Rome, Jun 23 (AP) Fireworks and seats thrown onto the pitch prompted a playoff between Sampdoria and Salernitana to stay in Serie B to be suspended midway through the second half.

The incidents involving Salernitana fans occurred after Sampdoria had taken a 2-0 lead Sunday in Salerno, putting it ahead 4-0 on aggregate.

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The league judge on Monday awarded a 3-0 victory to Sampdoria and ordered Salernitana to play its next two home matches without fans.

Sampdoria will remain in Serie B while Salernitana is relegated to Serie C.

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Sampdoria has never been relegated to Serie C in its 79-year history and earlier this season brought back some players from its golden years in the 1990s to manage the squad out of crisis.

It's Salernitana second consecutive relegation after playing in Serie A in 2023-24.

Salernitana and Sampdoria finished 16th and 17th, respectively, in the Serie B standings this season. (AP) AM

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)