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Regarding the development of sustainable governance systems, many regulators have issued and developed self-regulatory codes defining the characteristics and ideal features of government models. The adoption of codes of good governance could serve as a mechanism to increase the level of legal protection for minority shareholders.Thus, this paper aims to measure the effective compliance by Italian listed companies with the Italian Code's recommendations on related party transactions and to assess the level of legal protection for minority shareholders in the Italian stock market.Using a quantitative method, our findings suggest that FTSE MIB companies are effectively compliant and that public utilities companies are as well. We also carried out an ordinary least squares (OLS) regression and found that companies with a higher market value and a greater presence of independent and non-executive directors assure a higher level of compliance. We observed that widely held firms have a positive effect on the level of legal protection for the minority shareholders. Our paper contributes to enriching the sustainable governance models, and it is directed to academic and practical communities.

This paper aims at discovering the association between earnings management (EM) and gender diversity in boards of directors as a predictor of the corporate social performance (CSP) of non‐smallmedium‐sized enterprises in the context of corporate social responsibility (CSR). The existence of a broad literature on the topic allows us to assess EM and its relations with CSR. We used an OLS regression analysis and the accrual quality measure as an EM proxy to investigate our sample of 697 Italian non‐small and medium‐sized enterprises. Our main results reveal that the presence of women on boards of directors results in the adoption of fewer EM practices. Therefore, our empirical findings support the notion that boardroom gender diversity as an instrument of CSP reduces the use of EM practices. The results of this paper are of most relevance to policymakers and academic communities focused on promoting CSP and CSR.

The academic literature on financial reporting and accounting is limited in the football industry compared with other sectors of the economy. The purpose of this paper is to critically analyze the financial communications of football clubs with reference to the impairment test for football players. According to the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS), an impairment test measures whether a balance sheet item is actually worth the amount stated on the balance sheet. The balance sheet amount should be reduced if the impairment test indicates a lower value. At the end of each reporting period, a football club is required to assess whether there is any indication that a footballer may be impaired. The paper aims to show that the financial communications and reporting disclosed by football clubs about the impairment test procedure is poor and inadequate. It is argued that the UEFA regulations have gaps that ought to be filled and that IFRS are not perfectly suitable for companies operating in specific business sectors such as the football industry. The study is based on an extensive literature review and an analysis of previous academic studies. In addition, this study investigates the best practices reported in the footnotes of the financial statements of several football clubs in Italy, England and Scotland. These clubs operate and play in different jurisdictions and so also adopt different accounting standards. The research study reveals that only a few of the clubs studied give information about the impairment test in the footnotes to financial statements. This confirms that the financial communications of football clubs are limited. Secondly, only one club studied (Rangers F.C.) acknowledges that a possible external indication for performing an impairment test might be the failure to achieve the sporting goals fixed at the beginning of the sporting season. Our findings suggest that UEFA, FIFA and local football associations should promote new regulations aimed to improve the accuracy of the financial disclosure of football clubs. They should also introduce as an important external indicator to perform the impairment. This kind of failure has a negative impact on football clubs' revenues. These findings may also have interesting implications for other sporting organisations. This article is published as part of a collection on corporate governance, the sports industry and intellectual capital.

Purpose This study addresses gender composition in universities. The purpose of this study is to define the vertical and horizontal gender segregation in both public and private universities. In particular, it measures the gender distribution throughout academic careers across levels and time, and among fields of science in Italian academia. Design/methodology/approach The authors adopted the framework of Blackburn et al. (2002) as a theoretical lens through which they examine and explain occupational gender segregation in the university context. A mixed methodology of both document analysis and examining some statistical indicators was used to create gender-disaggregated measures to help the authors answer their research questions. The data collected represent academia in Italy for the period 2010-2018. The data were obtained from the Italian Ministry of Education, University and Research. Findings The authors show the gendered nature of academic institutions in Italy. In particular, the authors acknowledge that hierarchies of power exist that privilege men and the masculine and devalue women and the feminine within academic institutions. Practical implications This paper provides theoretical and practical findings that support the literature on gender issues in universities and other public and/or private institutions. The academic community, practitioners and policymakers can use the results to design measures to address gender inequality in academia. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this paper is novel because it provides gender-relevant insights on the gender composition in universities in the Italian context. These insights are also relevant for academic institutions that operate in an international setting.

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Lease accounting will never be the same again. The endorsement of IFRS 16 on November 2017 sets out new rules for the recognition and measurement of the lease. The new standard removes the lessee’s distinction between operating and financial lease and it will have a substantial impact for companies have previously kept a large proportion of their financing off balance sheets. Under IAS 17 companies have exploited a financial accounting loophole by structuring lease transactions as operating leases, favouring opportunistic behaviours by managers and distorting the investors’ perception of the disclosure. IFRS 16 removes the so-called bright lines companies used to avoid capitalisation of leases and turns any attempt to hide lease liabilities off the balance sheet into a futile exercise to improve transparency of information. The purpose of this research is to analyse the potential impact of the new accounting rules on key financial ratios of Italian listed companies using a refined constructive capitalisation method. The results of the study show that the reflection of the operating leases on the balance sheet shall cause a significant increase in the assets and liabilities and for this reason, there shall be a significant effect on the main debt, liquidity and profitability ratios.