DOES the fact that there are two Italian teams in tonight's Champions League final suggest that there has been another shift in European football's balance of power?

Quite possibly, but the Calcio is still dogged by levels of debt that would have the average football club chairman whistling on his way into work each day.

The continued appeal of the Champions League was evidenced by TV viewing figures reported throughout Europe. According to UEFA, 27.9m viewers in Italy watched Juventus and AC Milan progress to the final.

The Milan derby attracted 13.6m masochistic souls, around 44 per cent of the Italian market, while the following evening 14.3m watched Juventus beat Real Madrid. How Italian football's broadcast partners wish they could attract such audiences.

In the late 1990s, Italian clubs ditched the English-style collective bargaining arrangement and negotiated their own, pay-per-view contracts with one of two broadcasters, Stream, part owned by News Corporation and Telepui.

In an incredible show of generosity, the broadcasters concluded six year, pay-per view deals with some of Italy's largest clubs worth over £90m per season per club.

Italian football clubs have increased their reliance upon broadcast revenues to the extent that on average 56 per cent of their income now comes from television receipts, yet few Italian clubs are profitable. Victory tonight will come as a relief for either side: the winners will receive around £6m for lifting the trophy, bumping profits from the competition to £18m.

The runners-up will collect £4m ensuring that the Champions League will have generated a profit of between £12m-£13m. Yet even these considerable returns will provide only temporary relief from the weight of debt carried by both Juventus and AC Milan.

As has been the case with the majority of leading football clubs in Europe's main television markets, despite colossal television receipts, Italian clubs have failed to operate within their means. Seemingly assured of a long term broadcast revenue stream, they have spent it all, and more.

The problem last September centred on the fact that nearly half of the Serie A clubs did not have pay-per-view deals with either Stream or Telepui. The eight clubs (Atalanta, Brescia, Chievo, Como, Empoli, Modena, Perugia and Piacenza) formed a consortium called Plus Media Trading (PMT) and demanded that each receive £6.7m before they kicked a ball in the 2002/03 season. In response, the two broadcasters offered £3.4m which was rejected and subsequently, the start of the season was delayed. Ultimately, the top six clubs in Serie A had to agree to contribute £4m each to minimise the shortfall in the money already offered to the eight rebels.

Serie A may be in the ascendant if we base our definition on the fact that two sides from that league have reached the European Cup Final. But we should remember too the financial condition of Italian football - Fiorentina banished to Serie C due to bankruptcy and debt-ridden Lazio seeking to raise £82m through a share issue to pay player wages.

Let's hope for a good game tonight so that the current purveyors of Italian cultural dominance enjoy their Renaissance: It could be brief.