Federation president Giancarlo Abete said he is still speaking to the league and players, but that there will be an announcement by noon (1000 GMT).

“The announcement that the first round of the season won’t be played is imminent,” Abete said.

All 20 Serie A captains signed a document this month declaring that the players will strike if a new collective contract is not signed before the season opens on Saturday.

There are two central conflicts. One is a clause clubs want that would enable them to force unwanted players to train away from the first team, and the other is an effort by clubs to make players pay a new government solidarity tax that applies to high-wage earners.

With a break for international matches over the weekend of Sept. 3-4, a strike could delay the start of the season until Sept. 10-11.

The conflict between the players and the league has been ongoing since the last collective contract expired in June 2010.

The players set two strike dates during the first half of last season, both of which were avoided with last-minute verbal agreements.

The clubs voted 18-2 on Wednesday to reject the players’ proposal, with only Siena and Cagliari voting in favor of the players’ version.

Players association president Damiano Tommasi offered on Friday for the league to sign a temporary contract until June, 2012 — without the two additional clauses the clubs want — saying that otherwise “it could take months, not 15 days” to resolve the conflict.

Serie A is due to start on Saturday with Fiorentina at Siena in a Tuscan derby and defending champion AC Milan at Cagliari. On Sunday, it’s: Napoli vs. Genoa; Atalanta vs. Cesena; Bologna vs. Roma; Inter Milan vs. Lecce; Lazio vs. Chievo Verona; Novara vs. Palermo; Parma vs. Catania; and Udinese vs. Juventus.

While there have been numerous other threats over the years, the only time Serie A players went on strike was in March 1996. Among the issues then was the Bosman ruling, which established the right of players to switch clubs freely once their contracts expired, and found that the strict limits on foreigners were illegal.