US Sassuolo Calcio facts for kids
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| Full name | Unione Sportiva Sassuolo Calcio S.r.l. |
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| Nickname(s) | I Neroverdi (The Black and Greens) The Watermelon Peel |
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| Founded | 1920 | |||
| Ground | Mapei Stadium – Città del Tricolore | |||
| Capacity | 21,584 | |||
| Owner | Mapei | |||
| Chairman | Carlo Rossi | |||
| Head coach | Fabio Grosso | |||
| League | Serie A | |||
| 2018–19 | Serie A, 11th of 20 | |||
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Unione Sportiva Sassuolo Calcio, often called Sassuolo, is a professional football club from Sassuolo, Emilia-Romagna, Italy. Their team colours are black and green. This is why they are nicknamed Neroverdi, which means "black and greens" in Italian.
Sassuolo played in Serie A, Italy's top football league, from the 2013–14 season until the 2023–24 season. They are special because they are one of the few teams to play in Serie A without being from a big provincial capital city.
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The Story of Sassuolo Calcio
The club started in 1920. For many years, they played in amateur leagues in Emilia. In 1968, they moved up to Serie D for the first time. During this time, Sassuolo merged with other local teams. This led to the creation of the current US Sassuolo Calcio in 1974.
In 1984, the club was promoted to Serie C2. This was the lowest level of professional football in Italy. However, they were relegated in 1990 and spent most of the 1990s back in Serie D. In 1998, they finished second and were promoted back to Serie C2.
Reaching Serie C1
Sassuolo made it to Serie C1 for the first time in 2006. They won the Serie C2 play-offs by beating Sansovino in the final. In the next few years, Sassuolo tried hard to get promoted to Serie B.
In 2007, with coach Gian Marco Remondina, they almost made it. They finished second but lost direct promotion to Grosseto. Then, they lost in the play-off semi-finals to Monza. Remondina left, and former Serie A player Massimiliano Allegri became the new coach.
Under Allegri, Sassuolo quickly became strong again. On 27 April 2008, they won the Serie C1/A title. This was a huge moment, as it meant a historic promotion to Serie B for the first time ever.
Life in Serie B
After Sassuolo's promotion to the second division, Allegri left to coach Cagliari in Serie A. In July 2008, the club hired Andrea Mandorlini as their new head coach.
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Sassuolo had a surprisingly good start in the 2008–09 season. They stayed in a promotion playoff spot for a long time. However, they only earned two points in their last five matches. They ended up finishing in seventh place. Even though it was a good season, Mandorlini left Sassuolo in June 2009. Then, Stefano Pioli became the coach on 11 June 2009.
Sassuolo reached the Serie B promotion playoffs again in 2009–10 (finishing fourth) and 2011–12 (finishing third). But they were knocked out in the semi-finals both times.
In the 2012–13 season, things changed. With new coach Eusebio Di Francesco, Sassuolo was in first place for most of the season. They finally secured direct promotion to Serie A with a 1–0 win over Livorno on 18 May 2013. Sassuolo won the Serie B title. This meant they would play in the top league, Serie A, for the first time in the 2013–14 season. The club had reached the highest level of Italian football just seven years after playing in Serie C2. A young player named Domenico Berardi, who was 18, played a key role. He won the league's Player of the Year award.
Playing in Serie A
In July 2013, during pre-season training, Sassuolo won the TIM Trophy. They beat Juventus on penalties and then Milan 2–1. This was special because it was the first time a team other than Milan, Internazionale, or Juventus had won this cup.
On 25 August 2013, Sassuolo played their first-ever Serie A match. They lost 2–0 away to Torino. Their second match was at home against Livorno. Striker Simone Zaza scored Sassuolo's first goal in the top league, but they lost 4–1. On 22 September 2013, Sassuolo suffered a big 7–0 defeat at home to Internazionale.
The team earned their first point in their fifth match, on 25 September, away to Napoli. Zaza scored to make it 1–1. This ended Napoli's perfect start to the season. Then, on 29 September, they got their first home point with a 2–2 draw against Lazio. On 20 October 2013, Sassuolo won their first Serie A game. They beat Bologna 2–1 at home with goals from Domenico Berardi and Antonio Floro Flores. This moved the club off the bottom of the table.
Sassuolo won away for the first time in Serie A on 3 November against Sampdoria. Berardi scored their first top-flight hat-trick, helping them win 4–3. After their next match, a 1–1 draw at Roma on 10 November, the club was no longer in the relegation zone. On 12 January 2014, Berardi was the only player that season to score four goals in one game. Sassuolo came back from 2–0 down to win 4–3 against Milan.
By late January 2014, Sassuolo was in last place. Coach Di Francesco was replaced by Alberto Malesani. But this change did not help much. So, in early March, Sassuolo brought Di Francesco back as manager. Sassuolo won their away match against Fiorentina 4–3 on 6 May 2014. After winning 4–2 against Genoa on 11 May, Sassuolo secured their place in Serie A for the 2014–15 season. Berardi finished as one of the top scorers in Serie A, with 16 goals.
The Neroverdi had a much better 2014–15 Serie A season. They finished comfortably in 12th place, far from relegation. Berardi was again the club's top scorer with 15 league goals.
