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Palermo Football Club, more simply known as Palermo F.C. or Palermo (; scn, Paliemmu, link=no, ), is an
Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...
football club A football team is a group of players selected to play together in the various team sports known as football. Such teams could be selected to play in a match against an opposing team, to represent a football club, group, state or nation, an all ...
based in the Sicilian city of
Palermo Palermo ( , ; scn, Palermu , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital of both the autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan province. The city is noted for its ...
, conventionally founded for the first time on 1 November 1900. Among the club’s accomplishments are a
Coppa Italia Serie C Coppa Italia Serie C ( it, Serie C Italian Cup), formerly named Coppa Italia Lega Pro, is a straight knock-out based competition involving teams from Serie C in Italian football first held in 1972. Format There are a total of six rounds in the ...
, won in the 1992–93, and five
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 ...
league titles. It also appeared in three
Italian Cup Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional It ...
finals: in 1973-74, in 1978-79 and in 2010-11. The club has made five appearances in European competitions, all in the UEFA Cup/Europa League. They are currently playing 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 ...
, after having won the
2021–22 Serie C The 2021–22 Serie C is the eighth season of the unified Serie C division, the third tier of the Italian football league system. Changes The league is composed by 60 teams, divided into three different groups. On 31 May 2021, the league committee ...
promotion playoffs. In July 2022, it was announced that
City Football Group City Football Group Limited (CFG) is a holding company that administers association football clubs. The group is owned by three organisations; of which 81% is majority owned by Newton Investment and Development LLC, 18% by the American firm Si ...
(CFG) acquired a majority stake of Palermo F.C. CFG owns several European clubs, with Manchester City F.C. being their flagship.


History


Early history (1898–1947)

There is some debate and uncertainty about the exact date the club was founded. Some authorities believe that it may have been founded as early as 1898 due to the existence of papers addressed to
Joseph Whitaker Joseph Whitaker may refer to: * Joseph Whitaker (industrialist) (1789–1870), American iron master and landowner * Joseph Whitaker (naturalist) (1850–1932), English naturalist *Joseph Whitaker (ornithologist) (1850–1936), Sicilian-English orni ...
, English ornithologist in Palermo and originally believed to be first club president, about a Palermo football team founded in the month of April of that year. Conversely, another source cites that in April 1897, the future founders of Palemo Calcio founded the association ''Sport Club''. The most common and officially stated foundation date is November 1, 1900, as the Anglo Palermitan Athletic and Football Club. The club is thought to have been founded by Ignazio Majo Pagano, a young Palermitan colleague of Whitaker who had discovered football while at college in
London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
in the UK, where the modern game of
Association Football Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...
