Spezia Calcio facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Spezia

Full name	Spezia Calcio
Nickname(s)	Aquilotti (Little Eagles) Aquile (Eagles) I Bianchi (The Whites)
Founded	10 October 1906; 118 years ago (1906-10-10) (as Spezia FBC)
Ground	Stadio Alberto Picco
Ground Capacity	11,466
Owner	Thomas S. Roberts
Chairman	Charlie Stillitano
Manager	Luca D'Angelo
League	Serie B
2018–19	Serie B, 6th of 19
Home colours Away colours

Spezia Calcio is an Italian professional football club. It is based in the city of La Spezia, in a region called Liguria. The team currently plays in Serie B, which is Italy's second-highest football league.

Spezia Calcio was started in 1906 by a Swiss banker named Hermann Hurni. He used to play football in London. The first Spezia team wore light blue and white kits. These were second-hand kits from an amateur team called Crystal Palace.

In 1911, the club changed its colours to plain white shirts with black shorts and socks. These are still their main colours today. In the 1920s, before the top league was called Serie A, Spezia played against famous Italian teams. These included AC Milan, Juventus, and Inter Milan.

Spezia won a special championship in 1944 called the Campionato Alta Italia. The Italian Football Federation (FIGC) officially recognized this win in 2002. Because of this, Spezia is allowed to wear a unique badge on their jerseys. This badge is different from the usual championship shield.

After 1951, Spezia spent 55 years in the third and fourth divisions. In 2006, they returned to Serie B. Later, the club faced financial problems and had to restart. But they managed to become a regular Serie B team again. In 2020, exactly 100 years after their first time in the top league, Spezia finally reached Serie A. They won the promotion play-offs to get there. They also played in Serie A for the 2021–22 season.

Club History: Spezia's Journey

Early Years and First Wins (1906–1944)

Spezia Calcio was founded in 1906 by Hermann Hurny. He was a Swiss banker who had played football in London. The very first Spezia kit was light blue and white. It was a used kit from Crystal Palace, given to Hurny when he came back to La Spezia.

In 1926, Spezia won the Seconda Divisione. This meant they were promoted to the Prima Divisione. At that time, Prima Divisione was the second-highest level of Italian football. In 1929, Spezia won the Prima Divisione again. However, the league system changed, and Prima Divisione became the third division. So, Spezia stayed in Serie B, which was still the second level.

For the 1929–30 season, the club changed its name to AC Spezia. They played in the first-ever Serie B season. Spezia stayed in Serie B until 1935, when they were relegated. But they quickly returned for the 1936–37 season.

In 1944, during World War II, Italy's top football league was split into regional groups. Spezia's team merged with local firefighters to get enough players. They were called 42° Corpo dei Vigili del Fuoco della Spezia. They won their regional group and moved to the semi-finals. Spezia also won the semi-final round, winning five out of six matches.

Spezia then played a two-game play-off against Bologna. The first match was in Bologna. It was stopped after Spezia scored because of problems with Bologna fans. Spezia was given a 2–0 win. The second match was supposed to be in La Spezia. It was moved to Carpi because of heavy bombings. Then it was cancelled completely due to protests from Bologna's chairman. So, Spezia went straight to the final.

The finals were held in Milan. Spezia played against Venezia and Torino. On July 9, 1944, Spezia drew 1–1 with Venezia. This was seen as a "surprising result" by the Gazzetta dello Sport newspaper.

On July 16, Spezia played against the famous Grande Torino team. Torino had a great coach, Vittorio Pozzo, and a star striker, Silvio Piola. Spezia won the match 2–1 in an amazing victory. After Torino beat Venezia in the third match, Spezia was declared champion.

The Italian Football Federation (FIGC) officially recognized this title in 2002. Because of this, Spezia is allowed to wear a special tricolour badge on their jerseys. This badge is unique because it's the only permanent one in Italy. It looks different from the usual championship badge.

From Post-War to Restart (1944–2008)

After World War II, Italian football went back to national leagues. Spezia played in Serie B from 1946 to 1951. But in the 1950–51 season, they were relegated. They quickly fell through the divisions, ending up in the local Promozione Ligure by 1953. The club's name changed to A.C. Spezia-Arsenal in 1954. A year later, it changed again to Football Club Spezia 1906.

