ITALY: Bologna SC (1927-1934) / Bologna AGC (1934-1945) / Bologna FC (1945-1993) / Bologna FC 1909 (1993-)

Stadio Renato Dall'Ara "Stadio Littoriale", Bologna (Bologna FC 1909, formerly Bologna SC / Bologna AGC / Bologna FC)

Italy, region: Emilia-Romagna

30 XII 2024 / Bologna FC 1909 - Hellas Verona FC 2-3 / Serie A (= ITA level 1)

Timeline

• 1905 / Foundation of the oldest football club in Bologna, Società Ginnastica (SG) Fortitudo Bologna – in fact the football branch of the eponymous gymnastics club founded four year previously. The club plays its football on the Campo di Via Vezza, later moving to the Campo Salus at Porta Saragozza (in 1910). SG Fortitudo Bologna is only one of several fledgling football clubs in Bologna in the formative years of Italian football.
• 1909 / Foundation of a new football club in Bologna, which takes on the name Bologna Football Club (FC). Bologna FC joins the official Italian Football Association, FIGC (Federazione Italiana Giuoco Calcio) that same year. The club’s first pitch is situated in a public park, the Prati di Caprera – roughly situated on the site of the modern-day Ospedale Maggiore.
• 1910 / In its first season as a competitive club, Bologna FC wins first place in an aspirant competition of new clubs, the so-called Campionato Emiliano di Terza Categoria, finishing 3 points ahead of closest followers SEF Virtus and Sempre Avanti – two other clubs from Bologna. Following the 1909-10 season, at the behest of the FIGC, Bologna FC is admitted to the Prima Categoria, the regionalised top division of the Italian football pyramid. Due to the pitch in the Prati di Caprera lacking the facilities to host top flight football, the club moves to a newly laid-out pitch, the Campo della Cesoia, with wooden stands, changing rooms, and fences surrounding the ground.
• 1913 / Being forced out of the Campo della Cesoia after three years, Bologna FC settles at a new ground, the Stadio Sterlino, officially named the Campo di Giuoco di Villa Hercolani, situated at Via Toscani. The initiative to build the new stadium was taken by the club’s chairman, Rodolfo Minelli. A metal grandstand is added to the set-up, with boards surrounding the remainder of the pitch. Total capacity is estimated at 15,000. The most striking element of the ground is its slope of 1 metre between the two goals.
• 1916 / Bologna FC wins the so-called Coppa Emilia, 2 points ahead of closest rivals Reggio FC. The Coppa Emilia is a makeshift regional tournament, organised to replace regular league football, suspended due to Italy’s entrance in World War I in 1915. All football activities in the country are suspended between 1917 and 1919.
• 1920 / Finishing in first place in Prima Categoria Emilia, 3 points ahead of closest rivals Modena FC, Bologna FC qualifies for the national title play-offs, being eliminated in the semi-final group stage by FC Internazionale. Also in 1920, Bologna’s midfielder Angelo Badini is called up for the Italian squad for the football tournament of the Summer Olympics in Antwerp. The first-ever Bologna player to win a cap for Italy, Badini would play in both of Italy’s matches, a 2-1 win over Norway (in which he scored the winning goal) and a 2-0 defeat against Spain.
• 1921 / Champions in Prima Categoria Emilia Group B, 3 points ahead of closest followers AC Mantova, Bologna FC goes on to defeat Group A winner Modena FC in the Emilia title play-offs (albeit only after a third encounter, a tie-breaker, in Ferrara: 1-0 A.E.T.). Following this, the club qualifies for the Lega Nord semis, in which the club goes on to win Group A, 3 points ahead of record champions Genoa CFC. The club stumbles over the next hurdle to the national title, however, losing the Northern championship final against Group B winner US Pro Vercelli (2-1) in Livorno. Also in 1921, Bologna’s Stadio Sterlino, officially named the Campo di Giuoco di Villa Hercolani, is renamed Stadio Angelo Badini in honour of Bologna’s Argentinian midfielder who passed away unexpectedly following a sepsis earlier that year, aged 26. That same year, the ground’s open and covered terraces are completely reconstructed, while the scrap metal elements in the grandstand are replaced by concrete.
• 1923 / Having suffered from circumstances at the Stadio Angelo Badini, SPAL files a complaint at Italy’s Football Association concerning the one-metre slope of the pitch in Bologna. Following a decree by FIGC authorities, Bologna is ordered to have the pitch levelled by the start of the 1924-25 season.
• 1924 / Finishing in first place in Group B of the so-called Prima Divisione, as the regionalised top division of Italian football was renamed in 1921, 1 point ahead of runners-up FBC Torino, Bologna FC qualifies for the Northern championship final, in which it is eliminated for the national title final by Genoa CFC, losing the away tie 1-0 and being punished with a reglementary 0-2 home defeat following riots breaking out during the second leg, following which the match was abandoned in the 84th minute (1-1). 
• 1925 / Under the aegis of Austrian coach Hermann Felsner, who had joined the club in 1920, Bologna FC wins its first-ever national title. First, the club wins Lega Nord Group B of the Prima Divisione, 2 points ahead of closest rivals US Pro Vercelli, going on to clinch the Lega Nord title against Group A winners Genoa CFC – albeit only after a fourth tie-breaker (2-0 in Milan). Subsequently, the club has a relatively easy time against Lega Sud champions SS Alba (Rome), winning both legs of the final (6-0 aggr.). Also in 1925, in view of the club’s recent successes, the size of the Stadio Sterlino ‘Angelo Badini’ is deemed too modest – and designs are made for a new, much larger stadium in the vicinity of the Certosa cemetery, some 3,5km west of the city-centre, by architect Giulio Ulisse Arata (1881-1962) and Bologna’s city-engineer Umberto Costanzini (1897-1968). The first stone for the new ground, the Stadio Littoriale, is laid by the initiator of the project, fascist party official Leandro Arpinati, deemed to become mayor of Bologna in 1926.
• 1926 / Winning first place in Lega Nord Group A, 2 points ahead of closest followers FBC Torino, Bologna FC qualifies for the Lega Nord final, in which it is bested by FBC Juventus after a third encounter, a tie-break match in Milan (2-1). Also in 1926, on October 29th, works are completed on the construction of the Stadio Littoriale, erected in red brick, with a covered grandstand and open terraces merging into one another in the way of a Roman amphitheatre; total capacity is 50,100. Two days later, on October 31st, the stadium is inaugurated by fascist leader Benito Mussolini, who makes his entrance in the ground seated on a horse. Later that day, an attempt on the Duce’s life is made by anarchist Anteo Zamboni. Although the construction itself and the athletics track have been completed, no football can be played in the stadium as yet – with a proper pitch still having to be laid out. 
• 1927 / At the behest of fascist authorities, Bologna FC does away with the English epithet Football Club, continuing life as Bologna Sezione Calcio (SC). Finally, on May 29th, 1927, with the football pitch at the Stadio Littoriale being fit for use, an inaugural match is held at the ground, an international friendly between Italy and Spain attended by King Victor Emanuel III as well as Alfonso de Bourbon-Parma, one of the sons of the Spanish king; the encounter, played for (more than) a sell-out crowd (55,000), was won by Italy, 2-0, with Adolfo Baloncieri being the first-ever goalscorer in the stadium. Several days later, on June 5th, Bologna received Genoa CFC for its first league match at the new ground, winning the encounter 1-0 (goal by Giuseppe Martelli). Following Bologna’s departure, the Stadio Sterlino ‘Angelo Badini’ remains in use as a training ground, while the facilities are also made use of for matches by Rugby Bologna from the 1930s onwards.
• 1928 / Winning Divisione Nazionale Group B, 3 points ahead of runners-up FBC Juventus, Bologna SC qualifies for the national title play-offs, in which it finishes in a meagre fifth place, 4 points behind champions FBC Torino.
• 1929 / Still coached by Hermann Felsner, Bologna FC wins its second national title, first winning first place in Divisione Nazionale Group B, an impressive 8 points ahead of closest rivals FBC Juventus and FC Brescia – going on to edge past Group A winner FBC Torino in the final, but only after a third encounter, a tie-break match played at Rome’s Stadio PNF (Stadio Nazionale). The only goal in this decisive match is scored by Giuseppe Muzzioli. Also in 1929, on October 29th, the so-called Torre di Maratona is inaugurated, a 42-metre high tower in the centre of the East Stand of the Stadio Littoriale. The construction with six floors is a design by the architect of the stadium, Giulio Ulisse Arata, erected by Ugo Bassi’s construction company. On top of the tower, a statue of the Goddess Victory in fascist style is added, while the arch on the stadium side of the construction is adorned with an equestrian statue of Benito Mussolini, cast in bronze taken from three Austrian cannons from a battle in the First Italian War of Independence (1848). This statue is a work by sculptor Giuseppe Graziosi. Also around this time, with arcades being built around part of the ground, the stadium’s construction is merged into the so-called Portico di San Luca, an eighteenth-century colonnade leading to the Sanctuary of the Madonna of San Luca on Guardia Hill.
• 1930 / Bologna SC takes part in an international club tournament in Geneva, the so-called Coupe des Nations, in which it defeats DVV Go-Ahead in R1 (4-0), being eliminated in the quarter finals by host club Servette FC (4-1).
• 1931 / Bologna striker Giuseppe Della Valle hangs up his boots after fifteen years with the club – the last eleven of which he also was the team’s skipper. Moreover, Della Valle won 17 caps for Italy between 1923 and 1929.
• 1932 / Finishing 4 points behind champions FBC Juventus, Bologna SC manages a second place in Serie A, as Italy’s nationwide top division is called since 1929. More importantly, though, the club manages to win the Mitropa Cup following wins over AC Sparta (Prague) (quarter-finals: 5-3 aggr.) and First Vienna FC (semi-finals: 2-1 aggr.). Due to both other semi-finalists, FBC Juventus and SK Slavia Praha, being eliminated from the competition following riots during the second leg of their encounter in Turin, Bologna obtains the trophy unopposed. The successful coach is Hungaria’s Gyula Lelovics.
• 1934 / Bologna Sezione Calcio (SC) takes on the new name Bologna Associazione Giuoco del Calcio (AGC). Adorned with this new name, the club clinches its second Mitropa Cup, successively defeating Bocskai SC (3-2 aggr.), SK Rapid (7-5 aggr.), Ferencvárosi FC (6-2 aggr.), and SK Admira (7-4 aggr.). The goals against the Viennese side in the final are marked by Carlo Reguzzoni (4 goals), Aldo Spivach, Bruno Maini, and Francisco Fedullo. The successful coach is Lajos Nemes Kovács from Hungary. In the 1934 World Cup, held in Italy, the group game Sweden-Argentina (3-2) as well as the quarter-final Austria-Hungary (2-1) are held at the Stadio Littoriale. Italy goes on to win the tournament itself, with two Bologna players being part of its squad: defender Eraldo Monzeglio and striker Angelo Schiavio. Schiavio is still Bologna’s all-time top scorer with 242 goals between 1922 and 1939.
• 1936 / Bologna AGC clinches its third Italian title, finishing 1 point ahead of runners-up AS Roma in Serie A. The successful coach is yet another Hungarian, Árpád Weisz. The club is less successful in the Mitropa Cup this year, being knocked out in R1 by FK Austria Wien (5-2 aggr.).
• 1937 / Still coached by Árpád Weisz, Bologna AGC wins its fourth Italian title, finishing 3 points ahead of closest rivals SS Lazio. Yet again, though, the club is eliminated by FK Austria Wien in R1 of the Mitropa Cup (7-2 aggr.). Bologna is markedly more successful in another international tournament that same year, the Tournoi International de l’Exposition Universelle, held at the Stade de Paris (later renamed Stade Bauer) in Saint-Ouen as part of the World Expo in Paris. Knocking out FC Sochaux (4-1) and SK Slavia Praha (2-0) in the preliminary rounds, the club also has the better of Chelsea FC in the final, winning the encounter handsomely (4-1, three goals by Carlo Reguzzoni & one more by Giovanni Busoni).