originated. The initial staff comprised three Englishmen and nine natives of Palermo, with Whitaker as honorary chairman, Edward De Garston as inaugural president and with red and blue as the original team colours. The first recorded football match, played by the team on December 30, 1900, ended in a 5–0 defeat to an unidentified amateur English team. The club’s first official match, played on April 18, 1901 against Messina Football Club, ended in a 3–2 victory for the Palermitan side. In 1907, the club changed its name to Palermo Foot-Ball Club, and the team colours were changed to the current pink and black. From 1908 until Italy’s entry in
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
in 1915, Palermo was featured in the
Lipton Challenge Cup The Lipton Challenge Cup also known as Coppa Lipton was a football competition competed between clubs from Southern Italy and Sicily. It was played during the period leading up to World War I when football in the country was still in its infancy ...
, organised by Scottish businessman Sir Thomas Lipton. The competition saw them face off against Naples FBC; Palermo won the competition three times, including a 6–0 victory in 1912. After a gap during the First World War, the club was refounded in 1919 as Unione Sportiva Palermo, by a committee of young university students and sportsmen. During the early 1920s, the club mainly competed in the ''Campionato Lega Sud'', a football league in Southern Italy, reaching the semi-finals in 1924 before being knocked out by Audace Taranto, Alba Roma and Internaples. The club was dissolved in 1927 due to financial problems, but was reformed one year later following a merger with Vigor Palermo under the name Palermo FootBall Club. Originally admitted to ''Prima Divisione'' (First Division), the equivalent of today's
Serie C1 Lega Pro Prima Divisione was the third highest football league in Italy. It consisted of 33 teams, divided geographically into two divisions of 16 and 17 teams for group A and B respectively. Until 2008 it was known as Serie C1. Before the 1978 ...
, the team was promoted 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 ...
in 1930 and finally reached
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 ...
in 1932. From its debut season in Italy's top division, Palermo relocated to a new home, the ''Stadio Littorio'' (Lictorian Stadium) in the Favorita neighbourhood, today known as
Stadio Renzo Barbera Stadio Renzo Barbera (commonly known as La Favorita) is a football stadium in Palermo, Italy. It is currently the home stadium of Palermo F.C. team. The stadium was inaugurated during the fascist era on 24 January 1932, and was originally nam ...
. The club played in Serie A until 1936, when they were relegated to Serie B and first played
Catania Catania (, , Sicilian and ) is the second largest municipality in Sicily, after Palermo. Despite its reputation as the second city of the island, Catania is the largest Sicilian conurbation, among the largest in Italy, as evidenced also b ...
in the
Sicilian derby The Derby di Sicilia or Sicilian Derby in English, is a local derby between Italian football clubs Calcio Catania and S.S.D. Palermo. Catania and Palermo are the two main cities on the island of Sicily, and the teams are fierce rivals. However, t ...
. In 1936, Palermo was forced by the fascist regime to change its colours to yellow and red, after the official colours of the local municipality. Meanwhile, economic difficulties arose, and in 1940 the club was expelled by 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 ...
because of financial problems. A merger with Unione Sportiva Juventina Palermo brought the foundation of Unione Sportiva Palermo-Juventina, which joined Serie C in 1941 and Serie B in 1942. The club could not finish the 1942–43 season due to the outbreak of
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 World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
. At the same time the pink-and-black colors were chosen because Sicily became a "war zone". After the conflict, the club changed its name to US Palermo.