Spezia was promoted back to Serie C in 1958. For many years, the club moved between the third and fourth levels of Italian football. They had their longest run in Serie C from 1966 to 1979. In 1995, the club's name was changed to its current name, Spezia Calcio.

In 2002, Spezia made a deal with Internazionale. Spezia became a "feeder club" for Inter. This meant Inter had some ownership in Spezia. Young players like Goran Pandev and Alex Cordaz joined Spezia. In 2005, Spezia won the Coppa Italia Serie C. After that season, Inter sold most of its shares in Spezia.

The 2005–06 season began with a new owner, Giuseppe Ruggieri. Spezia won the Serie C1 championship. They were promoted to Serie B after 55 years away!

Life in Serie B was tough. Spezia played against big teams like Juventus, Genoa, and Napoli. In the 2006–07 season, Spezia fought to avoid relegation. They finished 19th and had to play in a play-off round. They tied 2–2 with Juventus. A late goal in the 91st minute saved Spezia from relegation. They then beat Hellas Verona in the play-off to stay in Serie B.

However, in the next season (2007-08), Spezia faced financial problems. They finished 21st and were relegated from Serie B. In 2008, the club went bankrupt.

New Beginnings and Serie A (2008–Present)

The team was restarted in 2008 as A.S.D. Spezia Calcio 2008. This was thanks to Gabriele Volpi, who owned other sports teams. The club started in the non-professional Serie D.

After being promoted in the 2008–09 season, the team changed its name back to "Spezia Calcio". This was the name they had used since 1995. Spezia continued to climb the leagues. In the 2011–12 season, they won three trophies! They were champions of Lega Pro Prima Divisione/B, won the Coppa Italia Lega Pro, and the Supercoppa di Lega di Prima Divisione. A 3–0 win against Latina on May 6, 2012, secured their promotion to Serie B. This was Spezia's third promotion in four seasons.

After returning to Serie B, the club did well. They often finished in the middle of the table or made it to the promotion play-offs. From 2012 to 2019, Spezia reached the play-offs five times. They were a strong team trying to get into Serie A.

In the 2019–20 season, Spezia finished third. This was their highest-ever league finish. They beat Chievo in the semi-final of the promotion play-offs. Then, on August 20, 2020, Spezia won promotion to Serie A for the first time! They defeated Frosinone in the final. This was Spezia's fourth promotion since the club restarted in 2008. They went from the fifth-tier Serie D to Serie A in just 12 years.

Spezia played its first home game in 2020–21 Serie A on September 27, 2020. They lost 4–1 to Sassuolo. Andrey Galabinov scored their first-ever goal in the top league. Spezia won their first Serie A match on September 30, beating Udinese 2–0 away.

Gabriele Volpi sold the club in February 2021 to an American group led by Robert Platek's family. Many expected Spezia to be relegated in their first Serie A season. However, they surprised everyone. They beat bigger clubs like Milan at home and Napoli away. They also drew with Internazionale, Roma, and Atalanta.

Coach Vincenzo Italiano used flexible attacking tactics. Spezia had a much better second half of the season. They finished 15th with 39 points, six points above the relegation zone. They secured their survival with a 4–1 win at home against Torino on May 15, 2021.

A special moment was when midfielder Matteo Ricci was called up to the Italy national team in March 2021. This was 85 years after club legend Luigi Scarabello played for Italy. Other key players who helped Spezia stay in Serie A included striker M'Bala Nzola, Tommaso Pobega, Emmanuel Gyasi, and academy players Giulio Maggiore and Simone Bastoni.

Before Spezia's second Serie A season, coach Italiano left for Fiorentina. Thiago Motta became the new coach. The club also faced a two-year transfer ban from FIFA. This was because they had illegally signed 13 underage players from Nigeria. The ban was later reduced to one year.

