History of ACR Messina facts for kids
Associazione Calcio Rinascita Messina is a well-known football club from Messina, a city in Sicily, Italy. It's one of the biggest clubs in Sicily. The team's colors are bright yellow and red.
The club started way back in 1900 as Messina Football Club. Since then, it has had a long and exciting history. Messina has even played in Serie A, which is Italy's top football league, four times! Three of those times were in the 2000s.
Over the years, the club has been re-established a few times. Most recently, it was re-formed in 2009 as A.C. Rinascita Messina. Messina has played in many different Italian leagues, from the very top (Serie A) to amateur leagues like Serie D.
Contents
The Story of Messina Football Club
How it All Began: Messina F.C.
The story of Messina Football Club started in August 1900. A man named Alfredo Marangolo returned to Sicily after studying in London, England. While in Great Britain, he saw how popular football was becoming.
So, on December 1, 1900, Marangolo officially founded Messina Football Club. He got help from an Anglican reverend named "Caulifield". The team's first manager and captain was F. L. Padgett. Messina played their home games at a place called San Ranieri.
First Derby and Early Trophies
Alfredo Marangolo had also met Ignazio Majo Pagano while studying. Pagano went on to form Anglo Palermitan (Palermo), another Sicilian club, just a month before Messina. This led to the first-ever Sicilian football derby! It happened on April 18, 1901, between Messina and Palermo. About 1,000 fans came to watch the game, which Palermo won 3–2. After the match, both clubs celebrated the start of football in Sicily. Everyone noted the great sportsmanship between the teams.
Charles Bousfield Huleatt, who helped start the club, became Messina's player-manager in their second year. In 1904, Messina got their revenge, beating Palermo 3–2. The teams celebrated together again, toasting to their future and to both cities.
A friendly rivalry grew between the two clubs. They even created a special competition called the Whitaker Challenge Cup. Messina won the first cup in 1905, beating Palermo 3–2. The next year, Messina proved it wasn't a fluke, winning the trophy again with a 2–1 victory.
Challenges and Changes
The terrible earthquake of 1908 greatly affected the club. About 60,000 people died in Messina, including Charles Bousfield Huleatt and some players.
Football started again the next year, thanks to Arthur Barret Lascelles, who used his own money to keep the sport alive. But by 1910, his funds ran out, and the club had to close. A new club, Società Ginnastica Garibaldi Messina, briefly took its place. However, it also closed down because of World War I.
New Beginnings: U.S. Messinese
After World War I, a club called U.S. Messinese was founded. They played in the Coppa Federale Siciliana, a Sicilian championship. Messina finished as runners-up.
In 1921–22, the club played in the Italian Football Championship for the first time. Over the next few years, U.S. Messinese merged with other local teams. First, Umberto Messina joined, and the club became U.S. Messinese Umberto. Then, it merged with Messina Sporting Club, creating the Messina Football Club.
By December 1924, FC Messina closed, and the players became part of a re-formed U.S. Messinese. This team did well, reaching the semi-finals of the International league in 1924–25 after beating Palermo 3–0.
Messina was promoted to Serie B for the 1932–33 season. They stayed in Serie B for six seasons, even finishing as high as 4th in 1935–36. During this time, they had a strong local rivalry with Calcio Catania.
A.C. Messina: Many Mergers
In 1940–41, AC Messina had to withdraw from Serie C and closed down. The next season, a club named US Peloro 1906 changed its name to US Mario Passamonte to try and take Messina's place in Serie C.
All football stopped in Italy for World War II. After the war, in 1945, several teams merged, including US Passamonte. This led to the creation of AS Messina. However, some players and officials formed a rival club, Giostra Messina. Both teams reached the finals of the Southern League.
AC Riunite Messina: Success in the 1950s and 60s
In 1947, AS Messina and Giostra Messina finally joined forces. They became one club: Associazione Calcio Riunite Messina, or AC Riunite Messina.
The 1950s were a great time for Messina. They won the Serie C championship. In their first season in Serie B, they avoided relegation. Messina finished 3rd the following season. The rivalry with Catania was strong during this period. Messina often won the Sicilian derby games.
In 1958, Goffredo Muglia became president, starting a new era. For the first time ever, Messina won the Serie B championship in 1962–63! It was a very close race that went down to the last day.
Messina's first season in Serie A was in 1963–64. They had a tough start but turned things around in the second half of the season. They even beat big teams like Juventus (1–0) and Fiorentina (1–0). This helped them stay in Serie A, finishing 14th.
The next season in Serie A wasn't as lucky, and they were relegated. They also faced relegation from Serie B a few seasons later. After some time in Serie C, Messina was relegated to Serie D in 1972–73. But they bounced right back, winning the Serie D championship.
1980s Revival with Schillaci
By 1983, Messina were champions of Serie C2. They had a future star player named Salvatore Schillaci. The club was doing well again. They almost got promoted to Serie B in 1985, finishing 3rd. The next season, Messina won Serie C1 and earned promotion back to Serie B.
