Napoli’s football club president Aurelio De Laurentiis has tested positive for Covid-19, the club made the announcement on Thursday.

“SSC Napoli can confirm that club president Aurelio De Laurentiis tested positive for Covid-19,” the club said on its website but gave no further details.

Italian news reports said De Laurentiis showed symptoms of the disease when meeting other Serie A officials in Milan on Wednesday to discuss TV rights and the resumption of Italy’s top professional league competition.

De Laurentiis, 71, who is also a prominent Italian film producer initially thought his higher temperature was the result of indigestion after eating oysters.

He was not told that he tested positive until the evening after the Milan meeting, wrote the La Gazzetta dello Sport.

He then immediately warned other delegates attending the meeting as well as journalists who spoke to him, news reports said.

(AFP)