S.S.D. Reggio Calabria
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Associazione Sportiva Reggina 1914, commonly referred to as Reggina, is 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 have won the FIFA World Cup four times (1934, 1938, 1982, 2006), trailing only Bra ...
club based in
Reggio Calabria Reggio di Calabria ( scn, label= Southern Calabrian, Riggiu; el, label= Calabrian Greek, Ρήγι, Rìji), usually referred to as Reggio Calabria, or simply Reggio by its inhabitants, is the largest city in Calabria. It has an estimated popul ...
. They play their home matches at the 27,763 seater
Stadio Oreste Granillo The Stadio Oreste Granillo is a football stadium in Reggio Calabria, Italy. It is the home of Reggina 1914. The stadium was built in 1999 on the foundations of ''Comunale'' and holds 27,763. It is named after former Reggina president Oreste G ...
and are currently playing in the Serie D league. They are nicknamed the ''Amaranto'' (amaranth) after their official dark red colours. The club was formerly known as Reggina Calcio before declaring bankruptcy in 2015, as well as A.S.D. Reggio Calabria in the 2015–16 season, Urbs Reggina 1914 from 2016 to 2019, Reggina 1914 from 2019 to 2023, and LFA Reggio Calabria in the 2023–24 season. In its previous guise, the club played in the Serie A for nine seasons between 1999 and 2009, including a seven-year consecutive spell starting in 2002. During these years, the club narrowly avoided relegation in most seasons and never finished in the top half. After failing to make a return in the first few years, the club fell into financial and sporting difficulties, culminating in falling into the lower tiers of Italian football before returning to Serie B in 2020.


Names

The club was founded on 11 January 1914 as Unione Sportiva Reggio Calabria. It changed name many times (Società Calcistica Reggio, Reggio Foot Ball Club, Associazione Sportiva Reggina, Società Sportiva La Dominante), finally assuming the denomination Reggina Calcio in 1986. After the 2015 bankruptcy, the club had used A.S.D. Reggio Calabria as the new name of the new legal person, and then the club changed to the denomination Urbs Reggina 1914 S.r.l. in 2016, and, between 2019 and 2023, Reggina 1914 S.r.l.. Following the most recent club exclusion in 2023, the club was refounded as LFA Reggio Calabria.


History

The club was founded on 11 January 1914.


Serie A (1999–2009)

From the late 1990s to the 2000s, Reggina has been alternating between the top two levels of the Italian league system. They reached the Italian top division Serie A for the first time in 1999. Two years later, they lost a relegation playout to Verona, being consequently relegated to
2001–02 Serie B The 2001–02 Serie B is the 70th season since its establishment in 1929. It is the second highest football league in Italy. Teams Modena, Palermo, Como and Messina had been promoted from Serie C, while Reggina, Vicenza, Napoli and Bari had bee ...
. Reggina finished third in Serie B in 2002, earning a return to Serie A. In
2003 File:2003 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The crew of STS-107 perished when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during reentry into Earth's atmosphere; SARS became an epidemic in China, and was a precursor to SARS-CoV-2; A des ...
, Reggina survived a relegation playout against Atalanta. They would spend the next 7 years maintaining their Serie A status until their eventual relegation in the 2008–09 season. In August 2006, they were indicted as part of the second wave of ''
Calciopoli ''Calciopoli'' () was a sports scandal in Italy's top professional association football league Serie A and to a lesser extent Serie B. Involving various clubs and numerous executives, both from the same clubs and from the main Italian football b ...
'' investigations. Originally punished with a 15-point deduction for the
2006–07 Serie A The 2006–07 Serie A (known as the Serie A TIM for sponsorship reasons) was the 105th season of top-tier Italian football, the 75th in a round-robin tournament. It was scheduled to begin on 26 and 27 August, but was postponed to 2 September 200 ...
, then reduced to 11 points following appeal. Despite the heavy deduction of points, Reggina managed to save themselves from relegation, defeating newly crowned UEFA Champions League winners Milan on the final matchday and ending the season with 40 points (including the deduction), just one single point above the third relegation spot, occupied by Chievo. They poorly started the Serie A 2007-08, causing head coach Massimo Ficcadenti to be sacked and replaced by Renzo Ulivieri. A third managerial change, with Ulivieri fired and replacing with team scout Nevio Orlandi, proved to be successful as Reggina improved their results and performances, escaping relegation with key wins at Catania, and home to Empoli. Orlandi was subsequently confirmed at the helm of the ''amaranto'' for the
Serie A 2008–09 Series may refer to: People with the name * Caroline Series (born 1951), English mathematician, daughter of George Series * George Series (1920–1995), English physicist Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Series, the ordered Set (music), ...
.