• 1938 / Due to the racial laws proclaimed by Mussolini’s fascist regime, ever more influenced by Nazi race theories, Bologna AGC’s Jewish trainer Árpád Weisz loses his work permit in Italy. Weisz leaves for neutral Holland, becoming the coach of Dutch side DFC in Dordrecht. In Bologna, Weisz is succeeded by Hermann Felsner, who had also trained the club between 1920 and 1931. In the summer of 1938, the Italian national team wins its second consecutive World Cup with a squad containing three Bologna players: midfielder Michele Andreolo, reserve goalkeeper Carlo Ceresoli, and forward player Amedeo Biavati. Biavati, who is one of the players credited for inventing the stepover (one of the others being Law Adam of HVV in the Netherlands), won 18 caps for Italy between 1938 and 1947, in which he scored 8 goals; no other Bologna player ever managed to score more goals for the Azzurri.
• 1939 / Coached by Hermann Felsner, Bologna AGC clinches its fifth Italian title, finishing 4 points ahead of closest followers AC Torino in the Serie A table. That summer, the club knocks out ASC Venus Bucureşti in the Mitropa Cup quarter-finals, only to be eliminated in the semis by Ferencvárosi FC (5-4 aggr.).
• 1940 / Bologna AGC finishes as runners-up in Serie A, 3 points behind champions AS Ambrosiana-Inter.
• 1941 / Coached by Hermann Felsner, Bologna AGC clinches its sixth Italian title, finishing 4 points ahead of runners-up AS Ambrosiana-Inter in the Serie A table.
• 1943 / On July 26th, 1943, one day after General Badoglio’s coup which saw Mussolini removed from power, a crowd removes the Duce’s statue from the horse in the Stadio Littoriale, smashing it to pieces. The bronze horse itself is left untouched for the moment.
• 1944 / Former Bologna coach Árpád Weisz, who had been arrested by the Germans in the occupied territory of the Netherlands, is murdered in the extermination camp of Auschwitz. Weisz was 47 years old.
• 1945 / Following one year of inactivity due to the chaos reigning in Italy in the closing stages of World War II, Bologna AGC takes on its old name Bologna FC – which had been done away with in 1927 due to the fascist regime frowning upon non-Italian-language club names. In the following decade, the club is little more than an also-ran in Serie A. Also in 1945, the Stadio Littoriale is renamed to simply Stadio Comunale (‘Municipal Stadium’).
• 1947 / The bronze horse in the Torre di Maratona, left unscathed in the 1943 riots following the fall of the fascist regime, in which the Mussolini part of the equestrian statue was smashed, is removed and re-used in a new work of art by sculptor Luciano Minguzzi, a group of two statues of young partisans in the Battle of Porta Lame in Bologna (1944). The two statues have been on display at the Porta Lame until the present day.
• 1955 / In its best post-war season up until that point, Bologna FC finishes in fourth place in Serie A, while also taking part in the Mitropa Cup for the first time since 1939, suffering a painful 7-2 aggregate defeat at the hands of UDA Praha in the quarter-finals.
• 1960 / Bologna FC has a disappointing Mitropa Cup participation, suffering a 4-1 aggregate defeat at the hands of HNK Hajduk Split.
• 1961 / In the Mitropa Cup, Bologna FC wins the group stage ahead of FK Austria Wien, UC Sampdoria, and Spartak Praha Stalingrad, qualifying for the final subsequently by eliminating SK Kladno (3-1 aggr.). In the final, the club has the better of Czechoslovakia’s TJ Slovan Nitra, defeating that club 5-2 (aggr., two goals by Harald Nielsen & one each by Marino Perani, Héctor Demarco, and Ezio Pascutti). The successful coach is Federico Allasio. Danish striker Harald Nielsen had only just joined Bologna from Frederikshavn fI. Nielsen, who had made a good impression when representing his country in the football tournament of the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome, would stay with Bologna for six seasons, scoring a staggering 81 goals in 157 matches before moving on to FC Internazionale in 1967.
• 1962 / Yet again, Bologna FC enjoys success in the Mitropa Cup, winning the group stage ahead of FK Crvena Zvezda (Red Star Belgrade), Slovan CHZJD Bratislava, and Budapesti Honvéd Sportegyesület. In the semi-final, Bologna knocks out GNK Dinamo Zagreb (3-2 aggr.), but this time, the club has to settle for second place following a 6-3 (aggr.) defeat in the final against Vasas SC.
• 1963 / Bologna FC is eliminated in the Mitropa Cup quarter-final by MTK (Budapest) (2-1 aggr.).
• 1964 / After two consecutive fourth places in Serie in the previous seasons, Bologna FC now wins its first (and only) post-war Italian title, finishing with an equal number of points as FC Internazionale and going on to defeat the Milanese club in a tie-break match, played at Rome’s Stadio Olimpico (2-0) with one goal being scored by Harald Nielsen and the second being an own goal by Inter’s Giacinto Facchetti. The successful coach is Fulvio Bernardini. Bolgona overcame a serious hiccup in the course of the season, as five players were caught using doping, with each of them being punished with an eighteen-month ban. The festive atmosphere surrounding the title is gravely tempered due to the unexpected passing of Bologna’s long-time chairman, Renato dall’Ara, only three days before the tie-break match in Rome; Dall’Ara, president of the club since 1934, was 81 years old. Qualifying for the main European tournament, the European Cup, for the first time following the league title, Bologna FC does not manage to reach the second round, stumbling over the first hurdle, Belgian champions RSC Anderlechtois (2-2 aggr., 0-0 in tie-break match & losing toss of a coin). Meanwhile, in the Mitropa Cup, Bologna has the better of OFK Beograd in the quarter-finals (3-2 aggr.), but is knocked out in the semis by Spartak Sokolovo Praha (5-2 aggr.).
• 1966 / Bologna FC finishes as runners-up in Serie A, 4 points behind champions FC Internazionale. In the summer of 1966, during the World Cup tournament in England, Bologna midfielder Helmut Haller reaches the final with West Germany, eventually having to settle for the silver medal in the final against the home side. Haller, who had joined Bologna from FC Augsburg 1907 after the 1962 World Cup, in which he also took part, would stay with the Italian side for six seasons, wearing the red-and-black jersey on 180 occasions (48 goals).
• 1967 / Taking part in the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, the precursor of the UEFA Cup, for the first time, Bologna FC manages successive wins over Göztepe SK (5-2 aggr.), AC Sparta Praha (4-3 aggr.), and West Bromwich Albion FC (6-1 aggr.), eventually suffering elimination in the quarter-final against Leeds United FC (1-1 aggr. & toss of a coin).
• 1968 / In the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, Bologna FC manages successive wins over FK Lyn Oslo (2-0 aggr.), GNK Dinamo Zagreb (2-1 aggr.), FK Vojvodina (2-0 aggr.), eventually suffering elimination in the semi-final at the hands of eventual cup winners Ferencvárosi TC (5-4 aggr.). Also in 1968, two Bologna players are part of the Italian squad which conquers the European Championship title, Aristide Guarneri and Giacomo Bulgarelli. Bulgarelli, who had also been part of Italy’s 1962 and 1966 World Cup squads, defended Bologna’s colours for sixteen seasons (1959-75), in the course of which he played 391 matches – making him the club’s all-time recordholder. 
• 1969 / In the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, Bologna FC has the better of FC Basel in R1 (6-2 aggr.), suffering elimination at the hands of OFK Beograd in R2 (2-1 aggr.). The club has more luck in a summer tournament in Switzerland, the so-called Cup of the Alps, winning the group stage against Alemannia Aachen, FC Lausanne Sports, SV Bayern Hof, FC Zürich, and AC Hellas Verona, thus qualifying for the final against FC Basel in Basle’s Sankt-Jakob-Park – losing this encounter 3-1. Also in 1969, the Stadio Sterlino ‘Angelo Badini’, Bologna’s home ground between 1913 and 1927, is knocked down. As the pitch had remained in use for training purposes, the club has to look out for a new training ground.
• 1970 / Never having been particularly successful in Italy’s main cup tournament, the Coppa Italia, in previous decades, Bologna FC now wins this trophy for the first time by winning the final group stage ahead of AC Torino, US Cagliari, and Varese FC. The successful coach is Edmondo Fabbri. As such, Bologna qualifies for the 1970-71 Cup Winners Cup, in which it suffers elimination in R1 at the hands of FC Vorwärts Berlin (1-1 aggr. & away goals). However, that same year, Bologna manages to lay its hands on another piece of silverware, the so-called Anglo-Italian League Cup against English League Cup winners Manchester City FC (3-2 aggr.).
• 1971 / Finishing in fifth place in Serie A, Bologna FC qualifies for the UEFA Cup, in which the club knocks out RSC Anderlechtois in R1 (3-1 aggr.), only to be eliminated in R2 by FK Železničar (3-3 aggr. & away goals). Also in 1971, taking part in the second edition of the Anglo-Italian Cup, a cup competition between English and Italian clubs, Bologna FC wins the Italian group stage, 1 point ahead of Cagliari Calcio, thus qualifying for the final, played at its own Stadio Comunale, in which the club suffers a 2-1 (A.E.T.) defeat at the hands of Blackpool FC. Also in 1971, two years after the closure of the Stadio Sterlino ‘Angelo Badini’, works get underway on a new training ground for Bologna FC in Casteldebole, on the far western outskirts of the city. 
• 1972 / In the 1972-73 Mitropa Cup, Bologna FC is eliminated in the group stage, finishing in third and last place behind Tatabányai Bányász and GNK Dinamo Zagreb.
• 1973 / In the Anglo-Italian Cup, Bologna FC finishes in first place in Italy’s Group B, suffering elimination in the semis subsequently at the hands of AC Fiorentina (3-2 aggr.). Also in 1973, an Elton John open-air concert is staged at the Stadio Comunale; subsequently, the stadium also sees performances of the likes of Lou Reed, Renato Zero, Vasco Rossi, Eros Ramazzotti, and Eric Clapton. For concerts, the estimated capacity of the ground is 55,000.
• 1974 / Bologna FC manages its second Coppa Italia win, defeating SSC Palermo (1-1 A.E.T. & penalty shoot-out) in the final, hosted at Rome’s Stadio Olimpico. Bologna’s goal was scored in the last minute of regular time by Giuseppe Savoldi. The successful coach is Argentinian  Bruno Pesaola. Thus qualifying for the 1974-75 Cup Winners Cup, Bologna FC is eliminated in R1 by WNK Gwardia Warszawa (3-3 aggr. & penalty shoot-out). The club does not qualify for European football in the remainder of the 1970s.
• 1976 / Works on the new training ground for Bologna FC in Casteldebole are completed. The new complex, rented by the club from a private owner, is given the simple and straightforward name Centro Tecnico Casteldebole.
• 1977 / Former Bologna trainer Hermann Felsner, who had guided the club to four league titles between 1925 and 1941, passes away in Graz, Austria, at the age of 87.
• 1982 / Coached by Francesco Liguori, who had replaced Tarcisio Burgnich in the course of the season, Bologna FC finishes in second-last place in Serie A, thus suffering its first-ever relegation, dropping back into Serie B along with Milan AC and bottom club Como Calcio.
• 1983 / As club results go from bad to worse, Bologna FC finishes in eighteenth place in Serie B, thus suffering its second relegation in a row, being retrograded to Serie C1 along with AC Reggiana, US Foggia, and bottom club AS Bari. In the course of the season, the club sacked two coaches, with the trainer in the closing stages of the season being Cesarino Cervellati. Also in 1983, the Stadio Comunale is renamed Stadio Renato dall’Ara in honour of Bologna’s legendary president in the years 1934-64.
• 1984 / Finishing as runners-up in Serie C1 Group A, with an equal number of points as champions Parma AC, Bologna FC manages an immediate return to Serie B. The successful coach is Giancarlo Cadè.