Team Players

Current Squad

No. Position Player 1 GK Mouhamadou Sarr 2 DF Przemysław Wiśniewski 5 MF Salvatore Esposito 7 MF Salvatore Elia 8 MF Ádám Nagy 10 FW Gianluca Lapadula 12 GK Diego Mascardi 17 FW Antonio Čolak 20 FW Giuseppe Di Serio 25 MF Filippo Bandinelli 27 FW Edoardo Soleri 29 MF Francesco Cassata 31 DF Giuseppe Aurelio 32 DF Luca Vignali 36 MF Pietro Candelari 37 DF Aleš Matějů

No. Position Player 44 DF Mattia Benvenuto 55 DF Petko Hristov (captain) 65 DF Simone Giorgeschi 82 MF Halid Djankpata GK Gian Marco Crespi GK Nicola Mosti DF Christian Cugnata DF João Moutinho DF Laurens Serpe MF Mirko Antonucci MF Giovanni Corradini MF Szymon Żurkowski FW Gabriele Artistico (on loan from Lazio) FW Daniele Verde FW Vanja Vlahović (on loan from Atalanta)

Spezia Calcio Youth Team

No. Position Player 15 MF Matteo Garzia 22 GK Matteo Michele Leonardo

Players on Loan

No. Position Player MF Tio Cipot (at Grazer AK until 30 June 2026)

Club Management and Staff

Position	Staff
Owner	Thomas S. Roberts
President	Charlie Stillitano
Vice president	Andrea Corradino
CEO	Andrea Gazzoli
Statutory auditors	Marco Barotti Francesco Mozzoni Davide Piccioli
Auditing company	Ria Grant Thornton S.p.A.
Chief operations manager	Nicolò Peri
Sporting director	Stefano Melissano
Chief communications officer	Gianluca Parenti
Chief facilities officer	Riccardo Lazzini
Chief administration and financial officer	Serena Saletti
Sport secretary	Arianna Faucci Nicolò Musetti
Youth sector director	Giuseppe Vecchio

Current Coaching Staff

Position	Staff
Manager	Luca D'Angelo
Assistant manager	Riccardo Taddei
Athletic coach	Marco Greco Stefano Cappelli
Technical coach	Giuseppe Leonetti
Goalkeeper coach	Massimo Gazzoli
Rehab coach	Eduardo Pizzarelli
Team manager	Lorenzo Ferretti
Health manager	Vincenzo Salini
Team doctor	Michael Coli Maurizio Graziano
Physiotherapist	Fabio Di Federico Andrea Fregoso Gaspare Schembre Filippo Del Padrone
Nutritionist	Giulia Martera

Team Colours, Home Stadium, and Fans

Stadio Alberto Picco in La Spezia

Spezia's official team colours are white and black. Their home kit usually has a plain white shirt with black details, black shorts, and black socks. Sometimes, they use white shorts and socks if their opponents' kits clash. Away kits are often all black, or a reverse of the home kit. They can also be different colours each season. The club's nickname is Gli Aquilotti, which means "The Little Eagles".

The team plays its home matches at the Stadio Alberto Picco. This stadium can hold 10,336 people. It has been the club's home since 1919. For the 2020–21 season, Spezia had to play many home games at the Stadio Dino Manuzzi in Cesena. This was because their home stadium did not meet Serie A rules. However, after some upgrades, Spezia was able to return to the Alberto Picco later that season.

Most of Spezia's fans live in the city of La Spezia and nearby areas. This is because the Liguria region is mostly dominated by its two biggest clubs, Genoa and Sampdoria. These teams have many supporters throughout the region.

Liguria has been home to many football teams since the early days of Italian football. This has led to many local rivalries. Spezia has smaller rivalries with Genoa and Sampdoria. They had fierce matches with Genoa in the 2005–06 Serie C season when both teams were fighting for promotion. They also played against both clubs in Serie A during Spezia's first season in 2020/21.

Spezia also has a rivalry with Pisa. This is known as the Tuscan-Ligurian Derby. There is also a rivalry with Carrarese, called the Derby Lunense. Other rivalries Spezia has had, especially in the lower leagues, include those with other Ligurian teams like Virtus Entella, Savona, Sestrese, and Sanremese.

Recent Seasons: How Spezia Performed

The table below shows how Spezia has performed season by season:

Key

Famous Players: World Cup Stars

Some players from Spezia have been chosen to play for their country in the World Cup Finals:

Club Achievements: Spezia's Trophies

League Titles

Cup Wins

Images for kids

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  The performance of Spezia in the Italian football league structure since the first season of a unified Serie A (1929/30). The 1944 Scudetto is not official.

See also

In Spanish: Spezia Calcio para niños