Post-war years (1947–2002)

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 World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
, the team returned to Serie A by winning the Serie B championship of 1947–48. The new Palermo squad featured players such as
Czechoslovakia , rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי, , common_name = Czechoslovakia , life_span = 1918–19391945–1992 , p1 = Austria-Hungary , image_p1 ...
n legend
Čestmír Vycpálek Čestmír Vycpálek ( Prague, 15 May 1921 – Palermo, 5 May 2002) was a Czech football player and manager who played as a midfielder. He was an uncle of noted football manager Zdeněk Zeman. Playing career A good right winger, Vycpálek mov ...
who signed from
Juventus Juventus Football Club (from la, iuventūs, 'youth'; ), colloquially known as Juve (), is a professional football club based in Turin, Piedmont, Italy, that competes in the Serie A, the top tier of the Italian football league system. Founded in ...
alongside Conti, Carmelo Di Bella and Pavesi. Palermo played Serie A until they were relegated in 1954. Massive changes in the board, as well as the manager's job and the squad, proved successful and the club returned to Serie A in 1956. Palermo became a "
yo-yo club A yo-yo club is a sporting side that is regularly promoted and relegated. The phrase is most typically used in association football in the United Kingdom, especially in reference to promotion to and relegation from the Premier League. The name ...
", bouncing up and down between the top two Italian leagues. Several stars played for Palermo during this period, such as
Argentine Argentines (mistakenly translated Argentineans in the past; in Spanish (masculine) or (feminine)) are people identified with the country of Argentina. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Argentines, ...
striker Santiago Vernazza (51 goals in 115 games with the ''Rosanero''), goalkeepers
Roberto Anzolin Roberto Anzolin (; 18 April 1938 – 6 October 2017) was an Italian footballer, who played as a goalkeeper. Regarded as one of the best Italian goalkeepers of his generation, he played for several Italian sides, but is mostly remembered for hi ...
and Carlo Mattrel,
Giuseppe Furino Giuseppe Furino (; born 5 July 1946) is an Italian retired footballer who played as a midfielder. A small yet tenacious and physical player, Furino was nicknamed ''Furia'', and was known for his work-rate and energy in midfield, as well as his a ...
and Franco Causio. Palermo marked its best campaign in 1961–62 season, finishing in eighth place in Serie A. In 1963, however, they were relegated to Serie B, where they played for five seasons. Palermo played again in Serie A between 1968 and 1970. In 1970,
Renzo Barbera Renzo Barbera ( Palermo, 19 April 1920 – Palermo, 20 May 2002) was an Italian businessman and the chairman of Palermo Football Club from 1970 to 1980. He was nicknamed ''"Presidentissimo"'' and ''"The Last Leopard"''. During his presidency th ...
took over the club as the new chairman. After 1973, Palermo FBC remained firmly rooted in Serie B. Despite this, Palermo reached two
Italian Cup Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional It ...
finals, both of which they narrowly lost: in 1974 to
Bologna Bologna (, , ; egl, label= Emilian, Bulåggna ; lat, Bononia) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in Northern Italy. It is the seventh most populous city in Italy with about 400,000 inhabitants and 150 different na ...
on penalty shoot-outs, and in 1979 to Juventus after extra time. Barbera left the club in 1980 and Palermo were relegated to
Serie C1 Lega Pro Prima Divisione was the third highest football league in Italy. It consisted of 33 teams, divided geographically into two divisions of 16 and 17 teams for group A and B respectively. Until 2008 it was known as Serie C1. Before the 1978 ...
four years later. The 1985–86 season, however, which ended in the summer was the last for Palermo FBC as having just saved themselves from relegation, the club was expelled by the football federation due to financial problems. In the summer of 1987, after a year without professional football in Palermo, the club was re-founded bearing a new name, and began to play in
Serie C2 Lega Pro Seconda Divisione was the fourth highest football league in Italy, the lowest with a professional status. Usually it consisted of 36 teams, but in the 2011–12 season, there were 41 teams divided geographically into two divisions of 2 ...
, which it promptly won. In the 1990s, Palermo played between Serie B and Serie C1 with a few highs, such as its 1995–96 Serie B and Coppa Italia campaign, the latter ending in the quarter-finals, and a number of lows such as the 1998 relegation to Serie C2 after defeat in the play-offs to
Battipagliese Associazione Sportiva Dilettantistica Battipagliese is an Italian football club from Battipaglia, Campania. The club currently plays in Serie D. History Foundation The history of Battipagliese can be traced back to the founding of the comune ...
, later revoked by the federation to fill a vacant league slot. In March 2000, Roma chairman Franco Sensi led a holding company to purchase Palermo and
Sergio D'Antoni Sergio Antonio D'Antoni (born 10 December 1946 in Caltanissetta) is an Italian politician, syndicalist and sports manager, current President of CONI Sicilia. Biography Graduated in law, D'Antoni became a researcher at the University of Pal ...
became the president of Palermo and Palermo were promoted to Serie B one year later after a dramatic final week of the season, with Palermo coming back from behind to take first place from league-toppers Sicilian rivals
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 t ...
. The first comeback season in the Serie B, with Bortolo Mutti as head coach, was an eventless one, with Palermo ending in a mid-table placement.