• 1986 / The Italian Super Bowl final, an American football event, is held at the Stadio Renato dall’Ara – with a second edition being staged on the same location in 2002.
• 1988 / Champions in Serie B, Bologna FC wins promotion to Serie A along with US Lecce, SS Lazio, and Atalanta BC. This heralds a return to the top flight of Italian football after an absence of six years. The successful coach is Luigi Manfredi. Bologna also takes part in the Mitropa Cup, eliminating Ferencvárosi SC in the semis (8-5 aggr.), going on to suffer defeat in the final at the hands of TJ Baník Ostrava OKD (4-2 aggr.).
• 1989 / In reconstruction works at the Stadio dall’Ara, undertaken in view of the 1990 World Cup in Italy, for which the stadium has been selected as one of the venues, new security gates are constructed, while the athletics track surrounding the pitch is restored and a new roof is built onto the grandstand. The main works at the ground, however, are carried out on the open stands on the three other sides, with extra rows being added, raising total capacity to 34,520.
• 1990 / In the 1990 World Cup, three group D matches are hosted at the Stadio Renato dall’Ara: United Arab Emirates-Colombia (0-2); Yugoslavia-Colombia (1-0); and Yugoslavia-United Arab Emirates (4-1). The last match of the tournament to be played in Bologna is the R2 encounter between England and Belgium, decided by a David Platt goal in the last minute of extra time.
• 1991 / Qualifying for European football for the first time in more than fifteen years following an eighth place in the 1989-90 Serie A season, Bologna FC qualifies for the UEFA Cup, in which the club manages successive defeats of Zagłębie Lubin (2-0 aggr.), Heart of Midlothian FC (4-3 aggr.), FC Admira/Wacker (3-3 aggr. & penalty shoot-out), eventually bowing out in the quarter-finals against Sporting CP (Lisbon) (3-1 aggr.). In spite of this decent run, the club has a disastrous Serie A season, finishing bottom of the table and thus dropping back into Serie B along with US Lecce, Pisa SC, and AC Cesena. The coach in the closing stages of the season, following the dismissal of Franco Scoglio, is Luigi Radice.
• 1993 / Pressed down by grave financial problems, Bologna FC finishes in eighteenth place in Serie B, thus descending into Serie C1 along with SPAL, Taranto FC, and bottom club PC Ternana. In the course of the season, the club had three different coaches, the last of whom is Francesco Jurich. Following the 1992-93 season, the club goes into liquidation, taking on a new name, Bologna FC 1909, to avoid being dissolved altogether. Also in 1993, San Marino plays its World Cup qualifying matches against the Netherlands (0-7) and England (1-7) at the Stadio Renato dall’Ara for security reasons, due to the Stadio Olimpico di Serravalle in San Marino proper being deemed unfit for security reasons. The encounter with England is memorable, as San Marino’s Davide Gualtieri scored his country’s only goal in the match after only 8 seconds.
• 1995 / Runaway champions in Serie C1 Group A, 22 points ahead of closest followers AC Pistoiese, Bologna FC 1909 wins promotion to Serie B. The successful coach is Renzo Ulivieri. Also in 1995, a rugby international is hosted at the Stadio Renato dall’Ara for the first time, with Italy suffering a resounding 6-70 defeat at the hands of New Zealand.
• 1996 / Still coached by Renzo Ulivieri, Bologna FC 1909 goes from strength to strength, winning its second title in a row, finishing 2 points ahead of Verona FC in Serie B. As such, Bologna wins promotion to Serie A along with the aforementioned club as well as AC Perugia and AC Reggiana. In the summer of 1996, Bologna signs Swedish international striker Kennet Andersson, one of the revelations of the 1994 World Cup in the USA, from AS Bari. Andersson would spend nearly four seasons (subdivided in two spells, 1996-99 & 1999-00, interrupted by a short loan spell at SS Lazio) in Bologna, in the course of which he scored 33 goals. Also in 1996, Bosnia & Herzegovina plays its World Cup qualifying match against Croatia at the Stadio Renato dall’Ara due to the Koševo City Stadium in Sarajevo being under reconstruction following the Siege of Sarajevo by the Serbs in the preceding years; the match in Bologna, ending in a 4-1 win for Croatia, was attended by only 1,500 spectators.
• 1997 / In a sensational move, Bologna FC 1909 signs Italy’s international star midfielder Roberto Baggio from Milan AC. After representing his country in the 1998 World Cup in France, Baggio would move away to FC Internazionale, having worn the Bologna shirt on 30 occasions in the course of the 1997-98 season, scoring an impressive total of 22 goals.
• 1998 / Former Italian international striker Giuseppe Signori signs for Bologna from UC Sampdoria. Signori would stay with the club for six seasons, scoring 67 goals in 143 matches.
• 1999 / Finishing in eighth place in the 1997-98 Serie A season, Bologna FC 1909 qualifies for the 1998-99 UEFA Cup, in which the club enjoys a good run, successively eliminating Sporting CP (Lisbon) (4-1 aggr.), SK Slavia Praha (4-1 aggr.), Real Betis Balompié (4-2 aggr.), and Olympique Lyonnais (3-2 aggr.) before bowing out in the semi-final against Olympique Marseille (1-1 aggr. & away goals). In the summer of 1999, Bologna is joined by FC Internazionale goalkeeper Gianluca Pagliuca. Pagliuca, who had spent the majority of his youth academy years in Bologna before moving to UC Sampdoria in 1986, had been Italy’s main international goalkeeper for much of the 1990s. Pagliuca would spend seven seasons at the Stadio Renato dall’Ara, eventually moving to Ascoli Calcio 1898 in 2006 after defending Bologna’s goal on 248 occasions.
• 2000 / Finishing in ninth place in the 1998-99 Serie A season, Bologna FC 1909 qualifies for the UEFA Cup, in which the club manages wins over FK Zenit Sankt-Peterburg (5-2 aggr.) and RSC Anderlecht (4-2 aggr.) before being knocked out in R3 by Galatasaray SK (3-2 aggr.). Also in 2000, Bologna’s Cameroonian defender Pierre Womé wins gold medals with his country in the Olympic Games in Sydney as well as the Africa Cup – winning the last-mentioned tournament one more time in 2002, the year when he left Bologna after a three-year spell for Fulham FC.
• 2001 / Young Bologna defender Niccolò Galli, the son of former Italian international goalkeeper Giovanni Galli, loses his life in a traffic incident. Galli had just played his first match in the main team. To honour his memory, Bologna’s training ground in Casteldebole is renamed Centre Tecnico Niccolò Galli.
• 2005 / Coached by Carlo Mazzone, Bologna FC 1909 has a disastrous Serie A season, finishing in joint seventeenth place and losing the relegation play-off against Parma FC (2-1 aggr.). As such, the club descends into Serie B along with Brescia Calcio and bottom club Atalanta BC. Also in 2005, Bologna midfielder Carlo Nervo leaves the club for US Catanzaro after an eleven-year spell, in the course of which he wore the red-and-black jersey on 311 occasions. Moreover, Nervo also won 6 caps for Italy between 2002 and 2004.
• 2007 / The Stadio Renato dall’Ara hosts the Calcio Catania’s last two home match of the season after the Sicilian club was punished with having to play these two matches away from home due to heavy riots in the derby against Palermo FC at Stadio Angelo Massimino, in which a police official, Filippo Raciti, was killed. 
• 2008 / Runners-up in Serie B, 1 point behind champions AC Chievo Verona, Bologna FC 1909 wins promotion to Serie A along with the aforementioned club and US Lecce. The successful coach is Daniele Arrigoni. In the following three seasons, Bologna only just manages to stave off relegation.
• 2009 / The Curva Nord is renamed Curva Nord Giacomo Bulgarelli in honour of Bologna’s legendary skipper in the 1960s. 
• 2010 / Following the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, in which he reached the semi-final with Uruguay, 30-year-old midfielder Diego Pérez joins Bologna FC 1909 from AS Monaco. Pérez would spend the last five seasons of his career in Bologna, hanging up his boots in 2015 after also having represented his country in the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.
• 2012 / Former Italian international striker Marco di Vaio, who had joined Bologna from Genoa CFC in 2008, leaves the club after four seasons, signing a contract with Impact de Montréal in Canada. Di Vaio would return to Bologna in 2015, working as the club’s technical manager for four seasons. Also in 2012, in the European Championship tournament in Poland and Ukraine, Bologna’s midfielder Alessandro Diamanti is part of the Italian squad which wins the silver medal.
• 2013 / After spending one season with Bologna on loan from Genoa CFC, Italian international striker Alberto Gilardino – part of the Italian side which won the 2006 World Cup – returns to the Genoese club, having worn Bologna’s red-and-black shirt on 36 occasions (13 goals).
• 2014 / Coached by Davide Ballardini, who replaced Stefano Pioli in the course of the season, Bologna FC 1909 finishes in second-last place in Serie A, thus dropping back into Serie B along with Calcio Catania and bottom club AS Livorno Calcio.
• 2015 / Finishing in fourth place in Serie B, Bologna FC 1909 qualifies for the promotion play-offs. Successively edging past AS Avellino 1912 (3-3 aggr. & away goals) and Delfino Pescara 1936 (1-1 & away goals), the club joins the two best-placed Serie B teams, Carpi FC 1909 and Frosinone Calcio, in Serie A for the new season. The successful coach is Delio Rossi, who had succeeded Diego Luis López shortly before the start of the play-offs. In the early stages of the 2015-16 season, Delio Rossi is sacked and replaced by former Italian international Roberto Donadoni.
• 2016 / Bologna’s training ground, the Centro Tecnico Niccolò Galli in Casteldebole, is purchased by the club after forty years of renting the complex from a private owner. Also in 2016, Bologna’s defensive midfielder Erick Pulgar is part of the Chilean squad which wins the Coppa America tournament. Pulgar, who had joined Bologna from CD Universidad Católica in 2015, would stay with the club for four seasons, signing a contract with ACF Fiorentina in 2019. In the summer of 2016, Bologna signs 30-year-old Swiss international midfielder Blerim Džemaili from Galatasaray SK. Džemaili, who had just taken part in the 2016 European Championships with his country, would spend four seasons in Bologna, in the course of which he played 88 matches for the club as well as representing Switzerland in one more international tournament, the 2018 World Cup in Russia.
• 2018 / Following two years of renovation works at Stadio Renato dall’Ara, the number of seats in the Curva Sud is reduced, as a result of which total capacity is down to 38,279. In a touching gesture, the Curva Sud is renamed Curva Sud Árpád Weisz in honour of the club’s Hungarian coach in the 1930s, who perished in the German extermination camp Auschwitz in 1944. Also in 2018, Succeeding Roberto Donadoni after a tenure of three years, Filippo Inzaghi becomes Bologna’s trainer. However, getting the sack in the course of the 2018-19 season, he is replaced by former UC Sampdoria and SS Lazio midfielder Siniša Mihajlović. This is in fact Mihajlović’s second spell at the club, as he had already been in charge as manager for the 2008-09 season.
• 2021 / Bologna midfielder Nicolás Dominguez, who had joined the club in 2020 from CA Vélez Sarsfield, is part of the Argentinian squad which wins the Coppa America. That same year, Bologna player Ibrahima Mbaye wins the African Cup with his native country Senegal. Mbaye, a defender who joined Bologna from FC Internazionale in 2015, wore the red-and-black shirt for seven seasons, eventually signing a contract with CFR Cluj in 2022. Dominguez would stay with Bologna until 2023, when he was lured away by Nottingham Forest FC.
• 2022 / Due to a serious illness, Siniša Mihajlović has to relinquish his post as Bologna’s trainer. The former Yugoslavian international midfielder passed away in December 2022 at the age of 53.
• 2024 / Coached by former Brazilian and Italian international Thiago Motta, Bologna FC 1909 finishes in fifth place in Serie A, sufficient to qualify for the Champions League – incidentally the first time the club has the opportunity to take part in Europe’s main club tournament since 1964.

