Calcio Lecco 1912, better known as Lecco , is a
football club in
Lecco
Lecco (, , ; lmo, label= Lecchese, Lècch ) is a city of 48,131 inhabitants in Lombardy, northern Italy, north of Milan. It lies at the end of the south-eastern branch of Lake Como (the branch is named ''Branch of Lecco'' / ''Ramo di Lecco''). ...
,
Lombardy,
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
. The club currently plays in
Serie C
The Serie C () is the third-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie B and Serie A. The Lega Italiana Calcio Professionistico (Lega Pro) is the governing body that runs the Serie C.
The unification of the Lega Pro ...
, the third division of the Italian Football
Founded in
1912, it has played in three
Serie A
The Serie A (), also called Serie A TIM for national sponsorship with TIM, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and the winner is awarded the Scudetto and the Cop ...
tournaments (the last of which in the 1966–1967 season) and eleven in
Serie B
The Serie B (), currently named Serie BKT for sponsorship reasons, is the second-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie A. It has been operating for over ninety years since the 1929–30 season. It had been ...
(the last of which in the year 1972–1973). He includes in his palmarès the victory of one Italian Semi-professional Cup in the national field, and one
Anglo-Italian Cup in the international field.
History
From '' Società Canottieri Lecco '' to ' 'Associazione Calcio Lecco' '
The football section of the city of
Lecco
Lecco (, , ; lmo, label= Lecchese, Lècch ) is a city of 48,131 inhabitants in Lombardy, northern Italy, north of Milan. It lies at the end of the south-eastern branch of Lake Como (the branch is named ''Branch of Lecco'' / ''Ramo di Lecco''). ...
was officially born on 22 December 1912 thanks to the idea of Vico Signorelli, member of the board of directors of the Società Canottieri Lecco, established on 27 September
1895
Events
January–March
* January 5 – Dreyfus affair: French officer Alfred Dreyfus is stripped of his army rank, and sentenced to life imprisonment on Devil's Island.
* January 12 – The National Trust for Places of Histor ...
in the Caffè del Teatro Sociale. Since its foundation, the team's social colors have been blue-celestial, inspired by the Canottieri uniform. The first historical headquarters of the company was located in via Francesco Nullo.
On April 13, 1912, the Blucelesti played their first match against Clalcio Milian, 4–1 thanks to the opposing goals of Saverio and Rigoli, then, in the first years of competitive activity, Lecco played friendly matches and tournaments on a regional and local scale at the "Primavera" playing field with Achille Todeschini on the bench and then making his debut in an official championship organized by F.I.G.C. in the 1920–1921 season starting from the Promotion championship and reaching the finals-promotion for Serie A, touching the feat after the 0–0 against the comaschi of Calcio Epsirea.
A year later, in 1922, after Eugenio Ceppi's election as president of the club, the stadium where the blue-celestial players still play their home matches was inaugurated, called '' Campo sports di via Cantarelli '', today stadium Rigamonti-Ceppi.
On 22 July 1931, after having formed a provisional commission, Canottieri decided to leave the football sector due to the high economic efforts required and, to avoid the dissolution of the team, the ' Associazione Calcio Lecco 'was created. ', with Professor Gennaro Pensa as the first president and Mario Ceppi, son of the former president of Canottieri Eugenio Ceppi who died in 1931, as a member of the board of directors who will be the protagonist of the club's golden years. The first headquarters of this new company was the Salone del Caffè Commercio in Piazza XX Settembre.
From the era-Ceppi to the arrival in Serie A
In the second football decade, Lecco played championships at a decent level, at first remaining in the running for promotion to
Serie B
The Serie B (), currently named Serie BKT for sponsorship reasons, is the second-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie A. It has been operating for over ninety years since the 1929–30 season. It had been ...
during the season in First Division 1931-1932 until the last day, until the last minute, then always remaining in the new Serie C finishing the championship between the high and medium-low positions of the standings.
At the corporate level, the situation was dramatic due to a great and serious economic crisis that was resolved in the summer of 1941 when the Provincial Committee of the C.O.N.I. appoints the accountant Mario Ceppi as extraordinary commissioner, who thanks also to local political aid , he succeeded in saving the Lecco football by smoothing out most of the debts. In the post-war period, during the 1945–1946 season the blu-celesti participated in the mixed Serie B-C Alta Italia, ending the season in second place behind the
Pro Patria and managing to earn the play-off to access the finals for the promotion in A. In the play-off, however, at the Milan Arena the match ended 0–0 and the Federation subsequently canceled one of the bustocchi's matches by ordering the repetition of the match that brought Lecco third one step away from Serie A.
In the following years, from 1946 to 1948, Lecco collected two relegations, one of which caused by the new federal regulation that made Lecco overhang in the Promotion championship.
