# 2018–19 Serie C

The 2018–19 Serie C was the fifth season of the unified Serie C division, the third tier of the Italian football league system.

## Teams

The league originally featured 60 teams. However, it saw the bankruptcy and subsequent withdrawal of Andria, Mestre, Reggiana and Vicenza.
To fill the vacancies in Serie B, Novara, Catania and Siena became the repechage candidates from Serie C, to the objection of Pro Vercelli and Ternana. However, on 10 August Lega B announced that a 19-team calendar would be commissioned for the 2018–19 and no repechage would take place.
The first team of Bassano Virtus was relocated to Vicenza as L.R. Vicenza Virtus. While its owner, had also acquired some assets from the liquidators of Vicenza.
On 3 August 2018, it was officially announced by the Italian Football Federation (FIGC) that Juventus Under 23 would take part in Serie C, making it the first "B Team" in Italy to do so since 1934. Also, Cavese and Imolese were admitted from Serie D to fill the vacancies created.
Due to several issues regarding vacancies and trials at both Serie B and Serie C level, the Serie C league committee delayed the season kickoff day to September, also hinting at the possibility of an indefinite delay because of the unclear situation. The season eventually kicked off on Saturday 15 September, but saw all games of Novara, Pro Vercelli, Ternana, Siena and Catania delayed indefinitely due to their judicial requests to be admitted to Serie B, as well as Viterbese, after the club threatened not to participate in Serie C due to their opposition to being admitted to the Southern group. Virtus Entella's second game was also delayed after the club was accepted on appeal for being readmitted to Serie B by the Regional Administrative Court of Lazio (Italian: Tribunale Amministrativo Regionale del Lazio, TAR Lazio).
On 14 February 2019, Matera were excluded from Serie C for missing four consecutive matches which was followed by the exclusion of Pro Piacenza on 18 February 2019 after missing several games and presenting a makeshift team composed of teenagers and a physiotherapist in their final game, where they were beaten 20-0 by Cuneo.

### Promotion and relegation rule changes

On 30 January 2019, it was announced that five teams rather than the usual four would be promoted to Serie B for the 2019-20 season, after FIGC decided to incorporate an extra club in Serie B to bring the league up to 20 teams. The decision also meant that only seven clubs would be relegated to Serie D rather than the original eight.
Due to the exclusions of Pro Piacenza and Matera from the league, the football league committee, in accordance with the Italian Football Federation, agreed on 2 April 2019 to a change in the relegation rules, by decreasing the number of relegations to five as follows:
* Group A, which originally featured 20 teams, later reduced to 19 following the exclusion of Pro Piacenza, will have no direct relegation unless there are eight or more points between the last and second-last placed team at the conclusion of the regular season. In the case of less than eight points between the two bottom teams, a two-legged relegation playoff will be played.
* Group B (20 teams), as the only one that was not affected by league exclusion, will have a direct relegation for the bottom placed team in the regular season, plus a two-legged relegation playoff between the 18th and 19th placed team.
* Group C (19 teams, later reduced to 18 teams due to Matera's exclusion) will feature the same relegation system as in Group A.
* The two relegation playoff winners from Group A and Group C (or the respective second-last placed teams in the regular season, in case of no relegation playoff being held) will subsequently take part in another relegation playoff to determine the fifth team relegated to Serie D in 2019–20.

### Relegated from Serie B

* Novara
* Pro Vercelli
* Ternana
* Virtus Entella

### Promoted from Serie D

* Gozzano (Girone A winners)
* Pro Patria (Girone B winners and 2017–18 Serie D title holders)
* Virtus Verona (Girone C winners)
* Rimini (Girone D winners)
* Albissola (Girone E winners)
* Vis Pesaro (Girone F winners)
* Rieti (Girone G winners)
* Potenza (Girone H winners)
* Vibonese (Girone I winners)
* Imolese (Girone D runner-up and playoff winner)
* Cavese (Girone H runner-up and playoff winner)

### Repechage

* Juventus U23 (newly founded B team)

