Juventus came close to adding to its collection of league titles, but in the end, a controversial refereeing decision denied them the title.
Juventus led 1–0 at home to Parma in their penultimate match. Parma made a huge effort to equalise, and thought they had done so when Fabio Cannavaro headed the ball into the back of the net during stoppage time. However, referee Massimo De Santis controversially disallowed the goal due to a perceived foul, despite protests from the Parma players.
On the last day of the season, title rivals Lazio beat Reggina by 3–0 at home, but Juventus unexpectedly ran into problems at Perugia, where heavy rainfall began with the score tied at 0–0 in half-time. Referee Pierluigi Collina nonetheless decided to kick off the game, albeit half an hour too late. Nervous Laziali and players followed the Perugia–Juventus game via radio, hoping that Juventus would be defeated. A draw would mean a re-match between the sides to decide the title, while a win would give Juventus another scudetto. The Juventus players' efforts were in vain, since Alessandro Calori struck a half-volley into the back of the net with half an hour to go. With Juventus unable to make a comeback, they lost the title in the final round of the season.
It was a bitter end to the season for the Turin club, who had led the table for most of the campaign and lost just one of their first 26 matches, only to collapse in the final 8 games (4 losses suffered in those games). To make matters worse, despite initially winning the 1999 UEFA Intertoto Cup, Juventus had endured a humiliating UEFA Cup run, being beaten 4–0 and eliminated in the round of 16 by Spanish club Celta Vigo. This was their earliest exit from European competitions since the 1987–88 UEFA Cup.
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