Serie B (2009–2014)

Since their relegation in the 2008–09 season, Reggina has become slightly inconsistent in their attempts to return to Italy's top flight. The 2009–10 season would see three coaches at the helm:
Walter Novellino Walter Alfredo Novellino (born 4 June 1953; ), is an Italian football manager and former player, who played as a midfielder. Club career Novellino was born at Montemarano, province of Avellino. After spending his childhood in São Paulo, Brazi ...
,
Ivo Iaconi Ivo Iaconi (born 11 March 1956 in Teramo) is an Italian football manager and former player. Playing career Iaconi played mostly with Serie C and amateur clubs, starting his career with Giulianova in the 1970s. He retired in 1992 after Giulianov ...
,
Roberto Breda Roberto Breda (born 21 October 1969) is an Italian football coach and former player. He was most recently the manager of Serie B club Pescara. Playing career A midfielder, Breda made his Serie A debut with Sampdoria and later played with sever ...
. Despite possessing Bonazzoli, Carmona, Tedesco, Brienza and homegrown star Missiroli, they were unable to gain a better position than 13th. Disappointing for a team just relegated from the top division. Top goal scorer for the campaign was Brienza with 12. The 2010–11 season was regarded as one of the Amaranto's best in Serie B. Shockingly they would conduct their usual coaching merry-go-round, as Gianluca Atzori would lead them to a 6th-place finish and playoffs to Serie A. they would stumble at the last hurdle losing to Novara in a two-legged playoff. Top players include Acerbi, Missiroli, Tedesco, Brienza, Bonazzoli (C) and Milan Loanee Adiyiah. Top goal scorer: Bonazzoli with 19 goals The 2011–12 season was another disappointing season for the Amaranto, with a 12th-placed finish. Two coaches took charge of Reggina this season;
Roberto Breda Roberto Breda (born 21 October 1969) is an Italian football coach and former player. He was most recently the manager of Serie B club Pescara. Playing career A midfielder, Breda made his Serie A debut with Sampdoria and later played with sever ...
initially, before being sacked and replaced by
Angelo Gregucci Angelo Adamo Gregucci (born 10 June 1964) is an Italian football coach and former player. Career Player Born in San Giorgio Ionico, Province of Taranto, Gregucci started his playing career in 1981 with Taranto, before moving to Alessandria ...
, only to be replaced by Breda again towards the end of the season. Unlike the previous season, they did not make the play-offs. Top players in this season's squad include: Adejo, Emerson, (Ramos Borges Emerson), Missiroli, Bonazzoli (C), and Ceravolo. Top scorer was Ceravolo with 11. The 2012–13 season would be marred with yet another controversy similar to that of 2006. Reggina were penalized for the latest match-fixing scandal that hit Italian shores and was given a −4 penalty as a result. After appeal it was reduced to −2 instead. They were in contention for playoff places right until the last few rounds, where poor form saw them end the season in 11th place. The 2013–14 season ended in disaster, as Reggina won just six out of 42 games and finished second bottom, resulting in relegation to Lega Pro. The season also marked Foti's retirement from his role as president, who was handed over to Giuseppe Ranieri.


