Sampdoria was formed in 1946 from the merger of two existing sports clubs whose roots can be traced back to the 1890s,[1]Sampierdarenese and Andrea Doria. Both the team name and colours reflect this union, the first being a combination of the names, the second taking the form of a unique kit design, predominantly blue (for Andrea Doria) with white, red and black bands (for Sampierdarenese) across the centre of the shirt, hence the nickname blucerchiati ("blue-circled").
The roots of Sampdoria are to be found in two teams born in the late 1890s: Società Ginnastica Sampierdarenese and Società Andrea Doria. The former was founded in 1891 and opened its football section in 1899.[1][3] The latter, named after Genoese admiral Andrea Doria, was founded in 1895.[4][5]
Andrea Doria did not join the first Italian Football Championship organised by the Italian Federation of Football (FIF) and played on 8 May 1898. Instead, they played in the football tournament organised by the Italian Federation of Ginnastica.[6] The first ancestor of Sampdoria to play in the Italian Football Championship was Sampierdarenese, who joined the third edition in 1900 for their only appearance before World War One.[7]
Andrea Doria eventually joined the competition in 1902, but did not win a game until the 1907 edition, when they beat local rivals Genoa 3–1.[7] It was not until 1910–11 that the club began to show promise, finishing above Juventus, Internazionale and Genoa in the main tournament.[7]
After the war Sampierdarenese finally began to compete in the Italian Championship replacing another club from Bolzaneto, then an independent town in the province of Genoa, called Associazione del Calcio Ligure.[7] Thus, during the 1919-20 edition Sampierdarenese and Andrea Doria met in the championship for the first time. Doria won the first-leg game (4–1 and 1–1) and finished second after Genoa in the Liguria group, qualifying for the National Round.[7]
For the 1921–22 season the Italian top league was split into two competitions, one run by the Italian Football Federation and a second one organised by the secessionist Italian Football Confederation. Sampierdarenese joined the IFF tournament, while Andrea Doria and Genoa signed up for the one organised by the Confederation. Sampierdarenese won the Liguria section and then went on to the semi-finals, finishing top out of three clubs and thus reaching the final against Novese. Both legs of the final ended in 0–0 draws, thus a repetition match was played in Cremona on 21 May 1922. The match went into extra time with Novese eventually winning the tie (and the Championship) 2–1.[7]
By season 1924–25, Sampdoria's ancestors were competing against each other in the Northern League; Andrea Doria finished one place above their rivals and won one match 2–1, while Sampierdarenese were victorious 2–0 in the other.[7]
From La Dominante to Sampdoria (1927–1946)
A process of unification of the many professional football teams in Italy was started by the Fascist government. Particularly in 1927 multiple smaller clubs where merged into one all over the country. Among many other similar examples, four teams based in Rome merged and became AS Roma. Similarly, at the end of the 1926–27 season Sampierdarenese and Andrea Doria merged for the first time under the name La Dominante.[8]
Wearing green and black striped shirts, La Dominante Genova lived a short life, having played just three championships, and was not particularly successful. The team was admitted to the 1927-28 Divisione Nazionale Group B, ending the season in 10th place.[7] The next season was the last year of Divisione Nazionale, and Dominante finished in 10th place. Finally, in 1929 Dominante competed in the first-ever Serie B tournament where they finished third, just missing out on promotion.[7]
Dominante then absorbed the local team Corniglianese and competed in the 1930–31 Serie B under the name of Foot Ball Club Liguria. The team did not do well, finishing in 18th place and suffering relegation to Prima Divisione.[9]
Both Sampierdarenese and Andrea Doria reverted to their previous names in 1931 as separate clubs.[5] In the span of just a few years Sampierdarenese then climbed up from Prima Divisione to Serie B and finally Serie A. Ending up second in the Girone D of the 1931–32 Prima Divisione, they got promoted to Serie B. After the uneventful 1932–33 Serie B season, the team proceeded to win the 1933–34 Serie B championship and were promoted into Serie A for the first time.[9]
On 15 July 1937 Sampierdarenese absorbed Corniglianese and Rivarolese, with the club adopting the name Associazione Calcio Liguria.[10] This saw them reach fifth place in Serie A in 1939.[11] In the early 1940s, the club was relegated but bounced straight back up as Serie B champions in 1941.
