The Italian Football Association [FIGC] have finally made the decision they had done all in their powers to avoid by throwing Fiorentina out of Serie B.

Teetering on the brink of bankruptcy for the past two years, the once-mighty Viola are now hoping to win a place in Serie C1, but may have to settle for C2, the fourth tier of Italian football.

"All the federal council wanted Fiorentina in Serie B, but there is a law to respect," said FIGC president Franco Carraro.

And wherever their destination they take with them still-standing tremendous debts, plus a squad which includes a host of international players such as Enrico Chiesa, Nuno Gomes, Giuseppe Taglialatela and Angelo di Livio.

They are nigh-on sure to lose their top players, many who may be able to walk away on free transfers unless the club somehow find a way to pay their hefty wages.

Certainly they have struggled to pay wages in the past year, with Nuno Gomes having at one point demanded to leave for that very reason.

The Fiorentina case is a warning which has been taken on board by Serie A's elite, who have been notably reluctant to make big-money transfer moves, fearing an accruement of debts.

So where do the team traditionally regarded as one of Italy's big seven turn now?

A casualty of Thursday's announcement appears to be Vittorio Cecchi Gori, the media magnate who owned the club and served as its president.

After he failed to save the club, having not found a buyer for his dominant shareholding, Cecchi Gori's days at the club were deemed by Carraro to be effectively over.

Carraro described the decision to dump the Viola into the lower division as "a bad day" for everyone.

"The first fundamental step is to find new shareholders who want to invest time and money in this new club," he said.

T-shirts with Cecchi Gori's photograph emblazoned on the front may have been burned in Tuscany on Thursday, but he has not always been unpopular in Florence.

He succeeded his father, Mario Cecchi Gori who died in November 1993, as controller of the club.

Cecchi Gori junior celebrated his and the club's first trophy in 21 years when they beat Atalanta in the Coppa Italia in May 1996.

Three months later, Fiorentina conquered AC Milan at San Siro 2-1 to claim the Supercup, with Gabriel Batistuta scoring both goals.

They were good times.

Cecchi Gori's men finished third in the 1998-99 season and qualified for the following year's Champions League.

But in 1999-2000, they dropped to seventh and the following campaign, year one of the post-Batistuta era, they were ninth.

Fiorentina, who had started having difficulty paying their bills, followed up the £22million sale of club talisman Batistuta to Roma by sending Rui Costa and Francesco Toldo to AC Milan and Inter respectively in 2001.

Those deals got rid of big wages, and bolstered the Viola's coffers by more than £40million.

But the debts were heavy, and even that kind of money could not pay them off and satisfy the banks.

The club were ultimately forced into administration and, as the losses mounted, they were not allowed to buy any more players.

They finished last season second from bottom in Serie A after only five wins, with Roberto Mancini's first coaching adventure ending in inevitable disaster through no fault of his own.

The club were in such dire straits that the FIGC ruled today they would not have the financial resources to compete in Serie B.

Carraro said: "It is possible to put them in Serie C/2, but a very difficult operation to put them in Serie C/1.

"I think the city already had a excessive Scottish shower (a shock). For now it is better not to create any other illusions."

The mayor of Florence, Leonardo Domenici, called a press conference to convey his sadness over Fiorentina's demise.

His words might come as little consolation to the Viola faithful let down by their club, but Domenici is determined that the club must not die.

"At this moment we must look to the future and I believe it is my duty to tell all the people of this city the importance of a new start," he said.