Note - Below the photo series, a video with highlights of the match I attended at Stadio Renato Dall'Ara can be found.

All photos: (c) W.B. Tukker / www.extremefootballtourism.blogspot.com. Publication of any of these images only after permission of author

ITALY: Genoa CFC (1911-1928, 1945-1967, 1998-) / Genova 1893 CC (1928-1935) / AC Genova 1893 (1935-1945) / AC Sampierdarenese (1945-1946) / UC Sampdoria (1946-) / Genoa 1893 (1967-1998)

Stadio Luigi Ferraris "Stadio di Marassi", Genoa = Genua = Genova (Genoa CFC & UC Sampdoria, formerly Genova 1893 CC / AC Genova 1893 / AC Sampierdarenese / Genoa 1893)

Italy, region: Liguria

29 XII 2024 / UC Sampdoria - Pisa SC 0-1 / Serie B (= ITA level 2)

Timeline

• 1891 / Foundation of a sports club in Sampierdarena (San Pier d’Arena), a municipality to the west of Genoa. The new club is given the name Società Ginnastica Comunale (SGC) Sampierdarenese. Football is not part of the myriad of club activities from the outset. The club settles on the so-called Campo di Piazza d’Armi del Campasso in Sampierdarena, a plot of land which had been purchased by two Scottish entrepreneurs, John Wilson and Alexander McLaren, from the Italian railway services. They had initially recreated the land as a horse-racing track, with basic athletics facilities being added to the set-up upon the foundation of SGC Sampierdarenese.
• 1893 / Foundation of a sports club in Genoa proper, the so-called Genoa Cricket & Athletic Club. Football is not part of the myriad of club activities from the outset. Among the founding fathers are employees of Great Britain’s consulate house in Genoa. Due to no pitch in Genoa being available, the club shares the facilities of the Campo di Piazza d’Armi del Campasso in Sampierdarena with SGC Sampierdarenese.  
• 1895 / Foundation of a new sports club in Genoa, which is given the name Società Ginnastica (SG) Andrea Doria, taking its name from one of the most influential politicians and admirals in the history of the Republic of Genoa, Andrea Doria (1466-1560). Football is not part of the myriad of club activities from the outset. Probably, SG Andrea Doria made use of the Piazza d’Armi del Campasso in Sampierdarena from the outset, sharing the facilities with SGC Sampierdarenese and Genoa CAC.
• 1897 / Upon the arrival of British doctor James Richardson Spensley in Genoa one year previously, he gets involved in Genoa CAC, with football being added to the myriad of club activities at his initiative. Moving away from the Piazza d’Armi del Campasso in Sampierdarena, Genoa CAC moves to a newly laid-out football pitch in Val Bisogno, the Campo Sportivo di Ponte Carrega – originally a velodrome, with a pitch being laid out in the centre of the arena. Also in 1897, another football club sees the daylight in Genoa, Liguria Foot Ball Club (FBC), which settles on the Campo di Piazza d’Armi del Campasso in Sampierdarena; in the following two decades, Liguria FBC does not manage to play a role of importance in Italian football.
• 1898 / On its new pitch, the Campo Sportivo di Ponte Carrega, Genoa CAC plays its first-ever match against a football team from another city, a Turin XI with players of FBC Torinese and International FC, attended by 208 spectators (result unknown). That same year, Genoa CAC obtains the first-ever Italian league title, defeating International FC in the final at its home ground, the Velodromo Umberto I in Turin (1-2), with the winning goal being scored by Norman Leaver. The successful coach is the aforementioned James Richardson Spensley.
• 1899 / Coached by James Spensley, Genoa CAC obtains its second consecutive Italian league title, defeating International FC at its own Campo Sportivo di Ponte Carrega in the final (3-1), which is attended by 150 spectators. That same year, the club changes its name to become the Genoa Cricket & Football Club (CFC). Also in 1899, SGC Sampierdarenese, the sports club founded in 1891, adds football to the myriad of its activities, playing its matches on the Piazza d’Armi del Campasso in Sampierdarena, where the club had been home from its foundation onwards.
• 1900 / Genoa CFC conquers its third consecutive Italian title, defeating FBC Torinese in the final of the championship tournament, held at the Velodrome Umberto I in Turin (1-3 A.E.T.). Following this title, the club are allowed to keep the Coppa Duca degli Abruzzi, the challenge trophy given to the winner of the Italian title from 1898 onwards. The successful coach is James Spensley. Also in 1900, following the example of several other clubs in Genoa, SG Andrea Doria founds a football branch, with the club playing its first match on August 11th of that year. First and foremost, SG Andrea Doria is a member of the Federazione Ginnastica Nazionale Italiana (FGNI), Italy’s gymnastics association, which organises its own football championships in those days. Eventually, one year later, in 1901, SG Andrea Doria also joins the official Italian football federation, Federazione Italiana Giuoco Calcio (FIGC), taking part in the Italian title race of that association without much success in the following years. Meanwhile, SGC Sampierdarenese takes part in the FIGC’s Campionato Italiano for the first time in the 1900-01 season, however withdrawing after that season and not taking part in any football championship in the years prior to World War I.
• 1901 / Genoa CFC misses out on the Italian title for the first time, suffering defeat at the hands of Milan FBCC (0-3) at its own ground, the Campo Sportivo di Ponte Carrega in Genoa.
• 1902 / Still coached by James Spensley, Genoa CFC conquers its fourth Italian (FIGC) title, wreaking revenge on Milan FBCC for the previous year’s defeat with a 2-0 win at the Campo Sportivo di Ponte Carrega. Meanwhile, SG Andrea Doria wins the FGNI national football title, ex aequo with the same Milan FBCC, drawing 0-0 (A.E.T.) at Milan’s Arena Civica, upon which both clubs are awarded the title medals. 
• 1903 / Still coached by James Spensley, Genoa CFC conquers its fifth Italian (FIGC) title, defeating FBC Juventus in the final (3-0), played at its own ground, the Campo Sportivo di Ponte Carrega.
• 1904 / Genoa CFC conquers its sixth Italian (FIGC) title, defeating FBC Juventus in the final (1-0), played at its own ground, the Campo Sportivo di Ponte Carrega. Due to the fact that this is the club’s third title in a row, it is allowed to keep its second Italian title challenge trophy, the Coppa Fawcus.
• 1905 / Under the aegis of Swiss player-coach Karl Senft, Genoa CFC finishes as runners-up in the final round of the Prima Categoria, as the top flight of Italy’s football league is now called, having to leave the title to FBC Juventus which obtains one more point.
• 1907 / Genoa CFC withdraws from the Italian championship for the 1907-08 season in protest to the new FIGC rule that no foreign players can take part in league matches. From its foundation onwards, Genoa CFC had relied heavily on players from Great Britain. Also in 1907, the club has to abandon its Campo Sportivo di Ponte Carrega, which has to make way for a gas holder. The club moves to the newly laid-out Campo Sportivo di San Gottardo in a village with the same name to the north of Genoa. The plot of land used for the pitch is put at the disposal of the club by the Marquis of Marassi. The pitch can only be reached from Genoa proper by a lengthy tram journey. The inaugural match at the new ground is played against English side Canopic FC (2-1).  
• 1909 / After probably spending its first nine footballing seasons at the Piazza d’Armi del Campasso in Sampierdarena, SG Andrea Doria settles at the newly laid-out Campo Sportivo della Cajenna in the Marassi neighbourhood on the northern outskirts of Genoa. The pitch is laid out next to a horse racing track on the eastern banks of the Bisagno river.
• 1910 / SG Andrea Doria conquers its second FGNI title, finishing ahead of runners-up SG Giuseppe Garibaldi. That same year, Genoa CFC’s president Edoardo Pasteur accepted a proposal by Marquis Musso Piantelli, a member of Genoa’s football team, to lay out a new football field inside the horse racing track on his property, the Villa Centurione Musso Piantelli, a sixteenth-century residence at Corso Alessandro de Stefanis in the Marassi neighbourhood – in fact situated next to the Campo Sportivo della Cajenna in use by SG Andrea Doria since the previous year. However, building works have not been completed before the end of the year.
• 1911 / After spending four years at the remote Campo Sportivo di San Gottardo, Genoa CFC moves into the new Stadio di Marassi, with its pitch laid out inside the horse racing track at the back of the Villa Piantelli. The ground, which is officially called Campo Sportivo Genoa Cricket & Football Club di Via del Piano, is inaugurated with a match between Genoa CFC and FC Internazionale (1-2). As the stadium, with a large grandstand at the western side of the pitch, borders the southern side of the Campo Sportivo della Cajenna of SG Andrea Doria, a fence is erected to separate the two grounds. SG Andrea Doria pays a fee of 1,000 lire to Genoa CFC as a contribution to the fence, with 200 lire per annum being added by the club to cater for its maintenance. Also in 1911, SGC Sampierdarenese’s football branch continues its existence independently from the mother club, although the club still prefers not take part in any league championship.
• 1912 / SG Andrea Doria conquers its third FGNI title, beating AC Hellas (Verona) into second place. Also in 1912, the Stadio di Marassi hosts an international match of the Italian national team for the first time, a 1-3 defeat at the hands of Austria. 
• 1913 / SG Andrea Doria conquers its fourth and last FGNI title ahead of SG Raffaele Rubattino. The 1913 edition turned out to be the last-ever FGNI championship.
• 1914 / Liguria FBC, the football club from Genoa founded in 1897, concludes a merger with two younger clubs from the northern outskirts of the city, Itala di Rivarolo and Enotria di Bolzaneto, resulting in the foundation of a new entity, Associazione Calcio (AC) Ligure. Bolzaneto’s pitch becomes the new merger club’s home ground.
• 1915 / Coached by William Garbutt, Genoa CFC conquers its seventh Italian national title, 2 points ahead of International FC (Turin). In fact, the title race was suspended with one game remaining due to Italy entering World War I, with Genoa being declared champions by the FIGC as its was top of the table in the Northern Italy final round. In November 1915, Genoa’s successful coach from the early years of the club, Doctor James Spensley, dies in a hospital in Mainz, Germany, following an injury contracted when he was tending to the wounds of an injured German soldier out of compassion while on service in the British army fighting the Germans in France. Spensley was 48 years old.
• 1917 / Genoa CFC conquers the Coppa Liguria, a tournament held to replace the regular league championship which was suspended after Italy’s declaration of war on the Central Powers in 1915. The club finished 5 points ahead of closest followers GC Bolzaneto, another Genoese club.
• 1919 / SGC Sampierdarenese, the football club from Sampierdarena which had not taken part in any league championship since 1901, takes over the football branch of AC Ligure, the merger club founded in 1914, which had run into financial problems. After the takeover, SGC Sampierdarenese takes on the adapted name Associazione Calcio (AC) Sampierdarenese, temporarily settling at Ligure’s pitch in Bolzaneto while awaiting the opportunity to move back to Sampierdarena proper. To take over AC Ligure’s place in the the top division of Italian football, AC Sampierdarenese has to play a tie-break match against another Genoese club, Spes Genova, winning the encounter (3-1) and thus suddenly becoming a top flight club, meeting Genoa CFC and SG Andrea Doria in the Prima Categoria.
• 1920 / Moving away from its temporary ground in Bolzaneto, AC Sampierdarenese settles at the newly laid-out Stadio Villa Scassi in Sampierdarena proper, a facility disposing of a wooden grandstand and terracing, built by the Stura building company. Total capacity of the ground is estimated at 5,000. The stadium is inaugurated with a gala match between AC Sampierdarenese and SG Andrea Doria (4-1). On December 19th, 1920, Sampierdarenese plays its first league match at the ground, a 2-0 home win over Speranza Savona FC.
• 1921 / AC Sampierdarenese players Ercole Carzino, Sebastiano Ramasso, and Renato Boldrini are called up for the Italian squad which meets Switzerland in an international match at the Parc des Sports in Rolle. Midfielder Carzino is the only of the three players to play in the encounter, which finishes 1-1. Also in 1921, a rival football federation to the FIGC is founded, the so-called Confederazione Calcistica Italiana (CCI), with SG Andrea Doria making the leap to the new association. Following the end of the conflict between the FIGC and the CCI, all CCI clubs, including SG Andrea Doria, are absorbed back into the FIGC.
