Livorno, Ascoli, Triestina and Catania had been promoted from Serie C, while Hellas Verona, Lecce, and Venezia had been relegated from Serie A and Fiorentina had lost their national professional licence.

The club claimed that Siena fielded an ineligible player in a 1–1 tie, a result which saw Catania relegated, whereas the two extra points from a victory would have kept them safe.

They were awarded a 2–0 victory before the result was reverted because the guilty player was a substitute which did not play the match, then Catania appealed to the judges of the Autonomous Region of Sicily who re-awarded the victory again.

In August, the FIGC decided to let Catania, along with Genoa and Salernitana, stay in Serie B; the newly reborn Fiorentina were also added for the 2003–04 season.

The ruling led to protests and boycotts by the other Serie B clubs that delayed the start of the season, until the intervention of the Italian government.