On 3 August 1948, a revolution began for Lecco with the appointment of Mario Ceppi as president, who led the team to a period of unstoppable growth and a leap in quality towards the highest category. During his stay at the top of the blue, Lecco in the space of seven years in which he concluded the seasons in
Serie C
The Serie C () is the third-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie B and Serie A. The Lega Italiana Calcio Professionistico (Lega Pro) is the governing body that runs the Serie C.
The unification of the Lega Pro ...
starting from championship 1953–1954 always in the top positions of the standings , except for a brief parenthesis in Series IV, thanks to Angelo Piccioli on the bench, a former blue-sky player, in the Serie B 1959-1960 season, he won the
Serie A to the team amid the enthusiasm of the fans and of an entire city.
The adventure in
Serie A
The Serie A (), also called Serie A TIM for national sponsorship with TIM, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and the winner is awarded the Scudetto and the Cop ...
for Lecco began on 25 September 1960, when in their debut in the top flight, the Blucelesti lost 4–0 away to
Fiorentina
ACF Fiorentina, commonly referred to as Fiorentina (), is an Italian professional football club based in Florence, Tuscany, Italy. The original team was founded by a merger in August 1926, while the actual club was refounded in August 2002 fol ...
. The first victory for the Blucelesti in the top flight came on 9 October when on the slopes of Resegone, Lecco beat
Padova
Padua ( ; it, Padova ; vec, Pàdova) is a city and ''comune'' in Veneto, northern Italy. Padua is on the river Bacchiglione, west of Venice. It is the capital of the province of Padua. It is also the economic and communications hub of the ...
at home for 2–1 and after a season of ups and downs culminating in the play-offs -final salvation against
Udinese
Udinese Calcio, commonly referred to as Udinese, is a professional Italian football club based in Udine, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, that currently plays in Serie A. It was founded on 30 November 1896 as a sports club, and on 5 July 1911 as a ...
and
Bari, the Lecchesi saved themselves tooth and nail thanks to Arienti's goals.
In the following season, in Serie A, although the team was strengthened with the purchase of
Bengt Lindskog and
Beniamino Di Giacomo, the blucelesti were relegated in
Serie B
The Serie B (), currently named Serie BKT for sponsorship reasons, is the second-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie A. It has been operating for over ninety years since the 1929–30 season. It had been ...
to the penultimate place before with
Angelo Piccioli
Angelo is an Italian masculine given name and surname meaning "angel", or "messenger".
People People with the given name
*Angelo Accattino (born 1966), Italian prelate of the Catholic Church
*Angelo Acciaioli (bishop) (1298–1357), Italian Rom ...
and then with
Camillo Achilli
Camillo Achilli (21 August 1921 – 14 June 1998) was a professional Italian footballer who played for Internazionale and Genoa. After retiring as a player in 1953, Achilli enjoyed a career as a coach, managing sides such as Lecco, Internazio ...
on the bench.
![1966–67 Serie A - Inter Milan v AC Lecco](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ad/1966%E2%80%9367_Serie_A_-_Inter_Milan_v_AC_Lecco.jpg)
After four top cadet championships in Serie B from the championship 1962–1963 to the season (1965–1966) the Blucelesti managed to earn their last championship of Serie A in the season 1966–1967, always with Angelo Piccioli at the helm, but in the last year the team suffered in the back, with a surprise in the last game, when the team already relegated , managed to snatch a 1–1 to
A.C. Milan
Associazione Calcio Milan (), commonly referred to as AC Milan or simply Milan, is a professional Association football, football club in Milan, Italy, founded in 1899. The club has spent its entire history, with the exception of the 1980–81 ...
at
San Siro
Stadio Giuseppe Meazza, commonly known as San Siro, is a football stadium in the San Siro district of Milan, Italy, which is the home of A.C. Milan and Inter Milan. It has a seating capacity of 80,018, making it one of the largest stadiums i ...
thanks to a goal by Schiavo.
Serie C and the last season in Serie B
Once the glories of Serie A ended, a two-year hell period began for the Blucelestos in cadeteria, where the volcanic ''presidentissimo '' Mario Ceppi in 1967 left the presidency to Giovanni Mambretti and then returned to the club a short time later, where in first year of Serie B, the team survived the play-offs, beating the competition of Messina and
Venezia
Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 bridges. The islan ...
and then relegated to
Serie C
The Serie C () is the third-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie B and Serie A. The Lega Italiana Calcio Professionistico (Lega Pro) is the governing body that runs the Serie C.
The unification of the Lega Pro ...
the following year closing in penultimate place in the standings with
Renato Gei
Renato Gei (; 1 February 1921 – 20 May 1999) was an Italian association football manager and footballer who played as a forward. On 25 November 1951, he represented the Italy national football team
The Italy national football team ( i ...
on the bench.