Lega Pro

For the club's
2014–15 Lega Pro The 2014–15 Lega Pro was the first season of the unified Lega Pro division in place of the old Prima Divisione and Seconda Divisione. The league is composed of 60 teams divided into three different groups of 20 each. Teams A total of 60 team ...
campaign, Reggina began the season with former captain Francesco Cozza as head coach. After a difficult start to the season and two coaching changes, youth team coach and former player
Giacomo Tedesco Giacomo Tedesco (born February 1, 1976 in Palermo) is a former Italian football (soccer) midfielder and football manager. Club career Giacomo Tedesco started his professional career with his hometown club U.S. Città di Palermo in 1994. He rema ...
was hired as head coach for the final three weeks of the season. Despite winning two of the final three matches, Reggina finished last in the league and would have to rely on an appeal of their point penalty to lift them out of the relegation zone. The appeal was successful, and 2 points were returned to move them out of last place. Tedesco guided the team to survival in the playout over rivals Messina.


Serie D one-year stint

Despite avoiding relegation in the 2014–15 season, Reggina failed to meet the deadline to register for Lega Pro and the club declared bankruptcy. A new legal person of the club, "A.S.D. Reggio Calabria", was formed to play in Serie D for the 2015–16 season, Reggio Calabria ended the season in 4th place, losing in the first round of playoffs against
Cavese Cavese 1919 S.r.l., commonly known as just Cavese, is an Italian football club based in Cava de' Tirreni, Campania, that currently plays in . The first city club was founded in 1919 as Unione Sportiva Cavese. It was refounded as Pro Cavese in 1 ...
. During the season the club also re-incorporated from ''associazione sportiva dilettantistica'' to ''società sportiva dilettantistica a responsabilità limitata''
legal form A business entity is an entity that is formed and administered as per corporate law in order to engage in business activities, charitable work, or other activities allowable. Most often, business entities are formed to sell a product or a serv ...
. Reggio Calabria was owned by Mimmo Praticò, former regional president of
CONI The Italian National Olympic Committee ( it, Comitato Olimpico Nazionale Italiano, CONI), founded in 1914 and a member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), is responsible for the development and management of sports activity in Italy. ...
.


Back to Serie C

In June 2016, it was reported that the club was renamed from "S.S.D. Reggio Calabria a r.l." to "S.S.D. Urbs Sportiva Reggina 1914 a r.l.". The club was then renamed as Urbs Reggina 1914 S.r.l. Despite finishing as the losing side in the first round of the promotion playoffs of
2015–16 Serie D The 2015–16 Serie D was the sixty-eighth edition of the top level Italian non-professional football championship. It represents the fourth tier in the Italian football league system. The phoenix club of Parma Calcio was added to this league. P ...
, the club filed for Lega Pro (later renamed Serie C) repechage to fill one of the vacancies for the 2016–17 season and was successfully admitted. Reggina ended the season in 13th place. In January 2019, facing a crisis with a potential player strike due to non-payment of salaries, the club was sold to Italian entrepreneur Luca Gallo. On 1 July 2019, the club announced to change the name to "Reggina 1914 S.r.l.".


Serie B return

Reggina won its Serie C group in
2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...
, earning a promotion back to the Serie B for the upcoming season. The team upon its Serie B return included experienced players from higher levels including
Jérémy Ménez Jérémy Ménez (born 7 May 1987) is a French professional footballer who plays as a forward for Italian Serie B club Reggina. Ménez has been described as an ambipedal, technically skilled, pacy playmaker. Ménez began his career spending t ...
and Germán Denis. In the 2022-23 season under the guidance of manager
Filippo Inzaghi Filippo "Pippo" Inzaghi (; born 9 August 1973) is an Italian professional football manager and former player who played as a striker. He was nicknamed "Superpippo" or "Alta tensione" by fans and commentators during his playing career. He is t ...
, Reggina finished in a playoff position, despite suffering a five point deduction for failing to pay taxes and player salaries on time. The deduction was initially seven points, but was reduced to five following an appeal.