• 1922 / Following its win of the Liguria section of the Prima Categoria, 6 points ahead of runners-up Speranza FBC, AC Sampierdarenese qualifies for the semifinal of the national title race, which it wins ahead of SPAL and Esperia FC – albeit only after a successful tie-break match against SPAL played in Milan (2-1 A.E.T.). Hereby qualifying for the national title final, the club meets US Novese, managing two 0-0 draws and losing a third, tie-break match held at Cremona’s Stadio Giovanni Zini (2-1 A.E.T.), thus missing out on the national title by a whisker. In the following years, Sampierdarenese does not manage to play a role of importance in the newly created Prima Divisione.
• 1923 / Coached by William Garbutt, Genoa CFC wins the Northern League Group B of the Prima Divisione, 7 points ahead of FC Legnano, thereby qualifying for the Northern League semis, in which it finishes in first place ahead of US Pro Vercelli and AC Padova. In the national title final, the club meets Southern League winners SP Lazio, defeating the club from Rome handsomely (6-1 aggr.) to conquer its eighth Italian title.
• 1924 / Still coached by William Garbutt, Genoa CFC wins the Northern League Group 1 of the Prima Divisione, 4 points ahead of AC Padova, thereby qualifying for the Northern League semis, in which the club defeats Bologna FC (3-0 aggr.). In the national title final, the club meets Southern League winners US Savoia, managing a 4-2 aggregate win and thereby conquering its ninth and (to date) last national title. Also in 1924, Genoa’s goalkeeper Giovanni De Prà makes his debut for the Italian national team, heroically playing for seventy minutes with a broken arm in a 0-0 draw against Spain at Milan’s Campo di Viale Lombardia.
• 1926 / The community of Sampierdarena is absorbed into the larger City of Genoa. Towards the end of 1926, the Campo Sportivo della Cajenna, home of SG Andrea Doria for the past seventeen years, is declared unfit for use by fascist authorities. Genoa CFC takes advantage of the opportunity by taking possession of the plot of land occupied by the Campo della Cajenna, situated directly to the north of its own Stadio di Marassi, paying SG Andrea Doria 20,000 lire in compensation – partly used by that club to purchase goalkeeper Manlio Bacigalupo from Vado FBC; Bacigalupo would go on to have spells with Genoa CFC / Genoa 1893 CC as well as AC Sampierdarenese later on in his career. Removing the pitch of the Campo della Cajenna, Genoa CFC builds a new stand at the northern end of its stadium – which has been home to the club’s most ardent supporters until the present day.
• 1927 / At the behest of fascist municipal authorities, SG Andrea Doria – left without a stadium since being forced out of its Campo Sportivo della Cajenna the previous year – and AC Sampierdarenese conclude a merger, resulting in the foundation of Associazione Calcio (AC) La Dominante. A part of the Società Andrea Doria, however, refuses to take part in the move, allowing itself to be absorbed into another Genoese football club, US Alessandro Volta (founded in 1921). The result of a merger between two top flight clubs, AC La Dominante starts its life in the Divisione Nazionale, as the top division of Italian football is called at the time. While AC La Dominante settles in Sampierdarenese’s Stadio Villa Scassi for the time being, work gets underway on the construction of a new ground at the Via San Giovanni d’Acri in the Cornigliano neighbourhood on the far western outskirts of Genoa.
• 1928 / Genoa CFC finishes in second place in the Italian title race, finishing as runners-up in the Prima Divisione title play-offs, 2 points behind champions FBC Torino. That same year, at the request of fascist authorities, the club gives up its English name Genoa Cricket & Football Club, continuing life as Genova 1893 Circolo del Calcio (CC). Meanwhile, also in 1928, AC La Dominante’s new ground, the Stadio del Littorio, is inaugurated – a stadium disposing of a covered grandstand as well as terraces, with an estimated capacity of 15,000. The club’s old Stadio Villa Scassi has to make way for urban development (modern-day Via Antonio Cantore).
• 1929 / Finishing in tenth place in Divisione Nazionale Group A, AC La Dominante is retrograded to the newly formed Serie B – with a single-tiered Serie A being organised for the first time in the 1929-30 season. Also in 1929, Genova 1893 CC takes part in the Mitropa Cup, an international tournament for clubs from Central-European countries, for the first time, being knocked out in the quarterfinals by SK Rapid (Vienna, 5-1 aggr.).
• 1930 / Genova 1893 CC finishes as runners-up in the first-ever Serie A season, finishing 2 points behind champions AS Ambrosiana. As in the previous season, the club is eliminated in the quarter-finals of the Mitropa Cup by SK Rapid (7-2 aggr.). Also in 1930, AC La Dominante absorbs AS Corniglianese, a smaller club which also played at the Stadio del Littorio, with the club name being adapted to Foot Ball Club (FBC) Liguria following the merger.
• 1931 / Finishing bottom of the table in Serie B, FBC Liguria drops back into the Prima Divisione, the third level of Italy’s league pyramid, along with US Lucchese Libertas and Derthona FBC. Following the 1930-31 season, the club reverts to the foundations of one of its predecessors by taking on the name Associazione Calcio (AC) Sampierdarenese. Also in 1931, four years after the club’s absorption into AC La Dominante, SG Andrea Doria is re-established as Associazione Calcio (AC) Andrea Doria by members of US Alessandro Volta. The club is placed in the Prima Divisione, where it meets the newly renamed AC Sampierdarenese.
• 1932 / Runners-up in Group D of the Prima Divisione, 1 point behind champions AC Savona, AC Sampierdarenese qualifies for the promotion play-offs, in which it finishes in first place in Group C, 1 point ahead of closest followers AC Perugia. As such, the club manages an immediate return to Serie B. Also in 1932, Genova 1893 CC defender Ottavio Barbieri hangs up his boots after spending his entire 13-year footballing career at the club, wearing the red-and-black shirt for in 299 matches in total, while also winning 21 caps for the Italian national side (1921-30).
• 1933 / Following renovation works, the Stadio di Marassi is inaugurated anew on January 1st, 1933, with the ground being given the new name Stadio Luigi Ferraris. Luigi Ferraris was a midfielder in Genoa CFC’s team between 1907 and 1911, who was killed in combat during World War I in 1915 at the age of 27. On the day of the inauguration, the silver medal for bravery obtained for military bravery during the war is buried under the entrance gate of the Gradinata Nord. At the inaugural match against BSC Young Boys (3-1), the construction of three of the four stands has been completed, with total ground capacity being approximately 20,000. In the following year, the Seconda Gradinata Popolare Sud is added, bringing total capacity up to some 30,000. The stadium is considered one of the most modern of its sort in Southern Europe.
• 1934 / Under the aegis of Hungarian coach József Nagy, Genova 1893 CC has a disastrous season, with the club finishing in second-last place in Serie A and dropping back into Serie B for the first time in club history, along with AC Padova and bottom club Casale FBC. The relegation becomes even more painful, when it turns out that Genova’s place in the top flight is taken by AC Sampierdarenese. Winning first place in Serie B Group A, 3 points ahead of closest rivals GC Vigevanesi, the club manages a joint first place in the promotion play-offs with US Bari, defeating the club from Apulia in a tie-break match at Bologna’s Stadio Littoriale (3-1) to clinch the sensational promotion. In the 1934 World Cup, organised in Italy, the Stadio Luigi Ferraris hosts the encounter between Spain and Brazil (3-1) attended by a sell-out crowd of 30,000.
• 1935 / Champions in Serie B Group A, 3 points ahead of runners-up AC Novara, Genova 1893 CC reclaims its place in Serie A after an absence of just one year. The successful coach is Vittorio Faroppa. Following the 1934-35 season, the club adapts its name to become Associazione Calcio (AC) Genova 1893. Meanwhile, at AC Sampierdarenese, the club’s all-time top scorer Cherubino Comini (48 goals in four seasons) leaves the club, signing a contract with AC Fiorentina.
• 1936 / The Stadio Luigi Ferraris hosts the Coppa Italia final between FBC Torino and Alessandria US (5-1) attended by a meagre crowd of just under 10,000. That summer, at the Olympic Games in Berlin, AC Sampierdarenese’s goalkeeper Bruno Venturini is part of the Italian squad clinching the gold medal following a 2-1 defeat (A.E.T.) of Austria in the final.
• 1937 / Coached by Austria’s Hermann Felsner, AC Genova 1893 wins its first-ever Coppa Italia, defeating AS Roma in the final, played at Florence’s Stadio Comunale Giovanni Berta. The only goal of the match was scored by striker Luigi Torti, who had only played two league matches in the course of the season, leaving the club to sign for Alessandria US after his historic goal. That same year, AC Genova 1893 reaches the last 8 of the Mitropa Cup, following a defeat of Gradjanski HSK Zagreb in the round of last 16 (6-1 aggr.). In the quarter final of the tournament, the club manages a 2-2 draw in the away leg at SK Admira in Vienna. However, due to anti-Italian demonstrations by the Austrian crowd, who detested Mussolini’s recent pro-German stance following the dictator’s invasion of Abyssinia, the match in Genoa was never played – with both clubs being eliminated from the tournament subsequently. In contrast to a first attempted Nazi coup in Austria in 1934, Mussolini would not raise a finger when Hitler invaded the Alpine country in the spring of 1938. Meanwhile, also in 1937, fascist authorities force two smaller Genoese clubs, AS Polisportiva Corniglianese and AP Rivarolese Nazionale Liguria, to merge with AC Sampierdarenese, with the club name being adapted to become Associazione Calcio (AC) Liguria. 
• 1939 / In the best season in the history of the club, AC Liguria finishes in sixth place in Serie A.
• 1940 / AC Genova 1893 reaches the final of the Coppa Italia, played at Florence’s Stadio Giovanni Berta, in which it suffers a 1-0 defeat against AC Fiorentina. Meanwhile, AC Liguria finishes in second-last position in Serie A, suffering relegation to Serie B along with bottom club Modena Calcio. Following the catastrophic season, midfielder Mario Malatesta, who had represented the colours of AC Sampierdarenese and AC Liguria for the past seven seasons, making him the club all-time record holder with 184 matches played, leaves the club to sign a contract with SS Ascoli. Also in 1940, AC Andrea Doria finishes bottom of the table in Serie C Group D, suffering relegation to the fourth level of the Italian football pyramid, the Prima Divisione.
• 1941 / Champions in Serie B, 1 point ahead of runners-up Modena Calcio, AC Liguria retakes its place in Serie A after just one season – along with the aforementioned club from Modena. Two levels lower, AC Andrea Doria also wins a title, in the Prima Divisione Liguria Group C, but the club fails to clinch promotion in the ensuing round of play-offs, finishing in fifth place in a group of six, with promotion being achieved by GS Dipendenti Municipali La Spezia and GS Novese. This disappointing end of the season heralds the death knell of the AC Andrea Doria, which no longer fields a team in the Prima Divisione in the following season.
• 1944 / AC Andrea Doria is re-established as Società Ginnastica (SG) Andrea Doria, although the club does not develop any activities until the end of World War II hostilities in Italy in 1945.
• 1945 / Following the end of the war, AC Genova 1893 and AC Liguria both revert to their old, pre-fascist club names Genoa CFC and AC Sampierdarenese. Both clubs are placed in the Lega Nazionale Alta Italia, in a transitional season which has to establish which clubs are to go to a new-to-be-formed Serie A in 1946. Meanwhile, due to the Stadio del Littorio having suffered in Allied bomb attacks on Genoa, AC Sampierdarenese plays the 1945-46 season as groundsharers of Genoa CFC at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris. In the following decade, the pitch of the Stadio del Littorio remains in use as training pitch for AC Sampierdarenese and its successor UC Sampdoria, while the stadium is also used as a venue for open-air operatic performances.