The Zamparini era: back to Serie A and European years (2002–2013)

In the summer of 2002,
Friuli Friuli ( fur, Friûl, sl, Furlanija, german: Friaul) is an area of Northeast Italy with its own particular cultural and historical identity containing 1,000,000 Friulians. It comprises the major part of the autonomous region Friuli Venezia Giuli ...
an businessman 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 ...
owner
Maurizio Zamparini Maurizio Zamparini (9 June 1941 – 1 February 2022) was an Italian businessman. He was the owner and director of football club U.S. Città di Palermo between July 2002 – February 2017 and from July 2017 – December 2018. Biography Zampar ...
acquired the club from Franco Sensi in a €15 million bid, with the clear intention to bring Palermo back to Serie A and establish the club as a Serie A regular with aims of participations to European competitions. Palermo failed in its first attempt to reach the Serie A in 2002–03 on the final week of the season, but later managed to achieve it after a hard but successful 2003–04 campaign which saw Palermo crowned as Serie B champions and promoted to Serie A after 31 years, under head coach
Francesco Guidolin Francesco Guidolin (; born 3 October 1955) is an Italian football manager and former player, most recently the manager of Premier League team Swansea City. He has coached various Italian club sides in Serie A, winning the 1996–97 Coppa Ital ...
, who was hired in January 2004 as replacement for dismissed
Silvio Baldini Silvio Baldini (born 11 September 1958 in Massa) is an Italian association football manager, last in charge of Serie B club Perugia. Career Early years Born in Massa but hailing from nearby Carrara, Baldini started his coaching career in 1984 ...
. The 2004–05 season, the first in Serie A for the Palermo club since 1973, ended with an excellent sixth place, securing qualification for the 2005–06
UEFA Cup A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, china, clay ...
for the first time in its history.
Luca Toni Luca Toni (; born 26 May 1977) is an Italian former professional footballer who played as a striker. A prolific goalscorer, Toni scored over 300 goals throughout his career, and is one of the top-five highest scoring Italians in all competition ...
broke the Palermo Serie A scoring record by notching up 20 league goals. In the following season, despite an unimpressive eighth place in the Serie A table, Palermo reached the last 16 in the UEFA Cup as well as the
Coppa Italia The ("Italy Cup") is an annual knockout cup competition in Italian football organized by the FIGC until the 2009–10 season and the Lega Serie A ever since. History The beginning of the tournament was turbulent, due to the complexity of ...
semi-finals. The club was however admitted to play UEFA Cup again due to the 2006 ''
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 ...
'' scandal, with Palermo players Andrea Barzagli,
Cristian Zaccardo Cristian Zaccardo (; born 21 December 1981) is an Italian former footballer who played as a defender. He mainly played as a centre back, although he was also capable of playing as a full-back or in midfield. He began his club career with Ital ...
,
Simone Barone Simone Barone (; born 30 April 1978) is an Italian football manager and former player, who played as a midfielder. He played for several Italian clubs throughout his career, before coming to prominence with Palermo. At international level, he wa ...
and
Fabio Grosso Fabio Grosso (; born 28 November 1977) is an Italian former professional footballer and current manager of Frosinone Calcio. After playing for several smaller Italian clubs, such as Renato Curi, Chieti and Perugia, he made his breakthrough duri ...
being crowned 2006 World Cup winners. A number of impressive signings were made to establish an ambitious team, and a good beginning in the 2006–07 campaign appeared initially to confirm this. An 11-game winless streak, however, forced Palermo to fall down from third to seventh place, ending the season in fifth place and ensuring another
UEFA Cup A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, china, clay ...
qualification. The club successively established as a force in the mid-table part of the Serie A league, also winning a
Campionato Nazionale Primavera The Campionato Nazionale Primavera – Trofeo Giacinto Facchetti, was an Italian football youth competition. It is organised by the Lega Serie A and the participating teams that take part in Serie A and Serie B: the first edition was held in th ...
national title in 2009. The following season started with new manager
Walter Zenga Walter Zenga (; born 28 April 1960) is an Italian football manager and former player who last managed Serie A club Cagliari. He was a long-time goalkeeper for Inter Milan and the Italian national team. During his playing career, Zenga was pa ...
, whose appointment from Sicilian arch-rivals Catania was greeted with surprise and dismay from supporters of both parties; Zenga's reign, however, lasted only 13 games, as he was dismissed on 23 November 2009 due to poor performances, ironically after a 1–1 home tie to Sicilian rivals and Zenga's former team, Catania, with former Lazio boss Delio Rossi being appointed at his place. Under the tutelage of Delio Rossi, results dramatically improved, and Palermo established a record of seven consecutive home wins, including wins against Italian giants
Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city ...
and Juventus, and emerging as serious contenders for a Champions League spot, which they ultimately lost to Sampdoria by only one point. Such season also launched new emerging stars such as midfielder
Javier Pastore Javier Matías Pastore (; born 20 June 1989) is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for Qatar SC. Pastore began his club career with Talleres and then Huracán in his native Argentina before moving to ...
and goalkeeper
Salvatore Sirigu Salvatore Sirigu (, ; born 12 January 1987) is an Italian professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for club Fiorentina and the Italy national team. Sirigu began his career with Venezia, and then Palermo. In 2011, he moved to Paris S ...
, who went on to become integral part of their respective international teams. The 2010–11 season started with Delio Rossi still in charge of the club, and also marked Palermo's return into continental football in the form of the
UEFA Europa League The UEFA Europa League (abbreviated as UEL, or sometimes, UEFA EL), formerly the UEFA Cup, is an annual football club competition organised since 1971 by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European football clubs. ...
. Palermo reached their third Coppa Italia finals after defeating Milan 4–3 on aggregate on 10 May 2011, losing 3–1 to Internazionale in the final, in what is considered one of the peak moments of Zamparini's period at the club.


Zamparini's later years and Serie B return (2011–2018)

