2007–08 Serie B

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The 2007–08 Serie B regular season is the seventy-sixth since its establishment. It started on August 25, 2007, and ended with the promotion playoff final on June 15, 2008. At the end of the year, three teams were promoted to Serie A, the first two via direct promotion (league champions, Chievo Verona, and Bologna), and the third team after two rounds of playoffs (Lecce). Four teams were relegated to Serie C1. The bottom three were relegated directly (Cesena, Spezia and Ravenna), as was the fourth-to-last team (Avellino), since they finished 9 points back of the fifth-to-last, Treviso, denying them a chance at a survival "relegation-playoff". The 2007–08 Serie B season marked the first appearance in the division for newly promoted Grosseto. Ravenna and Chievo returned to the second-highest Italian division after six years, their last time in Serie B having been in 2001 (both, in fact, returned to the leagues from which they'd come after this season). Pisa returned to Serie B after 13 years, surprisingly qualifying for the promotion playoffs.

Teams

Stadiums and locations

The following 22 clubs comprise the Serie B in 2007-08:

Personnel and kits

Events

In November, it was announced that Serie B matches, as well as Serie C matches, would be postponed for one week after increasing violence surrounding Italian football matches, in which football fans attacked police, stemming from the shooting of a Lazio fan by a policeman. Serie A matches were unaffected as none were scheduled for that weekend due to an international match between Italy and Scotland. On January 19, at the conclusion of the andata (first half of the league season), Chievo Verona and Bologna were named winter co-champions.

Promotions

With a 1–1 draw away to Grosseto on Matchday 41, Chievo Verona mathematically assured themselves of promotion to Serie A. On the final matchday, Bologna's 1–0 victory over Pisa rendered Lecce's victory by the same score immaterial; Bologna secured the second direct promotion. Chievo Verona's 2–2 draw with Bari outdistanced the rossoblu, however, giving the mussi volanti their first league title in 14 years. Lecce were instead left to contest the two-round promotion playoff with AlbinoLeffe, Brescia and Pisa, which will determine the identity of the 20th and final team in Italy's top flight.

Relegations

On Day 40, Cesena became the first team mathematically relegated to Serie C1 with its 2–1 loss at Treviso. Although Cesena could still have finished 19th at the time, at best it would have been 5 points behind 18th-placed Treviso, a condition that would have made playouts unnecessary. Then on Day 41, another Treviso win—coupled with concurrent losses by Ravenna, Avellino, and Spezia—ensured that none of those three teams would finish within 4 points of the veneti, consigning all three of them to Serie C1.

Final classification

Results

Promotion play-off

Lecce promoted to Serie A

Top goalscorers

Players with at least 10 goals

Managers

2007-08 events

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