(ANSA) - BELGRADE, OCTOBER 2 - The importance of collaboration between Italy and Serbia in the fight against corruption in sport was highlighted by Italy's Ambassador in Belgrade Carlo Lo Cascio, who spoke today at the conference "Tackling Corruption and Football Match Fixing", organized by the OSCE Mission in Serbia along with the National Anti-Mafia and Anti-Terrorism Directorate. The anti-mafia National Prosecutor Federico Cafiero De Raho took part in the meeting and spoke this morning about the transnational aspect of corruption and the manipulation of sport, "Today and tomorrow we will not only play football together but more symbolically we'll be engaged in the game of transparency, fairness, and integrity in sport," said Ambassador Lo Cascio at the opening of the meeting.

This regarding a football match scheduled for tomorrow involving policemen, judges, and foreign diplomats. "The global phenomenon of match-fixing and manipulation in sport is one of the concrete examples of how organized crime negatively affects daily life and at the same time on the economic structure of a country," said the Ambassador. "Prevention and the fight against corruption - he added - is one of the fields in which Italy plays a leading role, thanks to the relevant Italian legislation and the work of the competent law enforcement authorities and a growing competence which is well-known even abroad". According to LoCascio, the fight against corruption in football and sport in general "is also very important for the process of European integration of Belgrade and the other countries in the region".

The Belgrade event - envisaging speeches given by the local OSCE Mission, representatives of the National Anti-Mafia and Anti-Terrorism Directorate and the Serbian authorities and their counterparts - will include tomorrow also a football match between the representatives of the police and Serbian prosecutors, and the diplomats from embassies and foreign delegations in Belgrade. (ANSA).