The first year in
Serie C
The Serie C () is the third-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie B and Serie A. The Lega Italiana Calcio Professionistico (Lega Pro) is the governing body that runs the Serie C.
The unification of the Lega Pro ...
, Lecco barely touched the return to
Serie B
The Serie B (), currently named Serie BKT for sponsorship reasons, is the second-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie A. It has been operating for over ninety years since the 1929–30 season. It had been ...
, collecting a series of eight consecutive useful games and reaching only one point from the top of the table thanks to nine goals from Pedroni, then, in the following two seasons in the third series, the team first finished the championship in eighth place and subsequently, in the tournament of Serie C 1971–72, the blucelesti found the
Serie B
The Serie B (), currently named Serie BKT for sponsorship reasons, is the second-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie A. It has been operating for over ninety years since the 1929–30 season. It had been ...
after three years winning group A.
The championship of Serie B 1972-1973 for Lecco was not easy and was characterized by excellent sales such as that of Chinellato and the technical changes that led to the exemption of Angelo Longoni and the bench call of Francesco Meregalli which brought the team to the last place in the standings with only 25 points.
From that moment on, for Lecco football after the "era-Ceppi" began a slow decline that brought the team up to the amateur categories.
From post-Ceppi to the 2000s
The seven years that followed between
Serie C
The Serie C () is the third-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie B and Serie A. The Lega Italiana Calcio Professionistico (Lega Pro) is the governing body that runs the Serie C.
The unification of the Lega Pro ...
and the new
Serie C1 from 1974 to 1980 with Carlo Rizza as the new helmsman of the company in place of Ceppi who died on 15 June 1983, the team sailed in mid-ranking positions and then relegated to
Serie C2 from season 1979–1980, at the end of the third consecutive championship in the fourth professional division, the Blucelesti sank in the Interregional Championship gained after a last place in the standings.
After the change of ownership, and the arrival of Alberto Frigerio, a difficult period began for Lecco due to the unfulfilled promises of the top management to bring the club back to
Serie C2 quickly and the wrong market choices that led to the blucelesti to touch several times the return among the professionals. Among these sensational that occurred in the 1985–86 season with the hiring as technician of the unknown Agostino Alzani, such as to "burst" the "Alzani grain": a large part of the blue people , including the Lecco Club Mario Ceppi, said he was ready to totally desert the stadium if Lecco was confirmed for the entire season, which, after an Italian Cup match, was exonerated already at the end of the first day of championship, as well as quickly replaced by the President with
Stefano Angeleri
Stefano Angeleri (26 August 1926 – 31 January 2012) was an Italian football
Football ( it, calcio ) is the most popular sport in Italy. The Italy national football team is considered to be one of the best national teams in the world. They ...
.
The satisfactions came, at the end of the Interregional Championship 1989-1990, when after six years spent among the amateurs, the Blucelesti after a second final place were fished in
Serie C2 to complete organic.
Colors and badge
The team's colours are blue and dark blue.
Honours
League
*
Serie C
The Serie C () is the third-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie B and Serie A. The Lega Italiana Calcio Professionistico (Lega Pro) is the governing body that runs the Serie C.
The unification of the Lega Pro ...
(Tier 3)
** Winners (1):
1971–72
*
Serie D
The Serie D () is the top level of semi-professional football in the country. The fourth tier of the Italian league system, the competition sits beneath the third professional league, Serie C. It is administered by the Lega Nazionale Dilettant ...
(Tier 4)
** Winners (1): 1949–50
*
Eccellenza
The Eccellenza (, "excellence") is the fifth level (since 2014–15) of Italian football. It is a regional league, composed of 28 divisions divided geographically. All 20 regions are represented by at least one division except for Piedmont and A ...
(Tier 5)
** Winners (1): 2002–03
*
Trofeo Comitato Regionale Lombardia (Tier 6)
** Winners (1): 2003
Cups
*
Coppa Italia Semiprofessionisti:
** Winners (1): 1976–77
*
Anglo-Italian Cup:
** Winners (1): 1977
Affiliated clubs
*
Bath City F.C.
Bath City Football Club is a semi-professional football club based in Bath, Somerset, England. The club is affiliated to the Somerset FA and currently competes in the National League South, the sixth tier of English football. The club have ...
Players
Current squad
''As of 14 December 2022.''
Out on loan
Former players
''Main page:
Calcio Lecco players''
Former managers
''Main page:
Calcio Lecco managers''
References
External links
Official site
Football clubs in Italy
Football clubs in Lombardy
Association football clubs established in 1912
Serie A clubs
Serie B clubs
Serie C clubs
1912 establishments in Italy
Coppa Italia Serie C winning clubs
Serie D clubs
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