The 1980s were good for Messina in Serie B, with 7th and 8th-place finishes. In 1989, Salvatore Schillaci, Messina's most capped player, was sold to Juventus. He later became a national hero for Italy at the 1990 FIFA World Cup, winning the Golden Boot.
Financial Troubles
Just three seasons after Schillaci left, Messina was relegated from Serie B to C1. Then, they faced even more problems. The FIGC (Italian Football Federation) stopped all professional football for Messina due to financial difficulties.
In 1993, the club was placed in Sicilian Promozione, an amateur league. In 1994, it moved to Sicilian Eccellenza. The club played in this league until 1998, when it was dissolved after being relegated again.
A.S. Messina: A New Start
The club and fans felt the decision to stop professional football was unfair. In the summer of 1993, A.S. Messina was founded. Its goal was to bring the giallorossi (yellow and reds) back to professional football.
They played in the Campionato Nazionale Dilettanti (National Amateur Championship) for four seasons. They did well for the first three, but in 1996–97, they finished last and were relegated to the Sicilian Eccellenza league.
In 1998–99, they were relegated again and then dissolved.
From U.S. Peloro to F.C. Messina Peloro
In the summer of 1994, after two other clubs merged, U.S. Peloro was founded. It played two seasons in Sicilian Eccellenza and was promoted in 1996. In 1996, this club played in the same league as A.S. Messina.
In July 1997, the club changed its name to Football Club Messina Peloro. Emanuele Aliotta became the new chairman. In just a few seasons, the club quickly moved up the Italian league system. Starting in the Campionato Nazionale Dileattanti in 1997–98, Messina was promoted to Serie C2 as champions.
In their first Serie C2 season, they finished 2nd. The next season, they were crowned champions again! The 2000–01 season in Serie C1 was won by local rivals Palermo. Messina came in second and won the play-offs, beating Calcio Catania to get promoted back to Serie B. In less than ten years, Messina had climbed back up from the lower leagues!
After two seasons in Serie B, Pietro Franza became the new chairman. In the 2003–04 season, the Sicilian team was promoted back to Serie A under coach Bortolo Mutti. Six teams from Serie B were promoted that season. It had been forty years since Messina last played in Italy's top league!
Serie A: Messina at its Peak
Many people thought Messina would struggle in Serie A during the 2004–05 season. But they surprised everyone with great results, even beating both Milan clubs! They beat AC Milan 2–1 at the San Siro. Later, they beat Internazionale at home for the first time in their history.
Messina stayed clear of relegation all season and finished 7th in the table. This was just one spot away from getting a place in the UEFA Cup, a European competition! During this time, for the first time ever, Messina players were called up to the Italy national football team. Alessandro Parisi was called up in 2004, and Carmine Coppola in 2005.
Despite their impressive performance, Messina was still in danger of being relegated due to money problems. But they managed to sort things out and stayed in Serie A. In the 2005–06 season, Messina couldn't repeat their success. Coach Mutti was replaced by Giampiero Ventura. They seemed to be relegated after losing a derby to Reggina. However, due to the Serie A scandal of 2006, Messina avoided relegation even though they finished 18th.
The Club's Financial Struggles
Messina started the 2006–07 season with Bruno Giordano as coach. But he was replaced by Alberto Cavasin in January 2007 because of poor results. Cavasin was also sacked in April, and Giordano was brought back. Giordano's second time was even worse, with four losses in four matches. He was sacked again and replaced by Bruno Bolchi.
Messina did reach the last 16 of the Coppa Italia (Italian Cup) for only the second time in their history. They knocked out S.S. Lazio in a thrilling match that went to extra time. Messina won 4–3. They were knocked out in the next round by Internazionale.
The 2007–08 Serie B season started with a new coach, Nello Di Costanzo. The club didn't have high hopes for returning to Serie A. In July 2008, Messina chairman Pietro Franza announced he couldn't find anyone to take over the club. He gave up the club's Serie B membership and planned to enter the club into an amateur league. On August 1, Messina was admitted to Serie D. In November 2008, the club was declared bankrupt.
A.C. Rinascita Messina: A New Era
In March 2009, a businessman named Alfredo Di Lullo bought Football Club Messina Peloro. In April 2009, it became A.C. Rinascita Messina.
On January 4, 2011, the club was transferred to the Martorano group. Then, on August 14, 2011, it was sold to Raffaele "Lello" Manfredi.
In the summer of 2014, the club's new name was Associazioni Calcio Riunite Messina 1947. In the 2014–15 season, the club was relegated to Serie D. However, it was allowed back into Lega Pro due to its involvement in a sports fraud case. Since the summer of 2015, Natale Stracuzzi has been the owner and president. The club faced more financial issues and was removed from Lega Pro in 2017. A new club, A.C.R. Messina, was then admitted to the 2017–18 Serie D.