After World War II, both Andrea Doria and Sampierdarenese (the name Liguria was abolished in 1945) were competing in Serie A, but in a reverse of pre-war situations, Andrea Doria were now the top club out of the two. However, on 12 August 1946, a merger occurred to create Unione Calcio Sampdoria.
Sampdoria in the late 1940s
The first chairman of this new club was Piero Sanguineti, but the ambitious entrepreneur Amedeo Rissotto soon replaced him, while the first team coach during this period was a man from Florence named Giuseppe Galluzzi. To illustrate the clubs would be equally represented in the new, merged club, a new kit was designed featuring the blue shirts of Andrea Doria and the white, red and black midsection of Sampierdarenese. In the same month of the merger, the new club demanded they should share the Stadio Luigi Ferraris ground with Genoa. An agreement was reached, and the stadium began hosting Genoa's and Sampdoria's home matches.
Early years and the achievements in the Mantovani era (1946–1993)
For about thirty years the Genoese played constantly in Serie A, with mixed results, the best of which was in the 1960–1961 season, in which they obtained fourth place in the championship. In the 1965–1966 season Sampdoria finished sixteenth, relegating to Serie B for the first time in its history; however, the following year they won the second-tier championship and immediately returned to Serie A.
Serbian Vujadin Boškov, pictured as a Sampdoria player in 1961, managed the team to their only Serie A title in 1991.
In 1979, the club, then playing Serie B, was acquired by oil businessman Paolo Mantovani (1930–1993), who invested in the team to bring Sampdoria to the top flight. In 1982, Sampdoria made their Serie A return and won their first Coppa Italia in 1985. In 1986, Yugoslav Vujadin Boškov was appointed as the new head coach. The club won their second Coppa Italia in 1988, being admitted to the 1988–89 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup, where they reached the final, losing 2–0 to Barcelona.[12][13] A second consecutive triumph in the Coppa Italia gave Sampdoria a spot in the 1989–90 Cup Winners' Cup, which they won after defeating Anderlecht after extra time in the final.[14]
Vujadin Boškov is recognised as one of Sampdoria's most successful managers winning a record amount of trophies and thus further establishing the club's reputation in Europe.
Decline, resurgence and decline again (1993–2023)
On 14 October 1993, Paolo Mantovani died suddenly and was replaced by his son Enrico. During his first season (1993–94), Sampdoria won one more Coppa Italia and placed third in Serie A. During the following four seasons, many players from his father's tenure left the club but many important acquisitions were made which kept Sampdoria in the top tier Serie A. This included the likes of Argentine internationals Juan Sebastián Verón and Ariel Ortega, and international midfielders Clarence Seedorf and Christian Karembeu.[14] In April 1995 Sampdoria reached the semi-final stage of the Cup Winners' Cup, losing out to Arsenal on penalties after two legs.
Luigi Delneri managed Sampdoria to fourth place and Champions League qualification in 2010.
In May 1999 Sampdoria were relegated from Serie A and did not return to the top flight until 2003. During this time, Sampdoria was acquired by Riccardo Garrone, an Italian oil businessman. Sampdoria returned to Serie A in 2003 led by talisman Francesco Flachi, and ended their first season in eighth place. After several more top-half finishes, manager Walter Novellino gave way to Walter Mazzarri in 2007.[17]
With the signings of forwards Antonio Cassano from Real Madrid,[18] and Giampaolo Pazzini in January 2008, Sampdoria ended the 2007–08 season in sixth position and qualified for the 2008–09 UEFA Cup.[19] The following season, they came fourth and qualified for the UEFA Champions League play-offs under manager Luigi Delneri, who left for Juventus.[20] With the departures also of CEO Giuseppe Marotta, and both Cassano and Pazzini, and the squad being stretched by Champions League football, Sampdoria were relegated to Serie B after a 2–1 loss at home to Palermo in May 2011.[21] In the following season June 2012, Sampdoria won promotion back to Serie A after defeating Varese 4–2 on aggregate in the play-off final.[22]
Following the death of Riccardo Garrone the previous year, the club was purchased from the Garrone family in June 2014 by the film producer Massimo Ferrero [it]. After sixth-placed rivals Genoa in the 2014–15 season failed to obtain a UEFA licence for the 2015–16 UEFA Europa League, seventh-placed Sampdoria took their spot.[23] The club built a solid foundation in Serie A for the next seven years. Notable managerial appointments were Marco Giampaolo and Claudio Ranieri, as well as the steady flow of goals from talismanic striker Fabio Quagliarella. Growing tensions however surrounded Ferrero's presidency, fuelled by his well-known and public support of AS Roma. Several attempts were made to sell the club, including to a consortium led by club legend Gianluca Vialli. On 6 December 2021 Massimo Ferrero was arrested by Italian police as part of ongoing investigations into corporate crimes and bankruptcy. He resigned from his position as President of Sampdoria with immediate effect, whilst a club statement assured fans that the affairs of the football club were not a part of the investigations.[24] On 27 December, former player Marco Lanna was appointed president. In January 2022 the club welcomed back former manager Marco Giampaolo after a disappointing start to the season under Roberto D'Aversa. On 6 February in his first home game back in charge, Sampdoria defeated Sassuolo 4–0. Results however began to dwindle, and after eight games and a winless start to the 2022–23 season the club parted company with Giampaolo. On 6 October former Serie A player legend Dejan Stanković was appointed to the role with the task of steering the club clear of the relegation zone. Sampdoria were later relegated in the 2022–23 season from Serie A to Serie B.