### Stadia and locations
#### Group A (North & Central West)

7 teams from Tuscany, 6 teams from Piedmont, 2 teams from Emilia-Romagna, 2 teams from Sardinia, 2 teams from Liguria and 1 team from Lombardy.
| Club | City | Stadium | Capacity |
| Albissola | Albissola Marina Albisola Superiore | Comunale (Chiavari) | 5,535 |
| Alessandria | Alessandria | Giuseppe Moccagatta | 5,827 |
| Arezzo | Arezzo | Città di Arezzo | 13,128 |
| Arzachena | Arzachena | Biagio Pirina | 3,100 |
| Carrarese | Carrara | Dei Marmi | 9,500 |
| Cuneo | Cuneo | Fratelli Paschiero | 4,000 |
| Gozzano | Gozzano | Alfredo d'Albertas / Silvio Piola (Vercelli) | 400 / 5,500 |
| Juventus U23 | Torino | Giuseppe Moccagatta (Alessandria) | 5,827 |
| Lucchese | Lucca | Porta Elisa | 7,386 |
| Novara | Novara | Silvio Piola (Novara) | 17,875 |
| Olbia | Olbia | Bruno Nespoli | 3,200 |
| Piacenza | Piacenza | Leonardo Garilli | 21,668 |
| Pisa | Pisa | Arena Garibaldi – Romeo Anconetani | 25,000 |
| Pistoiese | Pistoia | Marcello Melani | 13,195 |
| Pontedera | Pontedera | Ettore Mannucci | 5,000 |
| Pro Patria | Busto Arsizio | Carlo Speroni | 4,627 |
| Pro Piacenza | Piacenza | Leonardo Garilli | 21,668 |
| Pro Vercelli | Vercelli | Silvio Piola (Vercelli) | 5,500 |
| Siena | Siena | Montepaschi Arena | 15,373 |
| Virtus Entella | Chiavari | Comunale | 5,535 |

#### Group B (North & Central East)

5 teams from Lombardy, 4 teams from Marche, 3 teams from Emilia-Romagna, 2 teams from Friuli-Venezia Giulia, 2 teams from Umbria, 2 teams from Veneto, 1 team from Abruzzo and 1 team from Trentino-Alto Adige.
| Club | City | Stadium | Capacity |
| AlbinoLeffe | Albino and Leffe | Atleti Azzurri d'Italia (Bergamo) | 21,300 |
| Fano | Fano | Raffaele Mancini | 8,800 |
| FeralpiSalò | Salò | Lino Turina | 2,500 |
| Fermana | Fermo | Bruno Recchioni | 9,500 |
| Giana Erminio | Gorgonzola | Città di Gorgonzola | 3,766 |
| Gubbio | Gubbio | Pietro Barbetti | 5,300 |
| Imolese | Imola | Romeo Galli | 4,000 |
| L.R. Vicenza | Vicenza | Romeo Menti | 12,000 |
| Monza | Monza | Brianteo | 18,568 |
| Pordenone | Pordenone | Ottavio Bottecchia | 3,000 |
| Ravenna | Ravenna | Bruno Benelli | 12,020 |
| Renate | Renate | Città di Meda (Meda) | 3,000 |
| Rimini | Rimini | Romeo Neri | 7,442 |
| Sambenedettese | San Benedetto del Tronto | Riviera delle Palme | 14,995 |
| Südtirol | Bolzano/Bozen | Druso | 3,500 |
| Teramo | Teramo | Gaetano Bonolis | 7,498 |
| Ternana | Terni | Libero Liberati | 17,460 |
| Triestina | Trieste | Nereo Rocco | 32,454 |
| Virtus Verona | Verona | Gavagnin Nocini | 1,200 |
| Vis Pesaro | Pesaro | Tonino Benelli | 4,898 |

