A Milan court announced Friday that it expects to issue a ruling on Unibet's legal challenge of its exclusion from the Giro d'Italia on May 21... nine days after the race starts.

The delay effectively ends any hope the team had to contest the Italian national tour, which is slated to begin on Saturday.

The Belgian-Swedish team is one of 20 ProTour squads recognized by the UCI, but it has served as focal point of an ongoing dispute between the international governing body and the "big three" race organizers who promote the Giro, the Tour de France and the Vuelta a España.

Unibet.com took its case for participation to the Milan court in hopes of forcing the issue, but the delay renders the effort useless.

"Even if we win, we lose," said Unibet director Jacques Hanegraaf. "What difference will it make at this point?"

Unibet's season has been blighted by snubs from major races in France and Belgium due in part to its sponsorship by an online betting company. Unibet was excluded from a number of early season events organized by ASO, the company that promotes and organizes the Tour, Paris-Nice, Paris-Roubaix and several other major classics.