Sassuolo improved even more in the 2015–16 Serie A season. They finished in sixth place, ahead of teams like Milan and Lazio. This season included a win over Napoli on the first day. They also had a 1–0 victory over Juventus at Mapei Stadium and a 1–0 win over Inter at the San Siro.
On 21 May 2016, Sassuolo qualified for the Europa League for the first time ever. They finished sixth in 2015–16. This happened because Juventus won the Coppa Italia against Milan. If Milan had won, they would have gone to Europe instead. On 25 August 2016, Sassuolo reached the Europa League group stage. They beat Red Star Belgrade 4–1 over two games in the playoff round.
Over the next three seasons, the Neroverdi returned to the middle of the table. They finished the 2016–17 season in 12th place. Then, they had two 11th-place finishes in 2018 and 2019. They were also knocked out in the round of 16 in the Coppa Italia three times in a row. On 25 February 2018, club captain Francesco Magnanelli played his 400th game for Sassuolo. He joined the club in 2005 when they were in Serie C2. He led the team through three promotions and even played in European competitions. On 13 June 2018, Roberto De Zerbi became the manager. He was known for his attacking style of play.
The 2019–20 season was better for Sassuolo. The club finished in 8th place. This was just outside the spots for the UEFA Europa League. It was only the second time they finished in the top half of Serie A. A big reason for Sassuolo's improvement was De Zerbi's exciting, attack-minded style of play. They scored a record 69 goals in Serie A, their most since being promoted in 2013. Francesco Caputo joined the team and scored 21 league goals. Wingers Jérémie Boga and Domenico Berardi also scored more than ten goals each.
The club continued to be a top 10 team in Serie A the next season. They broke their record of 61 points from 2015–16 by getting 62 points. They finished 8th again. After eight matches, Sassuolo was in second place in the league. This was thanks to great play from players like Berardi, Manuel Locatelli, and Filip Đuričić. An impressive 2–0 away win against Napoli was a highlight of their early season form.
Even though their form dropped a bit in the middle of the season, a 2–0 win over Lazio on the final day meant Sassuolo had the same points as Roma in 7th place. But they missed out on European qualification because of goal difference. Berardi had his best year with the club, scoring 17 league goals. His two goals in a 3–1 win against Fiorentina on 17 April 2021 meant he had scored 100 goals for the Neroverdi. De Zerbi announced he would leave the club to coach Shakhtar Donetsk. On 11 July 2021, Sassuolo players Manuel Locatelli, Domenico Berardi, and Giacomo Raspadori were part of the Italy national squad that won the UEFA Euro 2020 final against England.
In the 2023–24 season, Sassuolo finished 19th in the league. This meant they were relegated to Serie B, ending their 11-year stay in the top division.
Stadium and Kit Colours
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Sassuolo's home stadium is the Stadio Enzo Ricci in Sassuolo. The club still uses it for training. But it is very small (only 4,000 seats). So, the club played their Serie B seasons in Modena at the Stadio Alberto Braglia.
Since the 2013–14 season, Sassuolo has played in Reggio Emilia. They use the renovated Mapei Stadium – Città del Tricolore (formerly Stadio Giglio). They share this stadium with Serie B club Reggiana. Sassuolo's parent company, Mapei, also bought the stadium.
Sassuolo's famous green and black kit comes from a gift. In 1921, an English team called Lancaster Rovers FC was touring Italy. They could not play a scheduled match with Sassuolo. As an apology, they gave their green and black shirts to Sassuolo to keep.
Current Players
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Coaching Staff
| Position | Staff |
|---|---|
| Head coach |  Fabio Grosso |
| Assistant head coach | Raffaele Longo |
| Goalkeeping coach | Paolo Orlandoni |
| Technical coach | Mauro Carretta |
| Athletic coach | Francesco Vaccariello Stefano Bruno Vittorio Carello |
| Chief analyst | Marco Riggio |
| Rehab coach | Andrea Rinaldi |
| Head of medical staff | Dott. Roberto D’Ovidio |
| Club doctor | Dott. Luca Terzi |
| Nutritionist | Davide Tonelli |
| Physiotherapist | Emanuele Randelli Nicola Daprile Luca Attolini Luca Traggiai |
Club Honours
Sassuolo has won several titles throughout its history:
- Serie B:
- Winners: 2012–13
- Serie C1:
- Winners: 2007–08
- Supercoppa di Serie C:
- Winners: 2008
- Serie D:
- Winners: 1983–84, 1997–98,
- Promozione Emilia-Romagna:
- Winners: 1980–81
Sassuolo in Europe
Sassuolo has also played in European competitions:
| Season | Competition | Round | Club | Home | Away | Agg. | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016–17 | Europa League | QR3 |  Luzern |
3–0 | 1–1 | 4–1 | |
| PO |  Red Star Belgrade |
3–0 | 1–1 | 4–1 | |||
| GS |  Athletic Bilbao |
3–0 | 2–3 | 4th out of 4 | |||
 Genk |
0–2 | 1–3 | |||||
 Rapid Wien |
2–2 | 1–1 |
See also
In Spanish: Unione Sportiva Sassuolo Calcio para niños