#### Group C (South)

4 teams from Calabria, 4 teams from Campania, 4 teams from Sicily, 3 teams from Apulia, 2 teams from Basilicata, 2 teams from Lazio.
| Club | City | Stadium | Capacity |
| Bisceglie | Bisceglie | Gustavo Ventura | 5,000 |
| Casertana | Caserta | Alberto Pinto | 12,000 |
| Catania | Catania | Angelo Massimino | 20,266 |
| Catanzaro | Catanzaro | Nicola Ceravolo | 14,650 |
| Cavese | Cava de' Tirreni | Simonetta Lamberti | 5,200 |
| Juve Stabia | Castellammare di Stabia | Romeo Menti | 7,642 |
| Matera | Matera | Stadio XXI Settembre-Franco Salerno | 8,500 |
| Monopoli | Monopoli | Vito Simone Veneziani | 6,880 |
| Paganese | Pagani | Marcello Torre | 5,900 |
| Potenza | Potenza | Alfredo Viviani | 6,000 |
| Reggina | Reggio Calabria | Oreste Granillo | 27,454 |
| Rende | Rende | Marco Lorenzon | 5,000 |
| Rieti | Rieti | Manlio Scopigno | 10,163 |
| Sicula Leonzio | Lentini | Angelino Nobile | 2,500 |
| Siracusa | Siracusa | Nicola De Simone | 6,870 |
| Trapani | Trapani | Polisportivo Provinciale (Erice) | 7,000 |
| Vibonese | Vibo Valentia | Luigi Razza | 6,500 |
| Virtus Francavilla | Francavilla Fontana | Giovanni Paolo II | 5,000 |
| Viterbese Castrense | Viterbo | Enrico Rocchi | 5,460 |

## League tables
### Group A (North & Central West)

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Virtus Entella (P) | 37 | 22 | 9 | 6 | 58 | 26 | +32 | 75 | Promotion to Serie B |
| 2 | Piacenza | 37 | 22 | 8 | 7 | 56 | 33 | +23 | 74 | Qualification to the promotion play-offs |
| 3 | Pisa (O, P) | 37 | 19 | 12 | 6 | 47 | 28 | +19 | 69 | Qualification to the promotion play-offs |
| 4 | Arezzo | 37 | 16 | 16 | 5 | 49 | 32 | +17 | 64 | Qualification to the promotion play-offs |
| 5 | Pro Vercelli | 37 | 18 | 10 | 9 | 45 | 29 | +16 | 64 | Qualification to the promotion play-offs |
| 6 | Robur Siena | 37 | 16 | 15 | 6 | 57 | 40 | +17 | 63 | Qualification to the promotion play-offs |
| 7 | Carrarese | 37 | 19 | 5 | 13 | 65 | 46 | +19 | 62 | Qualification to the promotion play-offs |
| 8 | Pro Patria | 37 | 16 | 9 | 12 | 43 | 36 | +7 | 57 | Qualification to the promotion play-offs |
| 9 | Novara | 37 | 11 | 17 | 9 | 44 | 36 | +8 | 50 | Qualification to the promotion play-offs |
| 10 | Alessandria | 37 | 9 | 18 | 10 | 35 | 40 | −5 | 45 | Qualification to the promotion play-offs |
| 11 | Pontedera | 37 | 10 | 15 | 12 | 33 | 39 | −6 | 45 | |
| 12 | Juventus U23 | 37 | 12 | 6 | 19 | 41 | 48 | −7 | 42 | |
| 13 | Olbia | 37 | 9 | 11 | 17 | 40 | 49 | −9 | 38 | |
| 14 | Arzachena (D, R) | 37 | 12 | 2 | 23 | 28 | 54 | −26 | 37 | Club dissolved |
| 15 | Pistoiese | 37 | 9 | 8 | 20 | 36 | 47 | −11 | 35 | |
| 16 | Gozzano | 37 | 6 | 15 | 16 | 35 | 44 | −9 | 33 | |
| 17 | Albissola (D, R) | 37 | 6 | 10 | 21 | 33 | 59 | −26 | 28 | Club dissolved |
| 18 | Cuneo (D, R) | 37 | 11 | 14 | 12 | 29 | 36 | −7 | 24 | Club dissolved |
| 19 | Lucchese (O, D, R) | 37 | 9 | 18 | 10 | 45 | 40 | +5 | 20 | Club dissolved |
| 20 | Pro Piacenza (D, R) | 19 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 0 | 57 | −57 | 0 | Excluded from league |
* 1 2 Arezzo is ahead of Pro Vercelli on head-to-head goal difference: Arezzo–Pro Vercelli 3–1, Pro Vercelli–Arezzo 1–0
* 1 2 Alessandria is ahead of Pontedera on head-to-head points: Alessandria–Pontedera 1–1, Pontedera–Alessandria 1–2
* ↑ 1 point deduction due to financial irregularities.
* ↑ 23 point deduction due to financial irregularities.
* ↑ 25 point deduction due to financial irregularities.
* ↑ 16 point deduction due to financial irregularities initially, then expulsion from the championship.

