BKN301 Championship: Cosmos v La Fiorita with a European place at stake

The two play-off finals will bring the curtain down on the BKN301 Sammarinese Championship season this weekend, ahead of the BKN301 Titano Cup final scheduled for Saturday 27. It all starts tomorrow evening with the play-off for fourth and fifth place between Libertas and Virtus. There is an immediate change to note: after the heavy rainfall of recent days, the Acquaviva pitch has been deemed unplayable and therefore Montecchio will host this match, which will still kick off at 20:45. As for access to the stand, please note that it will only be possible via the staircase starting from Via Campo dei Giudei and descending to the stadium behind the stand. All other entrances will be closed due to landslides caused by the recent heavy rains and, by mutual agreement with the Civil Protection Service – which carried out an inspection this morning – part of the stand (east side) will also be cordoned off. Attendance will be limited to two hundred spectators. Libertas and Virtus, disappointed at missing out on the final that offered a route into Europe, will nevertheless want to finish on a high after seasons in which they both played leading roles. The Granata ended the regular season in sixth place and claimed a prestigious scalp in the play-offs by eliminating Tre Fiori. They also reached the semi-finals of the Titano Cup, where they were defeated by their rivals Tre Penne, current champions of San Marino, who in just over a week will be chasing the double. It has also been a positive campaign for Luigi Bizzotto’s side, who finished fourth in the regular season before losing to La Fiorita in the league play-off semi-finals. In the cup, the Neroverdi knocked out Cosmos in the round of 16 and reigning champions Tre Fiori in the quarter-finals, then earned their ticket to the cup final on Saturday 27 May by beating Folgore in the semi-finals. Should Virtus go on to lift the trophy, they would also secure the European qualification that slipped away from them in the league. The head-to-head meetings between the two sides this season both ended in draws in the league (1-1 in the first half of the season and 2-2 in the reverse fixture). But all eyes will be on the following day’s clash between Cosmos and La Fiorita, scheduled in Acquaviva at 20:45. The winners will clinch a place in the coveted UEFA Europa Conference League preliminary rounds. Cosmos come into the final on the back of four wins from four in the play-offs and with a strong desire to book their place in Europe after missing out on the league title by just a single point at the end of a thrilling duel with Tre Penne. While Europe would be a completely new experience for Cosmos, for La Fiorita it is almost a habit. In recent years, the Montegiardino club have featured in the Champions League, Europa League and Europa Conference League and will not want to break their positive streak of continental appearances. They have reached this final after easing past Juvenes-Dogana with two wins, before overcoming Virtus (a draw in the first leg and then a superb performance from Raffaele Russo, who gave the Gialloblu victory in the return leg). The match will also be a special occasion for the many former La Fiorita figures who moved to Cosmos in the summer: starting with coach Nicola Berardi, who enjoyed so much success in Montegiardino, as well as captain Di Maio, Errico, Zulli and Loiodice, to name just a few. This season Cosmos and La Fiorita have met twice in the league: in the first game the Gialloblu won 2-0 thanks to a Danilo Rinaldi brace – he will miss Saturday’s match through injury – and that remains Cosmos’ only league defeat, including play-offs, under Nicola Berardi. The reverse fixture ended 1-1 with goals from Tommaso Guidi and, once again, Rinaldi. In addition, whoever loses this showdown will still have hope of reaching Europe: if Tre Penne win the BKN301 Titano Cup final against Virtus, Stefano Ceci’s side – as champions of San Marino – will enter the Champions League Preliminary Round, freeing up the Europa Conference League spot for the team finishing third. Unlike the other play-off ties, where the higher-ranked team after the regular season would progress if the aggregate score was level over two legs, both the Cosmos v La Fiorita final and the Libertas v Virtus match will go to extra time and, if necessary, penalties to determine the winners. Finally, we remind you that both matches will be streamed live and exclusively on the Titani.tv platform, with full commentary in Italian. Here is the full schedule for the two BKN301 Sammarinese Championship play-off finals:

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