissible period of deregulation around our world continues to drag on. It threatens our rights and could even put our contracts in jeopardy.

“It may seem absurd, but Italy are today the only developed football nation in which there are no precise contractual norms for all players.

“We therefore consider that without a signature on the collective bargaining contract, we cannot begin the new season. This is why we are certain the Lega Serie A will stand by its commitments and sign the contract that was already drawn up by the Players’ Association on May 30, 2011.”

The letter was signed by all 20 Serie A captains, including Javier Zanetti, Francesco Totti and Alessandro Del Piero.

Hmm, sounds serious then?