### Group B (North & Central East)

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Pordenone (C, P) | 38 | 19 | 16 | 3 | 56 | 32 | +24 | 73 | Promotion to Serie B |
| 2 | Triestina | 38 | 19 | 11 | 8 | 60 | 33 | +27 | 67 | Qualification to the promotion play-offs |
| 3 | Imolese | 38 | 15 | 17 | 6 | 51 | 33 | +18 | 62 | Qualification to the promotion play-offs |
| 4 | Feralpisalò | 38 | 17 | 11 | 10 | 50 | 41 | +9 | 62 | Qualification to the promotion play-offs |
| 5 | Monza | 38 | 16 | 12 | 10 | 45 | 35 | +10 | 60 | Qualification to the promotion play-offs |
| 6 | Südtirol | 38 | 13 | 16 | 9 | 45 | 30 | +15 | 55 | Qualification to the promotion play-offs |
| 7 | Ravenna | 38 | 14 | 13 | 11 | 39 | 38 | +1 | 55 | Qualification to the promotion play-offs |
| 8 | L.R. Vicenza | 38 | 11 | 18 | 9 | 43 | 38 | +5 | 51 | Qualification to the promotion play-offs |
| 9 | Sambenedettese | 38 | 11 | 17 | 10 | 40 | 40 | 0 | 50 | Qualification to the promotion play-offs |
| 10 | Fermana | 38 | 12 | 11 | 15 | 21 | 35 | −14 | 47 | Qualification to the promotion play-offs |
| 11 | Ternana | 38 | 9 | 17 | 12 | 39 | 40 | −1 | 44 | |
| 12 | Gubbio | 38 | 9 | 17 | 12 | 35 | 45 | −10 | 44 | |
| 13 | Teramo | 38 | 10 | 13 | 15 | 36 | 46 | −10 | 43 | |
| 14 | Albinoleffe | 38 | 9 | 16 | 13 | 31 | 35 | −4 | 43 | |
| 15 | Vis Pesaro | 38 | 9 | 15 | 14 | 29 | 31 | −2 | 42 | |
| 16 | Giana Erminio | 38 | 8 | 18 | 12 | 42 | 50 | −8 | 42 | |
| 17 | Renate | 38 | 8 | 15 | 15 | 23 | 33 | −10 | 39 | |
| 18 | Rimini (O) | 38 | 8 | 15 | 15 | 28 | 44 | −16 | 39 | Qualification to the relegation play-outs |
| 19 | Virtus Verona | 38 | 10 | 8 | 20 | 36 | 50 | −14 | 38 | Readmitted |
| 20 | Fano | 38 | 8 | 14 | 16 | 18 | 32 | −14 | 38 | Readmitted |
* ↑ Triestina were deducted 1 point for financial irregularities.
* 1 2 Imolese is ahead of Feralpisalò on head-to-head points: Imolese–Feralpisalò 3–1, Feralpisalò–Imolese 0–1
* 1 2 Südtirol is ahead of Ravenna on head-to-head points: Südtirol–Ravenna 1–1, Ravenna–Südtirol 0–1
* 1 2 Ternana is ahead of Gubbio on head-to-head points: Ternana–Gubbio 3–0, Gubbio–Ternana 1–1
* 1 2 Teramo is ahead of Albinoleffe on head-to-head points: Teramo–Albinoleffe 2–2, Albinoleffe–Teramo 1–2
* 1 2 Vis Pesaro is ahead of Giana Erminio on overall goal difference
* 1 2 Renate is ahead of Rimini on head-to-head points: Renate–Rimini 1–0, Rimini–Renate 0–0
* 1 2 Virtus Verona is ahead of Fano on head-to-head points: Virtus Verona–Fano 1–0, Fano–Virtus Verona 1–1

