Mario Rigamonti (; 17 December 1922 – 4 May 1949) was an Italian football player, who played as a central defender for

Torino F.C. Torino Football Club (), commonly referred to as Torino or simply Toro, is an Italian professional football club based in Turin, Piedmont. They currently play in Serie A. Founded as ''Foot-Ball Club Torino'' in 1906, Torino are among the mos ...

and the

Italy national football team The Italy national football team ( it, Nazionale di calcio dell'Italia) has represented Italy in international football since its first match in 1910. The national team is controlled by the Italian Football Federation (FIGC), the governing bo ...

. He died in the

Superga air disaster The Superga air disaster occurred on 4 May 1949, when a Fiat G.212 of Avio Linee Italiane (Italian Airlines), carrying the entire Torino football team (popularly known as the ''Grande Torino''), crashed into the retaining wall at the back of th ...

together with the whole ''

Grande Torino The Grande Torino was the historic Italian football team of Torino Football Club in the 1940s, five-time champions of Italy, whose players were the backbone of the Italy national team and died on 4 May 1949 in the plane crash known as the Superg ...

'' team.

Biography

Rigamonti was born in

Brescia Brescia (, locally ; lmo, link=no, label= Lombard, Brèsa ; lat, Brixia; vec, Bressa) is a city and ''comune'' in the region of Lombardy, Northern Italy. It is situated at the foot of the Alps, a few kilometers from the lakes Garda and Iseo. ...

. Following his death in 1949, the

Stadio Mario Rigamonti Stadio Mario Rigamonti is a soccer stadium located in Brescia, Italy. It is currently the home of Brescia Calcio. It is dedicated to Mario Rigamonti, a defender of the Grande Torino, born in Brescia, who died in the Superga air disaster in ...

in Brescia, used by local club

Brescia Calcio Brescia Calcio, commonly referred to as Brescia (), is an Italian football club based in Brescia, Lombardy, that currently plays in . The club holds the record for total number of seasons (64) and consecutive seasons (18, from 1947–48 to 1 ...

, was opened in 1959, and was dedicated to him in his honour.

Club career

Rigamonti played as a defender, more exactly as center-back in WM formation, beginning his career in the youth system of his hometown club

, later making his professional debut for the club in 1944. He was acquired by

in the summer 1941, aged 19, but played for the club's first team only after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. With Torino, Rigamonti made his

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 Coppa ...

debut in a 2–1 away loss to cross-city rivals

Juventus Juventus Football Club (from la, iuventūs, 'youth'; ), colloquially known as Juve (), is a professional Association football, football club based in Turin, Piedmont, Italy, that competes in the Serie A, the top tier of the Italian football leagu ...

on 14 October 1945; in total, he played 140 times for Torino and won four consecutive Serie A '' scudetti'' titles with the club.

International career

Rigamonti was also capped three times for the

between 1947 and 1949. He made his international debut in a 3–2 win over

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...

on 11 May 1947.

Death

Rigamonti died with most of the ''Grande Torino'' team in the

near

Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese language, Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital ...

, on 4 May 1949.

Style of play

Rigamonti was a tall, agile, physically strong, consistent and tenacious player, who was known for his skill and acrobatic ability in the air, courtesy of his elevation, as well as his fighting spirit, speed, anticipation, and competitive style of play. A versatile and hard-tackling player, he was capable of playing both in

defence Defense or defence may refer to: Tactical, martial, and political acts or groups * Defense (military), forces primarily intended for warfare * Civil defense, the organizing of civilians to deal with emergencies or enemy attacks * Defense industr ...

and in

midfield Midfield is the part of a sports field that lies approximately in the center. In American football, association football (soccer) and field hockey, it is the area in and around the center circle, as well as the players who occupy that region. In ...

, usually in a holding role.

Honours

;

Torino Turin ( , Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. T ...

: 1945–46, 1946–47, 1947–48, 1948–49

References

External links

Statistics at Enciclopedia del Calcio website

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rigamonti, Mario 1922 births 1949 deaths Footballers from Brescia Italian footballers Torino F.C. players Brescia Calcio players Serie A players Italy international footballers Association football defenders Association football midfielders Footballers killed in the Superga air disaster