US Avellino 1912 facts for kids
 |
||||
| Full name | Unione Sportiva Avellino 1912 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | Lupi (Wolves), Biancoverdi (White-greens), Irpini (Irpinians) |
|||
| Founded | 1912 (first club) 1944 (as US Avellino) 2009 (as Avellino Calcio) 2018 (as US Avellino 1912) |
|||
| Ground | Stadio Partenio | |||
| Capacity | 26,308 | |||
| Chairman | Angelo Antonio D'Agostino | |||
| Manager | Raffaele Biancolino | |||
| League | Serie C Group C | |||
| 2018–19 | Serie D Group G, 1st of 20 (promoted) | |||
|
||||
Unione Sportiva Avellino 1912, often called US Avellino 1912, is a professional football club from Avellino, Campania, Italy. They play in Serie B, which is the second highest football league in Italy.
This club is the modern version of the original US Avellino 1912. The older club was famous for playing in Serie A, Italy's top league, for ten years in a row. This was from the 1978–1979 to the 1987–1988 seasons. The team had to restart twice. Once in 2009 due to financial problems, and again in 2018 when they were not allowed to play in Serie B. Each time, a new club was formed to start over in the lower Serie D league.
The club's name has changed a few times. In 2009, it was Avellino Calcio.12 Società Sportiva Dilettantistica. Then in 2010, it became Associazione Sportiva Avellino 1912. In 2015, it went back to the original Unione Sportiva Avellino 1912. However, for the 2018–2019 season, it was briefly called Calcio Avellino Società Sportiva Dilettantistica.
Contents
Club History
How the Club Started
The club was first created as U.S. Avellino on December 12, 1912. The goal was to give the town of Avellino its own football team. Not much is known about the club's very early days. They mostly played against other local teams at a lower level. From 1913 until after World War II, Avellino competed in IV Divisione. This league is similar to today's Serie D.
Rising After the War
For a long time, the club didn't achieve much. But after World War II, they were placed in Serie C for the 1945–46 season. In the 1946–47 season, they almost made it to the interregional final. They finished third in their group.
Avellino managed to win promotion to Serie B around the end of the 1940s. They beat strong teams like Catania and Reggina. However, the club faced issues and was moved down to Serie D. They were promoted back to Serie C after one season. But then, Avellino spent six years in a row playing at the Serie D level.
Eventually, Avellino started to improve again. In six seasons, they earned promotion to Serie C three times. They were also relegated twice during this period.
The 1970s: Reaching Serie A
Avellino was promoted to Serie B in 1973. Then, in 1978, they made it to Serie A, the top league in Italy. This was a huge achievement for a team from a smaller southern town. They stayed in Serie A for 10 years, from 1978 to 1988. For most of this time, they were a mid-table team. Their best finish was 8th place in 1987. That team had famous players like Angelo Alessio, Paolo Benedetti, Franco Colomba, and Dirceu.
1990s and 2000s: Ups and Downs
After being relegated from Serie A in 1988, the club often moved between Serie B and Serie C1.
Avellino made a surprising return to Serie B after beating their neighbors Napoli. This happened in the 2004-05 Serie C1/B play-off finals. The 2005–06 season was not successful, and they lost in the relegation playoffs. They were defeated by Albinoleffe.
In the 2006–07 season, Avellino finished second in Serie C1/B. They then won the promotion play-offs, beating Foggia in the finals. This meant they were promoted to Serie B again. However, the club struggled in Serie B and was relegated in 2008. They were later allowed back into Serie B because another team, Messina, had to leave the league.
The team finished near the bottom in the 2008–09 season and was relegated once more. In July 2009, the club faced financial difficulties. They were not allowed to join the league due to not meeting financial rules.
Starting Over in Serie D
In the summer of 2009, a new club was formed called Avellino Calcio.12 S.S.D.. They had to start from Serie D. They finished 5th in their first season. But on August 4, 2010, they were allowed to move up to Lega Pro Seconda Divisione to fill empty spots. This was a tough time, as many Italian clubs faced similar financial problems.
From Lower Leagues to Serie B
For the 2010–11 season, the team changed its name to Associazione Sportiva Avellino 1912. They played in Lega Pro Seconda Divisione and finished 4th. They lost to Trapani in the play-off final. But again, on August 4, 2011, they were allowed to move up to Lega Pro Prima Divisione.
In the 2012–13 season, Avellino won Lega Pro Prima Divisione. This meant they were promoted to Serie B under their manager Massimo Rastelli. In the 2014–2015 season, Rastelli led the team to the play-off semi-finals. They were knocked out by the well-known Bologna team. Even though they won one match 3–2 away, it wasn't enough.
2018: Another Setback
In 2018, Avellino was again not allowed to play in Serie B. This was because their paperwork for league membership was incomplete. A new club was quickly formed to apply to play in Serie D instead. In 2019, Avellino won Serie D and the Scudetto Serie D. This earned them promotion to Serie C for the next season. In 2020–2021, they reached the play-off semi-finals again, but lost to Padova.
Team Colors and Badge
Avellino's traditional colors are green and white. The team is nicknamed the "Lupi," which means wolves in Italian. Their club badge proudly shows a wolf's head.
Current Players
Updated July 14, 2025.
|
|
Players on Loan
|
|
Retired Jersey Numbers
10 – 
Adriano Lombardi, Midfielder (1975–79) – This number was retired in 2007 to honor him after his passing.
Famous Former Players
Notable Former Coaches
- Antonio Vojak (1947)
- Oronzo Pugliese (1974–75)
- Giuseppe Baldini (1976–77)
Luís Vinício (1980–82)- Giuseppe Marchioro (1982)
- Fernando Veneranda (1982–84)
- Ottavio Bianchi (1983–84)
Tomislav Ivić (1985–86)- Luís Vinício (1986–88)
- Enzo Ferrari (1988)
- Eugenio Fascetti (1988–89)
- Nedo Sonetti (1989–90)
- Adriano Lombardi (1989–90)
- Bruno Bolchi (1991–92)
- Francesco Graziani (1991–92)
- Adriano Lombardi (1992–93)
- Giuseppe Papadopulo (1994–95)
Zbigniew Boniek (1994–96)- Corrado Orrico (1995–96)
- Giuliano Zoratti (1996–97)
- Adriano Lombardi (1997–98)
- Giuliano Sonzogni (2001–02)
- Massimo Ficcadenti (2002)
Zdeněk Zeman (2003–04)- Antonello Cuccureddu (2004–05)
- Franco Colomba (2005–06)
- Giuseppe Galderisi (2006–07)
- Giovanni Vavassori (2007)
- Maurizio Sarri (2007)
- Guido Carboni (2007–08)
- Alessandro Calori (2008)
- Giuseppe Incocciati (2008)
- Salvatore Campilongo (2008–09)
- Giovanni Bucaro (2011–12)
- Massimo Rastelli (2012–15)
- Attilio Tesser (2015–16)
- Walter Novellino (2016–18)
Nikos Anastopoulos (1987–1988)
Club Achievements
Avellino has won several titles and reached high positions in different leagues:
- Serie B
- Runners-up: 1977–78 (finished second)
- Serie C1
- Champions: 2002–03, 2012–13
- Runners-up: 1994–95, 2004–05, 2006–07 (finished second)
- Coppa Italia Serie C
- Runners-up: 1972–73 (finished second)
- Supercoppa di Lega di Prima Divisione
- Champions: 2013
- Serie D
- Champions: 1961–62, 1963–64, 2018–19
- Scudetto Serie D
- Champions: 2018–19
See also
In Spanish: Unione Sportiva Avellino 1912 para niños