### Group C (South)

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Juve Stabia (P) | 36 | 22 | 12 | 2 | 63 | 18 | +45 | 77 | Promotion to Serie B |
| 2 | Trapani (O, P) | 36 | 22 | 8 | 6 | 60 | 34 | +26 | 73 | Qualification to the promotion play-offs |
| 3 | Catanzaro | 36 | 20 | 7 | 9 | 65 | 32 | +33 | 67 | Qualification to the promotion play-offs |
| 4 | Catania | 36 | 19 | 8 | 9 | 48 | 29 | +19 | 65 | Qualification to the promotion play-offs |
| 5 | Potenza | 36 | 14 | 15 | 7 | 45 | 32 | +13 | 57 | Qualification to the promotion play-offs |
| 6 | Virtus Francavilla | 36 | 16 | 7 | 13 | 42 | 39 | +3 | 55 | Qualification to the promotion play-offs |
| 7 | Reggina | 36 | 16 | 8 | 12 | 45 | 33 | +12 | 52 | Qualification to the promotion play-offs |
| 8 | Monopoli | 36 | 13 | 14 | 9 | 41 | 31 | +10 | 51 | Qualification to the promotion play-offs |
| 9 | Casertana | 36 | 13 | 12 | 11 | 46 | 38 | +8 | 51 | Qualification to the promotion play-offs |
| 10 | Rende | 36 | 14 | 6 | 16 | 46 | 45 | +1 | 47 | Qualification to the promotion play-offs |
| 11 | Cavese | 36 | 11 | 14 | 11 | 49 | 50 | −1 | 47 | |
| 12 | Viterbese Castrense | 36 | 12 | 9 | 15 | 39 | 44 | −5 | 45 | Qualification to the promotion play-offs |
| 13 | Sicula Leonzio | 36 | 11 | 9 | 16 | 32 | 42 | −10 | 42 | |
| 14 | Vibonese | 36 | 10 | 12 | 14 | 33 | 37 | −4 | 42 | |
| 15 | Rieti | 36 | 12 | 7 | 17 | 33 | 43 | −10 | 39 | |
| 16 | Siracusa (D, R) | 36 | 12 | 6 | 18 | 34 | 44 | −10 | 36 | Relegation to Promozione Sicily |
| 17 | Bisceglie | 36 | 7 | 11 | 18 | 22 | 41 | −19 | 29 | Readmitted |
| 18 | Paganese | 36 | 4 | 11 | 21 | 36 | 72 | −36 | 23 | Readmitted |
| 19 | Matera (D, R) | 36 | 4 | 4 | 28 | 16 | 92 | −76 | −18 | Excluded from league |
* ↑ 1 point deduction due to financial irregularities.
* ↑ 1 point deduction due to financial irregularities.
* ↑ 4 point deduction due to financial irregularities.
* ↑ 2 point deduction due to financial irregularities.
* 1 2 Monopoli is ahead of Casertana on overall goal difference
* ↑ 1 point deduction due to financial irregularities.
* 1 2 Rende is ahead of Cavese on overall goal difference
* ↑ Viterbese Castrense qualified as winners of the 2018–19 Coppa Italia Serie C.
* 1 2 Sicula Leonzio is ahead of Vibonese on head-to-head goal difference: Sicula Leonzio–Vibonese 2–0, Vibonese–Sicula Leonzio 1–0
* ↑ 4 point deduction due to financial irregularities.
* ↑ 6 point deduction due to financial irregularities. Club dissolved at the end of season. A phoenix club was admitted to Promozione Sicily
* ↑ 3 point deduction due to financial irregularities.
* ↑ 34 point deduction due to financial irregularities initially, then expulsion from the championship.