• 1946 / Nineteen years after the merger forced upon the two clubs by fascist authorities, SG Andrea Doria and AC Sampierdarenese now conclude a voluntary merger, resulting in the foundation of Unione Calcistica (UC) Sampierdarenese-Doria “Sampdoria”, soon to be abbreviated to simply UC Sampdoria. Piero Sanguineti is chosen as the new club’s first chairman. The background to this remarkable decision was the fact that AC Sampierdarenese was a top flight club which had run into financial problems, while SG Andrea Doria was ambitious and richer, but playing at a lower level. The new club, taking Sampierdarenese’s place in Serie A, is destined to remain in the top division without playing a role of importance in the course of the 1940s and 1950s. Meanwhile, due to the Stadio del Littorio being deemed beyond repair, UC Sampdoria settles as groundsharers of Genoa CFC at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris for good – also in view of the fact that the stadium has meanwhile been taken over from Genoa CFC by municipal authorities, who can decide freely about the use of the ground. 
• 1949 / A record number of over 60,000 spectators attends the international friendly between Italy and Portugal (4-1) at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris.
• 1950 / After four years with Genoa CFC, that club’s Argentinian midfielder Juan Carlos Verdeal leaves to sign a contract deal with Lille OSC in France. Verdeal is still regarded as one of the best players in the history of Genoa CFC. Meanwhile, at the behest of municipal authorities, UC Sampdoria’s training stadium, the old Stadio del Littorio, is officially renamed Stadio Valerio Bacigalupo in honour of the former Genoa CFC goalkeeper, who perished in 1949 as a player of AC Torino in the infamous Superga air disaster which cost the life of practically the entire Torino team.
• 1951 / Coached by Manlio Bacigalupo, Genoa CFC finishes bottom in the Serie A table, dropping back into Serie B along with the club finishing in second-last place, AS Roma.
• 1953 / Champions in Serie B, Genoa CFC wins promotion to Serie A after two years, along with runners-up AC Legnano, which finished 3 points behind the Genoese club. The successful coach is Giacinto Ellena.
• 1958 / UC Sampdoria’s training ground, the Stadio Valerio Bacigalupo – formerly known as the Stadio del Littorio – is knocked down to make way for a bus depot.
• 1960 / Under the aegis of British coach Jesse Carver, Genoa CFC finishes bottom of the Serie A table, dropping back into Serie B along with US Palermo and Alessandria US. The relegation was sealed when Genoa was deducted 18 points for bribery – with 10 more points being deducted for the new season in Serie B (although this punishment was reduced to 7 points in appeal).
• 1961 / In its best season since its formation in 1946, UC Sampdoria finishes in fourth place in Serie A with coach Eraldo Monzeglio. In the club’s first-ever Mitropa Cup participation, Sampdoria is eliminated in the group stage along with FK Austria Wien and Spartak Praha Stalingrad, with just group winner Bologna FC progressing to the following round. Also in 1961, UC Sampdoria signs midfielder Vujadin Boškov of FK Vojvodina, a former Yugoslavian international player (57 caps, 1951-58). Boškov, destined to become Samp’s most successful manages three decades later, would only stay in Genoa for one season, leaving for FC Young Fellows in 1962.
• 1962 / Genoa CFC manages a return to Serie A after two seasons, clinching the Serie B title, 11 points ahead of AP Napoli and Modena FC, who join the Genoese club in the top flight for the new season. The successful Genoa coach is Renato Gei. Moreover, Genoa also clinches the so-called Cup of the Alps, a tournament of clubs from France, Switzerland, and Italy, defeating FC Grenoble in the final (1-0). Meanwhile, an invitee to the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, the precursor of the UEFA Cup, for the first time in the 1962-63 season, UC Sampdoria manages a 3-0 (aggr.) defeat of FC Aris Bonnevoie in R1, only to be hammered in R2 by Ferencvárosi TC (6-1 aggr.). 
• 1963 / Genoa CFC clinches the Italian-French Friendship Cup, defeating Milan AC in the final (2-1).
• 1964 / Genoa CFC takes home the Cup of the Alps for the second time in three season, defeating CC Catania in the final, played at Berne’s Wankdorf Stadium (2-0, both goals scored by Piaceri). The tournament had been devalued in the 1963-64 season, though, due to no teams from France taking part in the competition.
• 1965 / Coached by Roberto Lerici, Genoa CFC finishes in sixteenth place in Serie A, thus dropping back into Serie B along with ACR Messina and bottom club AC Mantova. The relegation was all the more painful, as Genoa finished just 1 point behind UC Sampdoria, which thus avoided relegation by the skin of its teeth. 
• 1966 / Coached by Fulvio Bernardini, UC Sampdoria finishes in sixteenth place in Serie A, just 1 point short of SPAL, which stays up at the highest level. As such, the club drops back into Serie B for the first time in its history, along with CC Catania and bottom club Varese FC, after an uninterrupted spell of twenty Serie A seasons.
• 1967 / Champions in Serie B, UC Sampdoria manages an immediate return to Serie A, along with runners-up Varese FC, which finishes 3 points behind the club from Genoa. Meanwhile, having suffered legal liquidation in 1966, Genoa CFC are forced to take on a new name to preserve its existence as well as its heritage; the club continues life under the adapted name Genoa 1893.
• 1968 / Genoa 1893 narrowly avoids relegation from Serie B after scraping through a play-off competition of the clubs having finished in joint fifteenth to nineteenth position, with the club saving its skin along with AC Perugia and AC Lecco at the expense of AC Venezia and ACR Messina.
• 1969 / UC Sampdoria is knocked out in the group stage of the Cup of the Alps, finishing in fifth place in a group of six, with just FC Basel going through to the next round, with the other eliminated clubs being SSC Napoli, KSV Waregem, Eintracht Frankfurt, and FC Biel-Bienne.
• 1970 / Coached by Ermelindo Bonilauri, Genoa 1893 finishes bottom of the table in Serie B, thus descending into Serie C for the first time in club history, along with AC Reggiana and Piacenza FBC.
• 1971 / Genoa 1893 finishes top of the table in Serie C Group B, 2 points ahead of SPAL, thus managing an immediate return to Serie B. The successful coach is Arturo Silvestri. Meanwhile, UC Sampdoria is knocked out in the group stage of the Cup of the Alps, finishing in second place in a group of four, with just SS Lazio going through to the next round, with the other eliminated clubs being FC Lugano and FC Winterthur.
• 1973 / Still coached by Arturo Silvestri, Genoa 1893 clinches the title in Serie B, 4 points ahead of AC Cesena and US Foggia, who both join the Genoese club in Serie A for the new season. Also in 1973, Genoa youth academy striker Roberto Pruzzo has his breakthrough in the club’s first team, going on to score 57 goals in 143 matches in the following five seasons, following which he earns a transfer to AS Roma. Pruzzo would also win 6 caps for Italy (1978-82), being part of his country’s squad in the 1980 European Championships.
• 1974 / Still coached by Arturo Silvestri, Genoa 1893 finishes in second-last place in the Serie A table, thus dropping back into Serie B after just one season along with US Foggia and bottom club AC Hellas Verona.
• 1976 / Champions in Serie B, Genoa 1893 manages a return to Serie A after two seasons, winning promotion along with US Catanzaro and US Foggia, who both finished on the same number of points as the Genoese club. Genoa’s successful coach is Luigi Simoni.
• 1977 / Coached by Eugenio Bersellini, UC Sampdoria finishes in fourteenth place in Serie A, thus descending into Serie B along with US Catanzaro and bottom club AC Cesena. For the first time since the foundation of UC Sampdoria in 1946, the club finds itself at a lower level than its eternal city rivals Genoa 1893 – a situation which would only last for one season due to the relegation of Genoa in 1978.
• 1978 / Coached by Pietro Maroso, Genoa 1893 finishes in fourteenth place in Serie A, thus descending into Serie B along with US Foggia and AS Pescara. 
• 1979 / Following the passing of former Genoa goalkeeper Giovanni De Prà at the age of 78, the gold medal that had been offered to him by the Guerin Sportivo sports magazine in recognition of his heroic performance in the international match against Spain in 1924, which he completed playing with a broken arm for seventy minutes, was buried under one of the goalposts at the northern end of the Stadio Luigi Ferraris, traditionally the side of the ground occupied by Genoa’s most ardent supporters. 
• 1980 / The Stadio Luigi Ferraris is the scene for a Lou Reed open-air pop concert. The stadium would go on to host concerts of the likes of Vasco Rossi, Bruce Springsteen, Lucio Dalla, Frank Zappa, and Joe Cocker in later years.
• 1981 / Runners-up in Serie B, Genoa 1893 wins promotion to Serie A along with champions Milan AC as well as the club finishing in third place, AC Cesena. Genoa’s successful coach is Luigi Simoni.
• 1982 / One year after its derby rivals, UC Sampdoria also finds the way back to Serie A, finishing as runners-up in Serie B, 1 point behind champions AC Hellas Verona, with coach Renzo Ulivieri, who had succeeded Enzo Riccomini in the course of the season. Moreover, UC Sampdoria also has a decent cup run, reaching the Coppa Italia’s semis, in which it is eliminated by Torino Calcio (2-2 aggr. & away goals). In the summer of 1982, Samp signs English international player Trevor Francis, who had just competed for his country in the World Cup in Spain, from Manchester City FC. Another Sampdoria signing is a young 17-year-old striker of Bologna FC, Roberto Mancini. In the fall of 1982, a record number of 57,815 spectators show up for the first Genoa-Sampdoria encounter at Serie A level since 1977. This constitutes an all-time record attendance at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris for a league match.
• 1983 / UC Sampdoria signs defender Pietro Vierchowod from AS Roma. Vierchowod, who had been an unused sub in Italy’s World Cup winning squad in Spain in 1982, would go on to be one of Samp’s longest serving players of all times.
• 1984 / Coached by Luigi Simoni, Genoa 1893 finishes in fourteenth place in Serie A, thus being retrograded to Serie B along with Pisa SC and bottom club Calcio Catania. In fact, Genoa had finished with an equal number of points as SS Lazio, but suffered relegation due to an inferior head-to-head result. Also in 1984, midfielder Stefano Eranio broke into Genoa’s first team from the club’s youth academy. Meanwhile, in the mid-season, UC Sampdoria signs Scottish star player Graeme Souness from Liverpool FC as well as a 20-year-old striker of US Cremonese called Gianluca Vialli.
• 1985 / Coached by Eugenio Bersellini, who had returned to a second spell at the club, UC Sampdoria has an excellent season, finishing in fourth place in the Serie A table as well as winning its first-ever Coppa Italia, defeating Milan AC in the final (3-1 aggr., goals by Graeme Souness, Roberto Mancini, and Gianluca Vialli). As a result, the club qualifies for the 1985-86 Cup Winners Cup, in which it edges past AE Larissas in R1 (2-1 aggr.) only to be knocked out in R2 by SL Benfica (2-1 aggr.).
• 1986 / UC Sampdoria reaches the Coppa Italia final for the second year running, however, this time having to settle for the silver medal, losing the showdown with AS Roma 3-2 (aggr.). The club’s British contingent, Trevor Francis and Graeme Souness, leaves the club, signing for Atalanta BC and Rangers FC respectively – in Souness’ case after taking part for Scotland in the 1986 World Cup in Mexico, for which Samp’s Pietro Vierchowod and Gianluca Vialli are included in the Italian squad. For the 1986-87 season, Sampdoria’s first team is put in the hands of Yugoslavian manager Vujadin Boškov, a former coach of various European top clubs. One of Boškov’s first signings is former Brazilian international midfielder Toninho Cerezo of AS Roma. Also in 1986, the Stadio Luigi Ferraris hosts an international rugby match for the first time, an encounter between the rugby teams of Italy and the Soviet Union. The stadium would go on to host several more Italy rugby matches in the following years.
• 1987 / 20-year-old youth academy goalkeeper Gianluca Pagliuca breaks into UC Sampdoria’s first team. Also in 1987, renovation works on the Stadio Luigi Ferraris get underway, with a complete overhaul of the stadium being envisaged in view of the 1990 World Cup, due to be played in Italy. During the building works, which would take the best part of the following two years, the stadium would remain in use constantly, while the four stands were knocked down successively to make way for new, covered constructions. During the building works, Genoa 1893, hosting smaller crowds in Serie B, continues to play at the stadium continually, while UC Sampdoria regularly moves its home matches to Cremona’s Stadio Giovanni Zini in the following two seasons.