A new chapter (2023–present)
In late May 2023 former Leeds United owner Andrea Radrizzani and the businessman Matteo Manfredi reached an agreement with previous owner Massimo Ferrero to buy Sampdoria and prevent it from bankruptcy. On 27 June 2023, former Italy and Serie A legend Andrea Pirlo was appointed as the manager.
Colours, badge and nicknames
Graffito in Genoa depicting a fish in the Sampdoria colours by italian artist Filippo Biagioli.
The white, blue, red and black colours represent the club's origins with a merger between two teams, Sampierdarenese and Andrea Doria, who wore respectively red/black and white/blue jerseys with a shield with Saint-George cross.[25]
The club crest features a sailor in profile known by Genoese name of Baciccia, a diminutive of LigurianGio-Batta, Italian Giovanni Battista, i.e. John-Baptist. The image of a sailor is used due to Sampdoria being based in the port city of Genoa. The precise design of the Baciccia came from a Disney-licensed and Panini-published comic, Topolino, in 1980. Since 1980, the Baciccia has appeared on the shirts of Sampdoria, mostly on the chest but occasionally on the sleeve.[26]
Since 1946, the club have played at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris, also known as the Marassi from the name of the neighbourhood where it is located, which has a capacity of 33,205.[27] It is the ninth-largest stadium in Italy by capacity. The stadium is named after Luigi Ferraris (1887–1915), an Italian footballer, engineer and soldier who died during WWI.[28]
Sampdoria fans in the Gradinata Sud of the Stadio Luigi Ferraris
Sampdoria supporters come mainly from the city of Genoa. The biggest group are Ultras Tito Cucchiaroni, named after an Argentinian left winger who played for Sampdoria. The group were founded in 1969, making it one of the oldest ultra groups in Italy. They are apolitical, although there are smaller groups like Rude Boys Sampdoria, who are left-wing, but today this group is no longer active. The main support with flags and flares comes from the southern Curva, Gradinata Sud.
^ abOssola, Franco; Tavella, Renato (1997). Cento anni di calcio italiano. Rome: Newton & Compton. p. 226. ISBN8881837854.
^Ossola, Franco; Tavella, Renato (1997). Cento anni di calcio italiano. Rome: Newton & Compton. pp. 16–17. ISBN8881837854.
^ abcdefghijAlmanacco Illustrato del Calcio - La Storia 1898-2004. Modena: Panini Edizioni. 2005.
^Papa, Antonio; Panico, Guido (2002). Storia sociale del calcio in Italia. Italy: Il Mulino. p. 136. ISBN9788815087645.
^ abAlmanacco Illustrato del Calcio 2007. Modena, Italy: Panini S.p.A. 2006. p. 97.
^Dellachà, Gino (2016). Una storia biancorossonera. Il calcio a San Pier d'Arena dal tempo dei pionieri del Liguria alla Sampdoria. Genova: Sportmedia. p. 175. ISBN9788887588385.
^Dellachà, Gino (2016). Una storia biancorossonera. Il calcio a San Pier d'Arena dal tempo dei pionieri del Liguria alla Sampdoria. Genova: Sportmedia. p. 189. ISBN9788887588385.
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