Over the past few weeks I’ve written solely about divorce – concentrating mostly on people’s lives, the insensitive and oppressive way that the “No” camp imposed its values on others, and the lack of tolerance that those opposing divorce legislation showed towards the many individuals who want to start a new chapter in their lives after their first marriage failed.

The campaign brought out the worst traits in our society and, whatever the outcome of yesterday’s vote, it has changed the way we think. The impact that these last few weeks have had and will continue having on us – such as the underlying fundamentalism expressed by the “No” camp, which was kept well-hidden but which suddenly surfaced to expose how deceitful people can be when trying to achieve their aims – will remain for years, irrespective of the result.

I’ve written about these serious matters for many weeks and so, as we wait for the result of the referendum, please allow me to deal with a much less serious subject, one that however captivates the attention of thousands of people – football. On what should be a tense Sunday morning, I hope this piece serves to alleviate some of the anxiety.

Unless you are an Inter fan, of course.

I’ve been meaning to write this article for a number of weeks, ever since the team I support, Milan, clinched the 18th title in Italy after dominating the league since November. I write these words light-heartedly, hoping that it will be taken in the spirit in which it is written – by a supporter who is extremely happy to see his favourite club, in its first real attempt in years, win the scudetto.

I doubt, however, that Inter fans will take it peacefully. My experience with them is that most Inter supporters are sore losers – always willing to brag about their team’s victories, but quite unable to accept criticism, admit defeats and take any teasing with a smile. In a way, they remind me of the “No” camp because most of them are intolerant and certainly not a sport.

In this, I think that Inter fans follow the example of their president, Massimo Moratti, who finds fault in all exterior motives he could think of when Inter lose, although he stopped short of telling us that Our Lady is crying because Milan won the league. Yet he chooses to turn a million blind eyes to the favouritisms that his club has been afforded over the past years.

To start with, Inter’s recent run of wins stem from the calciopoli scandal that rocked Italian football on the eve of the 2006 World Cup. Without that scandal – I just wonder who was behind it? – Inter would never have won all they did in the past five years, if anything at all. For one thing, the way they picked players from Juventus (who were relegated) enabled them to build a squad that was by far superior to the rest.

With Juventus in Serie B and other teams, including Milan, starting the following season with deducted points, it was easy for Inter to run away with the 2007 title the following season, to add to the one that was given to them Subbuteo-style a year earlier. Still, their joy was short-lived because Milan spoilt all the fun by winning the Champions League that same season.

In the years that followed, only Roma were able to challenge Inter for the championship. For two or three years, Inter had no opposition, so much so that a slogan used to attract gamblers to try their luck in lotteries in Italy was very often ascribed to Inter’s wins – Ti piace vincere facile? (Do you like to win easily?)

It was only in the 2009-2010 season that there was some form of competition for the championship, as Roma remained in the running while Milan were, for a time, also in with a chance. Still, Inter retained the domestic title and also won the European Cup after a 45-year-lapse to make it a memorable season. Memorable also were the refereeing blunders that helped Inter on its way to the final. But I guess Moratti sees no reason to complain about that.

That’s enough about the past. Let’s talk about this current season, which Inter can save only if they win the Coppa Italia final tonight against Palermo – whom I will wholeheartedly support as I do any other team that plays against Inter.

Inter faltered badly in the first part of this season, allowing Milan to build a steady advantage that they held on to right till the end. But, long before that came to be, Inter chose to replace their coach during the Christmas break. And who did they pick? In a bid for revenge – after Milan had signed striker Ibrahimovic, whom Inter had discarded, from Barcelona – they recruited Leonardo, who had been Milan’s coach till the end of last June and had been associated with the club as a player, official and coach for 13 years.

They thought that it would have been the sweetest of victories for them to win the league with Leonardo, branded as “Judas” and “a traitor” by Milan fans, at the helm. They thought they could catch up with Milan, which had built a steady advantage by Christmas. But it was not to be. They lost the second round derby heavily to Milan too, a 3-0 defeat that is still reverberating between the walls of the San Siro Stadium. Come to think of it, Milan won the championship by six points – the six points they won against Inter in the league. How’s that for a sweet victory?

Let me go back to my earlier words about Inter fans being sore losers. When it became clear that Milan were too strong for Inter and that they would won the league, four Inter fans removed me from their list of friends on Facebook. They just couldn’t take my comments anymore. It seems they think they can say what they like, but others cannot reply.

Their answer is, almost always, “mai in B” (never in the second division). History shows us however that Inter were relegated in 1922 – but they knew how to pull strings back then too, and they forced a change in the championship format to retain their status in the top flight. True, Inter never played in the second division, but they cannot say that they were never relegated.

In life, it’s give and take. But Inter fans seem to want to give only. But I’m not surprised. It seems it’s OK for them to send SMS’ in the middle of the night when they win, but will invent excuses that their mother is dying in hospital if they receive one after a derby defeat.

Probably, if they win the Coppa Italia tonight, I will receive a barrage of SMS’ from Inter fans. That’s the way they work.

I would have gladly traded Milan’s league victory with a “yes” majority today. I just hope that I will have both.

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