• 1988 / UC Sampdoria manages its second Coppa Italia win, defeating Torino Calcio in the final (3-2 aggr.) thanks to goals by Hans-Peter Briegel, Gianluca Vialli, and Fausto Salsano. Briegel, a former West German international player, decided to hang up his boots following the 1987-88 season. At the 1988 European Championships in Germany, Samp’s players Roberto Mancini, Gianluca Vialli, and Luca Fusi are part of Italy’s squad, which reaches the semi-final. Midfielder Fusi had joined Sampdoria from Como Calcio in 1986 – and would sign a deal with SSC Napoli after the European tournament. Following his departure, Sampdoria’s manager Vujadin Boškov signs another Euro participant, Spain’s Victor Muñoz of FC Barcelona, as replacement of Fusi; Victor would stay with the club for two seasons. Another of his summer signings is former Italian international midfielder Giuseppe Dossena of Udinese Calcio, who would stay with the club for the following three years. Also in 1988, energy company ERG becomes Sampdoria’s shirt sponsor, with the firm’s managing director Riccardo Garrone putting lavish budgets at the club’s disposal in the following seven seasons.
• 1989 / In the 1988-89 Cup Winners Cup, UC Sampdoria reached the final following successive defeats of IFK Norrköping (3-2 aggr.), FC Carl Zeiss Jena (4-2 aggr.), FC Dinamo 1948 Bucureşti (1-1 aggr. & away goals), and KV Mechelen (4-2 aggr.). In the final, played at Berne’s Wankdorf Stadium, the club suffered a 2-0 defeat at the hands of FC Barcelona. However, due to Sampdoria winning its third Coppa Italia – and the second in a row – following a 4-1 aggregate defeat of Diego Maradona’s SSC Napoli in the final (goals by Vialli, Vierchowod, Cerezo, and Mancini), the club knew it would get a new opportunity at European silverware in the 1989-90 season. Samp played the return leg of the Coppa Italia final as well as the home legs of its European matches against IFK Norrköping (2-0) and FC Dinamo București (0-0) in Cremona’s Stadio Giovanni Zini due to the ongoing building works at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris. Meanwhile, Genoa 1893 enjoyed success as well, clinching the title in Serie B and winning promotion to the top flight of Italian football after an absence of five seasons, along with AS Bari, Udinese Calcio, and US Cremonese. The successful coach is Franco Scoglio. In the summer season, Sampdoria’s main signings are midfielder Attilio Lombardo of US Cremonese, destined to win his first cap for Italy the following year, and Yugoslavian (Slovenian) international defender Srečko Katanec of VfB Stuttgart. Towards the end of 1989, building works on the new Stadio Luigi Ferraris are completed, the result being a stadium with four two-tiered, fully covered stands, with total capacity being down to 31,823. The only remaining element of the old stadium is the entrance of the main stand with the inscription Stadio Comunale Luigi Ferraris, dating back to 1933. As it turns out, it is unclear what happened to Giovanni De Prà’s medal, which had been buried under the pitch of the ground in 1979, during the building works.
• 1990 / While Genoa 1893 reached the final of the Mitropa Cup, in which it suffered a 1-0 defeat at the hands of AS Bari at the latter’s Stadio della Vittoria, UC Sampdoria clinched the most prestigious piece of silverware in its history by winning the Cup Winners Cup with manager Vujadin Boškov. The club reached the final following successive defeats of SK Brann (3-0 aggr.), Borussia Dortmund (3-1 aggr.), Grasshopper Club (4-1 aggr.), and AS Monaco (4-2 aggr.). In the final, played at Gothenburg’s Nya Ullevi, Samp edged past RSC Anderlechtois with two Gianluca Vialli goals in extra time. In the 1990 World Cup in Italy, four matches are played at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris – the group C matches Costa Rica-Scotland (1-0), Sweden-Scotland (1-2), and Sweden-Costa Rica (1-2) as well as the legendary round of last 16 match between Ireland and Romania (0-0 A.E.T.), in which David O’Leary’s penalty took the Boys in Green to the quarter-finals. No fewer than four Samp players were included in Azeglio Vicini’s World Cup squad which would win the bronze medal: Pietro Vierchowod, Roberto Mancini, Gianluca Vialli, and Gianluca Pagliuca. Moreover, Srečko Katanec is part of the Yugoslavian squad which reaches the quarter-finals. Genoa 1893’s Carlos Alberto Aguilera and Rubén Paz are included in Uruguay’s World Cup squad; especially striker Aguilera is a popular figure with Genoa supporters, as he managed to score no fewer than 41 goals in his three seasons with the club (1989-92). Following the World Cup, Genoa signs two players who took part in the event, Brazilian wing-back Branco from FC Porto as well as Czechoslovak striker Tomáš Skuhravý of Sparta ČKD Praha, who had scored five goals for his country in the tournament. Skuhravý would stay with Genoa for five seasons, scoring 58 goals in 163 matches. Meanwhile, Vujadin Boškov’s most important signing is Soviet (Ukrainian) midfielder Aleksei Mikhailichenko of FK Dinamo Kiev, who had missed the World Cup due to injury. At the start of the 1990-91 season, UC Sampdoria suffers a 3-1 aggregate defeat at the hands of Milan AC in the European Supercup.
• 1991 / For the first and – so far – only time in its history, UC Sampdoria, still managed by Vujadin Boškov, conquers the Italian national title, 5 points ahead of runners-up Milan AC. City rivals Genoa have their best post-war season as well, finishing in fourth place and qualifying for the UEFA Cup for the first time with coach Osvaldo Bagnoli. In the 1990-91 Cup Winners Cup, UC Sampdoria manages defeats of 1. FC Kaiserslautern (2-1 aggr.), PAE Olympiacos SFP (Piraeus, 4-1 aggr.) before suffering a surprise eliminating in the quarter-finals at the hands of KP Legia Warszawa SSA (3-2 aggr.). Yet again, Samp reaches the final of the Coppa Italia, but the final encounter is lost 4-2 (aggr.) against AS Roma. Following the 1990-91 season, after just one year with the club, Aleksei Mikhailichenko leaves Sampdoria, signing a contract with Rangers FC. One of his replacements is Brazilian striker Paolo Silas of AC Cesena, but he fails to impress in Genoa, leaving for SC Internacional in his home country in mid-1992. At the start of the new season, UC Sampdoria defeats AS Roma at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris in the final of the Italian Supercup, with Roberto Mancini scoring the only goal of the match. Also in 1991, an 18-year-old youth academy defender called Christian Panucci makes his debut in Genoa 1893’s first team.
• 1992 / UC Sampdoria nearly achieves the well-nigh impossible, reaching the final of the European Cup following wins over Rosenborg BK (7-1 aggr.) and Kispest Honvéd FC (4-3 aggr.) in the first two knock-out rounds and winning the group stage ahead of FK Crvena Zvezda (Red Star Belgrade), RSC Anderlechtois, and Panathinaïcos AO. Ultimately, the final of the competition at Wembley Stadium in London ends in tears, as FC Barcelona’s Ronald Koeman defeats Gianluca Pagliuca with the only goal of the match, a free kick in extra time and thus depriving the Genoese club of the main European trophy. Surprisingly, Genoa 1893, still coached by Osvaldo Bagnoli, has a wonderful run in the UEFA Cup as well, successively eliminating Real Oviedo (3-2 aggr.), FC Dinamo 1948 Bucureşti (5-3 aggr.), FC Steaua Bucureşti (2-0 aggr.), and Liverpool FC (4-1 aggr.) before being knocked out in the semi-finals by eventual winners AFC Ajax (4-3 aggr.). The skipper of Bagnoli’s team is defender Gianluca Signorini, one of Genoa’s ultimate club legends, who wears the red-and-black jersey 207 times between 1988 and 1995. Meanwhile, in the Serie A, Samp and Genoa finish in sixth and thirteenth places respectively, as a result of which both clubs miss out on European football in the new season. Genoa’s midfielder Stefano Eranio, who had meanwhile won his first caps for Italy, leaves the club in mid-1992, signing a contract with Milan AC. At Sampdoria, after six years at the helm of the club, manager Vujadin Boškov leaves to sign a contract deal with AS Roma. Along with Boškov, Samp’s star striker Gianluca Vialli (85 goals in 223 matches) leaves for Juventus FC, later going on to glory in London with Chelsea FC, while Toninho Cerezo also leaves the club for São Paulo FC in his home country. The task of building a new team at Samp befalls to Swedish manager Sven-Göran Eriksson, who came over from SL Benfica. His main signing in the summer of 1992 is Yugoslavian international midfielder Vladimir Jugović of FK Crvena Zvezda.
• 1993 / Genoa 1893’s promising defender Christian Panucci is lured away by Milan AC. Panucci is destined for a wonderful international career, going on to wear the jerseys of Real Madrid CF, FC Internazionale, Chelsea FC, AS Monaco, AS Roma, and Parma FC – as well as winning 57 caps for Italy and representing his country at the 2002 World Cup and the 2004 and 2008 editions of the European Championships. Also in 1993, UC Sampdoria signs a loan deal with Milan AC, securing the club of the services of Ruud Gullit, Dutch international midfielder and captain of the Netherlands’ team which won the 1988 European Championships. Gullit would stay with the club for two seasons, scoring 24 goals in 53 matches. Other Eriksson signings in mid-1993 include English international midfielder David Platt (of Juventus FC) and Italian international midfielder Alberico Evani (of Milan AC).
• 1994 / After a mediocre 1992-93 season, UC Sampdoria now finishes in third place in Serie A behind Milan AC and Juventus FC. Sven-Göran Eriksson also obtains his only piece of silverware with Samp by guiding the club to its fourth Coppa Italia win, with the final being won handsomely against Ancona Calcio (6-1 aggr.). In the 1994 World Cup in the United States, Sampdoria’s goalkeeper Gianluca Pagliuca as well as midfielder Alberico Evani are part of Arrigo Sacchi’s squad which obtains the silver medal. Genoa 1893’s wing-back Dan Petrescu reaches the World Cup’s quarter final with Romania, leaving the club after just one season to sign a deal with Sheffield Wednesday FC after the tournament. After his impressive performance in America, Gianluca Pagliuca is lured away by FC Internazionale, with UC Sampdoria signing Inter’s goalkeeper, former Italian international Walter Zenga, 34 years old, as his successor. Another Eriksson signing in the summer of 1994 is Yugoslavian international midfielder Siniša Mihajlović of AS Roma. One of the club’s other Balkan players, stalwart Slovenian defender Srečko Katanec hangs up his boots after five seasons with Samp.
• 1995 / Having an indifferent Serie A season, UC Sampdoria has a decent run in the Cup Winners Cup, knocking out FK Bodø/Glimt (4-3 aggr.), Grasshopper Club (5-3 aggr.), and FC Porto (1-1 aggr. & penalty shoot-out) before bowing out in the semis against Arsenal FC (5-5 aggr. & penalty shoot-out). Meanwhile, coached by Claudio Maselli, Genoa 1893 finishes in joint fifteenth place in Serie A, going on to lose the relegation play-off against Calcio Padova (1-1 & penalty shoot-out), staged at Florence’s Stadio Artemio Franchi. As such, the club drops back into Serie B after six seasons, along with Foggia Calcio, AC Reggiana, and bottom club AC Brescia. Following the 1994-95 season, after twelve seasons (358 matches) with UC Sampdoria, former Italian international (45 caps) defender Pietro Vierchowod leaves the club, signing a deal with Juventus FC. Along with Vierchowod, Attilio Lombardo and Vladimir Jugović are also lured away by Juventus FC, while Ruud Gullit and David Platt leave for Chelsea FC and Arsenal FC respectively. 
• 1996 / Coached by Gaetano Salvemini, Genoa 1893 fails to win promotion from Serie B, but the club obtains its main piece of post-war silverware, the Anglo-Italian Cup, a cup tournament between tier two teams from England and Italy. Genoa finishes as runners-up in the group stage, progressing along with group winner Birmingham City FC as well as Port Vale FC and AC Cesena. In the semi-final, played at Stadio Luigi Ferraris, Genoa edges past Salernitana Sport (0-0 A.E.T. & penalty shoot-out), with the club going on to a handsome 5-2 win over Port Vale FC in the final at Wembley Stadium in London. Genoa’s goals in the final are scored by Gennaro Ruotolo (3), Fabio Galante, and Vincenzo Montella.