2023 exclusion and restart

On 1 July 2023, Reggina was excluded from Serie B for the 2023-24 season after Covisoc rejected their application due to financial irregularities. On appeal, the Federal Council confirmed Reggina's exclusion. The following level of appeal, the ''Collegio di Garanzia'' of the Italian Olympic Committee, withheld the decision. On 3 August, the Administrative Court of Rome again rejected Reggina's request for readmission. On 30 August, Reggina was again rejected at the final level of appeals, the Council of State. Brescia was readmitted to the league after Reggina's confirmed exclusion. On 1 September 2023, acting mayor of the Metropolitan City of Reggio Calabria, Paolo Brunetti, received approval from the
Italian Football Federation The Italian Football Federation ( it, Federazione Italiana Giuoco Calcio; FIGC), known colloquially as ''Federcalcio'', is the governing body of football in Italy. It is based in Rome and the technical department is in Coverciano, Florence. It ...
to enroll a club in Serie D for the 2023–24 season. The club was successively handed over to a Catania-based consortium led by Antonino Ballarino, named La Fenice Amaranto (The amaranth phoenix), which submitted a league application and will take part to the season under the new denomination of LFA Reggio Calabria, as the new club was forbidden to use the Reggina 1914 name or logo for the upcoming season. On 29 May 2024, Ballarino and LFA Reggio Calabria acquired the rights to the name and history of Reggina; the club was formally renamed to AS Reggina 1914 on 18 July 2024.


Rivalries

Reggina are fierce rivals with neighbours
Messina Messina (, also , ) is a harbour city and the capital of the Italian Metropolitan City of Messina. It is the third largest city on the island of Sicily, and the 13th largest city in Italy, with a population of more than 219,000 inhabitants in ...
, who are just a twenty-minute ferry ride apart from each other. Twice every season, they clash in the ''
Derby dello Stretto The ''Derby dello Stretto'' is an association football derby in Southern Italy contested by Messina and Reggina. The phrase translates into English as ''Derby of the Strait'', since the two clubs are based in the towns of Messina and Reggio Calabr ...
'' ( Strait of Messina Derby). In the 2014–15 season, Reggina defeated Messina in both legs of the playout to send Messina down to Serie D. There is also a major Calabrian derby between Reggina and
Crotone Crotone (, ; nap, label= Crotonese, Cutrone or ) is a city and ''comune'' in Calabria, Italy. Founded as the Achaean colony of Kroton ( grc, Κρότων or ; la, Crotona) in Magna Graecia, it was known as Cotrone from the Middle Ages until ...
, but both teams have not played in the same league in for two years. Reggina also has a derby with fellow Calabrian team Catanzaro, which is currently in Serie B.


Colours and badges

Reggina used a logo with a letter R and a
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
on it. Some variant of the logo, had 1986, the year of foundation of Reggina Calcio on it. Due to 2015 bankruptcy, the new owner introduced a new logo as the old design was tied to the old legal person of the club. Due to 2016 renaming, some modification was introduced, which a letter R was re-introduced in the logo. However, the design of the ball on the 2016 logo was different from the historical logo, which the 2016 logo used a leather ball. In 2019, the club reverted to use the historical design of the logo.


Players


Current squad


On loan


Notable players


Club staff


Managerial history

Reggina have had many managers and trainers throughout the history of the club, in some seasons more than one manager was in charge. Here is the chronological list of them from 1928.


Kit manufacturer & sponsors


Kit manufacturer


Sponsors


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Reggio Calabria Football clubs in Calabria Association football clubs established in 1914 Serie A clubs Serie B clubs Serie C clubs S.S.D. Reggio Calabria Phoenix clubs (association football)