## Promotion play-offs
### First Round

If tied, higher-placed team advances.
| Team 1 | Score | Team 2 |
| Pro Vercelli | 3–1 | Alessandria |
| Robur Siena | 0–1 | Novara |
| Carrarese | 2–0 | Pro Patria |
| Monza | 2–0 | Fermana |
| Südtirol | 1–0 | Sambenedettese |
| Ravenna | 1–1 | L.R. Vicenza |
| Potenza | 0–0 | Rende |
| Virtus Francavilla | 1–0 | Casertana |
| Reggina | 1–1 | Monopoli |

### Second Round

If tied, higher-placed team advances.
| Team 1 | Score | Team 2 |
| Arezzo | 2–2 | Novara |
| Pro Vercelli | 1–2 | Carrarese |
| FeralpiSalò | 0–0 | Ravenna |
| Monza | 3–3 | Südtirol |
| Catania | 4–1 | Reggina |
| Potenza | 3–1 | Virtus Francavilla |

### Quarter-finals

If tied on aggregate, higher-placed team advances.
| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
| FeralpiSalò | 3–2 | Catanzaro | 1–0 | 2–2 |
| Potenza | 2–2 | Catania | 1–1 | 1–1 |
| Arezzo | 5–0 | Viterbese | 3–0 | 2–0 |
| Carrarese | 3–4 | Pisa | 2–2 | 1–2 |
| Monza | 4–4 | Imolese | 1–3 | 3–1 |

### Semi-finals

If tied on aggregate, higher-placed team advances.
| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
| Arezzo | 2–4 | Pisa | 2–3 | 0–1 |
| Catania | 3–3 | Trapani | 2–2 | 1–1 |
| FeralpiSalò | 1–3 | Triestina | 1–1 | 0–2 |
| Imolese | 2–3 | Piacenza | 0–2 | 2–1 |

### Finals

If tied on aggregate, the winner is decided by extra-time and penalty shootout.
| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
| Pisa | 5–3 (a.e.t.) | Triestina | 2–2 | 3–1 (a.e.t.) |
| Piacenza | 0–2 | Trapani | 0–0 | 0-2 |

## Relegation play-outs
### First Round

Higher-placed team plays at home for second leg. If tied on aggregate, lower-placed team is relegated.
| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
| Lucchese | 3–0 | Cuneo | 2–0 | 1–0 |
| Virtus Verona | 1–2 | Rimini | 1–0 | 0–2 |
| Paganese | 5–5 | Bisceglie | 2–1 | 3–4 |

### Final

If tied on aggregate, extra time and eventually penalty shoot-out are played. Losers are relegated.
| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
| Lucchese | 1–1 (a.e.t.) (3-2 pen.) | Bisceglie | 1–0 | 0–1 |

## Top goalscorers

| Rank | Player | Club | Goals |
| 1 | Pablo Granoche$^3$ | Triestina | 20 |
| 2 | Francesco Tavano$^1$ | Carrarese | 18 |
| 3 | Matteo Brunori Sandri$^4$ | Arezzo | 17 |
| 3 | Luigi Castaldo | Casertana | 17 |
| 5 | Leonardo Candellone | Pordenone | 15 |
| 5 | Ettore Gliozzi | Robur Siena | 15 |
| 5 | Eric Lanini$^1$ | Imolese | 15 |
| 5 | Fabio Perna | Giana Erminio | 15 |
| 9 | Giuseppe Caccavallo$^1$ | Carrarese | 14 |
| 9 | Eugenio D'Ursi | Catanzaro | 14 |
| 9 | Manuel Fischnaller$^1$ | Catanzaro | 14 |
| 9 | Riccardo Martignago | Albissola | 14 |

### Note

$^1$Player scored 1 goal in the play-offs. $^3$Player scored 3 goals in the play-offs. $^4$Player scored 4 goals in the play-offs.