Italian Soccer Federation (FIGC) Chief Luca Pancalli has said Serie A should resume action this weekend, but fans will not be allowed into grounds that do not comply with security regulations.
Pancalli suspended Italian football after police officer Filippo Raciti was killed in rioting Friday at the Catania-Palermo Sicilian derby.
He stressed that the FIGC will make its final decision on whether to restart on Thursday, after the government has approved its new package of measures against soccer hooliganism.
"If the measures announced by the government on Monday are approved, I think we can start again Sunday," Pancalli said.
The clubs have been pressing to return to action as soon as possible, arguing further delay would be tantamount to giving in to the troublemakers.
But it will not be business as usual, because many Serie A stadiums do not comply with laws passed to improve security in 2005 after a previous wave of hooliganism.
The FIGC said it will present a list of up-to-scratch stadiums on Wednesday.
Only four grounds are known to fully comply with the law: Rome's Olympic Stadium - home to AS Roma and Lazio - Turin's Olympic Stadium, Palermo's Stadio Barbera and Siena's Stadio Artemio Franchi.
Sampdoria, Cagliari, Empoli, Messina, Parma and Reggina should be able to play in front of their home crowds too, as their stadiums are within reach of meeting the required standards.
Ascoli, Atalanta, Catania, Chievo Verona and Udinese, on the other hand, look set to play behind closed doors as their grounds are far from satisfying the requirements.
These grounds have only been able to host games this season because local prefects issued extensions on deadlines to implement the 2005 anti-violence measures.
Florence's Stadio Artemio Franchi, Livorno's Stadio Armando Picchi and Milan's San Siro Stadium - home to giants Inter and AC - will probably be open at reduced capacity. This is because sections of the ground that do not fit the bill will be closed.
The 2005 law rules that stadiums must be equipped with video surveillance inside and outside the grounds and external lighting systems to help spot troublemakers.
The police must have a special section of the stadium where they can coordinate their activities.
It is also obligatory for stadiums to have turnstiles in order to prevent known hooligans and fans without tickets from sneaking in.
There should be a series of barriers and gates at a set distance where stewards and police can 'filter' the crowd to create a security cordon around the ground.
Finally, tickets must feature the buyer's name and the seat in the ground where they must sit - again to make it easier to identify hooligans.
Italian club chairmen have complained about the cost of upgrading stadiums that do not belong to them - most Italian grounds are owned by the local council - and about the lost revenue for those obliged to play behind closed doors.
Italian Soccer League President Antonio Matarrese even suggested play should resume because "deaths are part of a (hooligan) movement within the soccer system which the police have not yet been able to control" Monday, sparking a wave of outrage.
Despite the clubs' grumbles, Interior Minister Giuliano Amato is determined to make sure the 2005 law - introduced by his predecessor Giuseppe Pisanu - is fully implemented from now on.
"We want to reverse the priorities, with law and order first and the match behind it in the order of importance," Amato said.
"If we had adopted this approach before, the Catania-Palermo game would not have taken place".
Amato told parliament Tuesday that: "the well being and safety of Italian families is worth much more than the economic interests which demand that the show must go on".
The minister said the dynamics of the events which led to Raciti's death were still not clear.
He said investigators still did not know the exact moment in which the officer received the blow or blows by a blunt instrument which caused his fatal internal injuries.
Amato ruled out that a firecracker which exploded in Raciti's squad car outside the Catania stadium had anything to do with his death, which apparently took place after he had already received blows to his liver.
On Monday Italy was moved by the pride, courage and wisdom Raciti's widow, Marisa Grasso, displayed at her husband's funeral, when she addressed the hooligans who killed him.
"I speak to the youngsters who look on those who wear the uniform (of the police) with hatred and contempt," she said.
"My husband was a great man. He had real qualities. He was honest, loyal, reliable, helpful.
"He was a teacher in life and now I'd like him to be a teacher in death, because this death must not fail to bring changes, because other families must not feel this pain."
Raciti's 15-year-old daughter Fabiana showed maturity beyond her years.
"I hope your death makes society change," she said. "I cannot live without you. We have the same faults and the same virtues.
"I was, I am and I always will be proud to be your daughter".
Raciti's also leaves behind his nine-year-old son, Alessio, who attended the funeral in the uniform of his father's force.