• 1997 / In the 1996-97 Serie A season, UC Sampdoria finishes in sixth place, enough to qualify for the UEFA Cup. After five years as manager of the club, Sven-Göran Eriksson leaves to sign a deal with SS Lazio. Eriksson takes along Samp’s star striker Roberto Mancini, who scored 132 goals in fifteen seasons with the Genoese side. Another departure is midfielder Alberico Evani, who signs for AC Reggiana. Significantly, highlighting the decreased status of the club, UC Sampdoria is eliminated in R1 of the UEFA Cup by Spain’s Athletic Club (4-1 aggr.).
• 1998 / In the 1998 World Cup, three UC Sampdoria players take part: Siniša Mihajlović (Yugoslavia), François Omam-Biyik (Cameroon), and Alain Boghossian – the last-mentioned player making an appearance for France in the successful 3-0 win in the final against Brazil. Significantly, all three of these players leave Sampdoria after the tournament, signing respective deals with SS Lazio, Atlante FC, and Parma AC. Meanwhile, at Genoa 1893, midfielder Mario Bortolazzi, part of the legendary Genoa team which reached the UEFA Cup semis in 1992, leaves after wearing the red-and-black jersey on 251 occasions, signing a surprise deal with West Bromwich Albion FC. Also in 1998, after thirty years of wearing the name Genoa 1893, the club reverts to its old name Genoa Cricket & Football Club (CFC).
• 1999 / Coached by Luciano Spaletti, UC Sampdoria finishes in sixteenth place in Serie A, thus dropping back into Serie B after seventeen seasons, along with Salernitana Sport, Vicenza Calcio, and bottom club Empoli FC. In the fall of 1999, when Samp hosts Bologna FC 1909 in the Coppa Italia at Stadio Luigi Ferraris, Samp ‘supporters’ throw fireworks and other objects at Bologna’s goalkeeper – and former Sampdoria star – Gianluca Pagliuca while the club from Emilia-Romagna is leading 0-2. After the match was halted, Bologna was officially declared the winner of the tie by Italy’s FA, with Sampdoria being punished by having to play its following six home matches away from Genoa – with the club settling on Cremona’s Stadio Giovanni Zini, which had also hosted some Sampdoria home matches in the late 1980s.
• 2000 / After fifteen seasons (412 matches) with the club, Genoa CFC defender Vincenzo Torrente leaves the club for US Alessandria Calcio.
• 2001 / For security reasons, steel gates and turnstiles are put in place on the external perimeter of the Stadio Luigi Ferraris.
• 2002 / After fourteen seasons (444 matches) with the club, Genoa CFC midfielder Gennario Ruotolo leaves the club for AS Livorno Calcio. Ruotolo, who also won one cap for Italy (in 1991), was the last remaining element of Genoa’s golden generation which reached the UEFA Cup semis in 1992. Meanwhile, UC Sampdoria finds itself in grave financial problems, being saved from bankruptcy by former (ERG) main sponsor Riccardo Garrone, who takes over the ownership of the club. Also in 2002, renovation works are carried out at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris, which involves – among other things – creating two new away ends; one at the northern side of the main stand for Sampdoria home games (with Sampdoria’s most ardent supporters being in the Gradinata Sud) and a second at the southern side of the main stand for Genoa home games (with Genoa’s ultras finding themselves in the Gradinata Nord).
• 2003 / Runners-up in Serie B with coach Walter Novellino, UC Sampdoria manages a return to the Serie A level after four years, winning promotion along with champions AC Siena as well as US Lecce and Ancona Calcio.
• 2004 / Legendary Italian midfielder Roberto Baggio wins his last-ever cap for Italy in an international friendly with Spain (1-1) at Stadio Luigi Ferraris.
• 2005 / Genoa CFC has a dramatic season – first winning the title in Serie B following a 3-2 win over AC Venezia 1907 in the last match of the season, only to be punished by being put in last place due to a bribery scandal surrounding the aforementioned match. As a result, Serse Cosmi’s side is retrograded to Serie C1 along with Pescara Calcio, AC Venezia 1907, and US Catanzaro. Meanwhile, UC Sampdoria has a decent season, finishing in fifth place in Serie A and thus qualifying for European football for the first time in eight years. In order to stage UEFA Cup home games, plastic seats are added to the lower part of the short ends of the ground – this in order to be in conformity with UEFA rules. Total capacity of the stadium is down to under 38,000 as a result. In the 2005-06 UEFA Cup, Samp eliminates Vitória FC (Setúbal) in R1 (2-1 aggr.), only to be knocked out in the ensuing group stage along with Halmstads BK, with FC Steaua Bucureşti, RC Lens, and Hertha BSC proving stronger than the Genoese side and progressing to the following round.
• 2006 / Runners-up in Serie C Group A, 7 points behind champions Spezia Calcio 1906, Genoa CFC qualifies for the promotion play-offs. Successively knocking out Salernitana Calcio 1919 (3-3 aggr. & better result in the regular league) and AC Monza Brianza 1912 (2-1 aggr.), the club ultimately manages an immediate return to the Serie B level with coach Giovanni Vavassori.
• 2007 / Finishing in third place in Serie B, Genoa CFC manages its second promotion in a row, acceding to Serie A along with two other clubs which had been retrograded following scandals off the field, Juventus FC and SSC Napoli. Genoa’s successful coach is Gian Piero Gasperini. Meanwhile, UC Sampdoria finishes in ninth place in Serie A, qualifying for the UEFA Cup through the back door, as Atalanta BC fails to obtain a licence to play European football. Samp’s cup run is not impressive, though; after edging past HNK Hajduk Split in the qualifying round (2-1 aggr.), the club is knocked out in R1 by Aalborg BK (2-2 aggr. & away goals) – and this in spite of the presence of Italian international striker Antonio Cassano, who had joined Samp from Real Madrid CF in the summer of 2007. Cassano would go on to have two spells at Sampdoria (2007-11 & 2015-17). Also in 2007, a plan is presented to build a new stadium for Genoa CFC and UC Sampdoria in Genoa in the Sestri Ponente neighbourhood in the far west of the city – an idea also promoted in view of Italy’s (unsuccessful) Euro 2012 bid. The new stadium project lingers on for several years before being given up altogether.
• 2008 / Finishing in sixth place in Serie A, UC Sampdoria qualifies for the 2008-09 UEFA Cup.
• 2009 / In the 2008-09 UEFA Cup, UC Sampdoria qualifies for the group stage following a 7-1 aggregate win over FBK Kaunas in R1. Finishing in third place in the group, Samp progresses to the round of 32 along with R Standard de Liège and VfB Stuttgart at the expense of Sevilla FC and FK Partizan (Belgrade). In the first new knock-out round, however, the club is eliminated by FC Metalist Charkov (3-0 aggr.). Meanwhile, coached by Gian Piero Gasperini, Genoa CFC has its best season in years, finishing in fifth place in Serie A and thus qualifying for the 2009-10 Europa League, in which the club knocks out OB (Odense) in the play-off round (4-2 aggr.) before being knocked out in the group stage along with SK Slavia Praha by Valencia CF and Lille OSC. In the following seasons, Genoa proves itself a stable Serie A club.
• 2010 / Finishing in fourth place in Serie A, UC Sampdoria qualifies for the Champions League preliminary round, in which the club is knocked out by SV Werder 1899 (5-4 aggr.). Following that, the club is placed in the Europa League group stage, in which it is eliminated as well along with Debreceni VSC, with PSV and FC Metalist Charkov progressing to the following round. In order to be allowed to take part in the Champions League, UC Sampdoria had had to close the concrete seats in the lowest part of the two short ends for security reasons. Also in 2012, the Stadio Luigi Ferraris hosts the European Championship qualifier between Italy and Serbia, which is abandoned after just six minutes following misconduct by part of the Serbian fan following. Subsequently, Serb ring leader Ivan Bogdanov is put behind bars for over three years, while Italy is awarded a reglementary 3-0 win.
• 2011 / Coached by Alberto Casarin, who had succeeded Domenico Di Carlo in the course of the season, UC Sampdoria finishes in eighteenth place in Serie A, thus descending into Serie B along with AC Brescia and bottom club AS Bari. Meanwhile, Genoa CFC organises a gala match between old stars of the club to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the inauguration of the Stadio Luigi Ferraris (formerly Stadio di Marassi).
• 2012 / UC Sampdoria finishes in sixth place in Serie B, qualifying for the play-offs. Following successive defeats of US Sassuolo Calcio (3-2 aggr.) and AS Varese 1910 (4-2 aggr.), the club secures an immediate return to the top flight of Italian football, along with champions Delfino Pescara 1936 and runners-up Torino FC. Following the season, former Italian international defender Ciro Ferrara takes over the role of Samp’s head coach from the successful Giuseppe Iachini. Ferrara, however, is sacked in mid-season. Also in 2012, due to grave misconduct on the part of Genoa CFC ‘fans’ in the league match against AC Siena at Stadio Luigi Ferraris, the club is punished with having to play its last two home games of the season behind closed doors.
• 2013 / Former UC Sampdoria player Siniša Mihajlović returns to the club as trainer.
• 2014 / UC Sampdoria’s most successful trainer ever, Vujadin Boškov, passes away in Novi Sad, Serbia, at the age of 82.
• 2015 / Genoa CFC finishes in sixth place in Serie A, but misses out on Europa League due to not obtaining a European licence. As a result, the club’s place is taken by number seven in the table, none other than city rivals UC Sampdoria. Samp does not reap the fruits of the unexpected gift, though, suffering a surprise elimination in the Europa League preliminaries at the hands of FK Vojvodina (4-2 aggr.). At the end of the 2014-15 season, Siniša Mihajlović is succeeded in the role as trainer by former Samp goalkeeper Walter Zenga, who only holds out for twelve matches before getting the sack.
• 2016 / Having been a municipal ground since 1946, the Stadio Luigi Ferraris is now taken over by UC Sampdoria and Genoa CFC together in the so-called Società Luigi Ferraris.
• 2019 / UC Sampdoria signs AS Roma’s Claudio Ranieri as its new trainer, the man who had made Leicester City FC Premier League champions in 2016. That same year, a renovation is carried out at the main stand of the Stadio Luigi Ferraris, with total ground capacity going down from 36,599 to 33,205 as a result.
• 2021 / After two years at the helm of the club, Claudio Ranieri leaves UC Sampdoria, signing a contract as Watford FC’s new manager.
• 2022 / Coached by Alexander Blessin, Genoa CFC finishes in second-last place in Serie A, thus dropping back into Serie B after fifteen years, along with Cagliari Calcio and bottom club Venezia FC. Also in 2022, the Società Luigi Ferraris is wound up after just six years, with ownership of the stadium flowing back from the two clubs to the City of Genoa. That same year, former UC Sampdoria player and trainer Siniša Mihajlović passes away at the age of 53.
• 2023 / Following various narrow escapes in the previous seasons, UC Sampdoria now finishes in last place in Serie A, thus descending into Serie B along with Spezia Calcio and US Cremonese. The coach responsible for the relegation is Dejan Stanković, who had replaced Marco Giampaolo in the course of the season. That same season, mirroring the fortunes of its eternal rivals, Genoa CFC finishes as runners-up in Serie B, thus acceding to Serie A after an absence of just one season, along with champions Frosinone Calcio as well as Cagliari Calcio. The successful coach is Alberto Gilardino. For the new season, Dejan Stanković is succeeded as Sampdoria’s head coach by former Italian World Cup (2006 winner Andrea Pirlo. Also in 2023, after permission being granted by Genoa’s municipal authorities, a replica of Giovanni De Prà’s medal, which had been buried under the pitch of the Stadio Luigi Ferraris in 1979 – and which had been lost in the 1987-89 renovations of the stadium – is buried near the entrance door of the Gradinata Nord by a group of Genoa CFC supporters.
• 2024 / UC Sampdoria finishes in seventh place in Serie B – a position reached in spite of being deducted 2 points for financial misconduct – following which the club is eliminated in the promotion play-off quarter-final by Palermo FC (2-0). Coach Andrea Pirlo leaves the club after just one season. Also in 2024, former UC Sampdoria manager Sven-Göran Eriksson passes away at the age of 76.

Note - Below the photo series, a video with highlights of the match I attended at Stadio Luigi Ferraris can be found.

All photos: (c) W.B. Tukker / www.extremefootballtourism.blogspot.com. Publication of any of these images only after permission of author