For the 2011–12 season, Delio Rossi was replaced by former
Chievo Chievo (4,500 inhabitants) is a frazione of Verona located to the west of the city, around from the historic city centre, on the shores of the river Adige. It is best known for its football team, A.C. ChievoVerona, which competes in the second ...
boss
Stefano Pioli Stefano Pioli (; born 20 October 1965) is an Italian football manager and a former footballer who played as a defender. He is the head coach at Serie A club AC Milan, whom he led to the Serie A title in 2022. Playing career Pioli, a native of ...
, who was, however, sacked before the Serie A kickoff after being eliminated by Swiss minnows
FC Thun Fussballclub Thun 1898 is a Swiss football team from the Bernese Oberland town of Thun. The club plays in the Swiss Challenge League, the second tier of the Swiss football league system, following relegation from the Swiss Super League in ...
in the Europa League third preliminary round; new head coach
Devis Mangia Devis Mangia (; born 6 June 1974) is an Italian association football manager, most recently in charge of the Malta national football team. Managing career Early years Mangia started his coaching career at age 30, working alongside Sean Sogliano ...
, with no managerial experience other than at youth team and minor league level; despite that, Mangia turned Palermo fortunes by leading the ''Rosanero'' in fifth place thanks to an impressive string of six consecutive home wins, thus deserving a long-term deal at the club. A string of poor results, however, led Palermo to three consecutive defeats, including elimination from the Coppa Italia and a disappointing loss in the Sicilian derby, persuading Zamparini to replace Mangia with the more experienced Bortolo Mutti. Palermo arrived 16th in that season. For the 2012–13 season, Zamparini came with another staff revolution, appointing Giorgio Perinetti as the new director of football and
Giuseppe Sannino Giuseppe "Beppe" Sannino (born 30 April 1957) is an Italian professional football manager and former player, currently in charge of Swiss 1. Liga club FC Paradiso. Playing career Born in Campania, Sannino relocated to Turin with his family afte ...
as the manager, both coming from Siena. A complete squad restructuring, a total five managerial changes and some staff changes (including a short stint with Pietro Lo Monaco as sports director) did not help, and Palermo ended its season in 18th place, being thus relegated to Serie B after nine consecutive seasons in the top flight. For the new Serie B campaign, Zamparini appointed former Milan and Italy international star
Gennaro Gattuso Gennaro Ivan Gattuso (; born 9 January 1978) is an Italian professional football coach and former player, who currently serves as manager of La Liga club Valencia. He was born in Corigliano (Calabria). As a player, he mainly played in the cent ...
as the new manager, despite him having little prior managerial experience; he was sacked in September 2013, the 28th sacked manager in 11 years. Fortune was reversed rather rapidly, however, as Palermo regained promotion back to Serie A for the 2014–15 season under the guidance of new head coach
Giuseppe Iachini Giuseppe Iachini (; born 7 May 1964) is an Italian professional football manager and former player who most recently managed Serie B club Parma. He played as a midfielder. Club career Iachini was born in Ascoli Piceno. He started his playing car ...
, with the ''Rosanero'' completing a record-breaking Serie B season with 86 points, one more than previous record holders Juventus,
Chievo Chievo (4,500 inhabitants) is a frazione of Verona located to the west of the city, around from the historic city centre, on the shores of the river Adige. It is best known for its football team, A.C. ChievoVerona, which competes in the second ...
and Sassuolo (all of them in the 22-team Serie B format). With Iachini confirmed in charge, Palermo played a rather successful
2014–15 Serie A The 2014–15 Serie A (known as the Serie A TIM for sponsorship reasons) was the 113th season of top-tier Italian football, the 83rd in a round-robin tournament, and the fifth since its organization under a league committee separate from Serie ...
season, narrowly missing on a UEFA Europa League spot also thanks to the all-Argentine striking force of Paulo Dybala and
Franco Vázquez Franco Damián Vázquez (; born 22 February 1989) is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for Serie B club Parma and the Argentina national team. Beginning his career with Argentine club Belgrano in 2007, V� ...
. In 2015–16 season, Palermo started their season without Dybala after the youngster moved to Juventus; the ''Rosanero'' therefore relied on senior striker
Alberto Gilardino Alberto Gilardino (; born 5 July 1982) is an Italian professional football manager and a former player who played as a striker. He is currently in charge as caretaker of Genoa, a club he was contracted with on July 2022 as a youth coach. A ...
to play as a partner of Vázquez. Another long list of managerial changes during the season (seven in total, with
Davide Ballardini Davide Ballardini (born 6 January 1964) is an Italian football manager. He formerly played professionally for Cesena as a midfielder. He is currently the head coach of club Cremonese. Playing career A former midfielder, Ballardini spent seven ...
as the final one) marked a very troublesome season, during which Palermo escaped relegation on the last day of the league with the necessary win over Hellas Verona 3–2, securing 16th place. For the 2016–17 season, Zamparini re-appointed Rino Foschi as director of football; he however resigned after just a month in charge and was replaced by former Trapani director Daniele Faggiano. Most senior players such as Gilardino, Sorrentino, Vázquez and Maresca were sold and mostly replaced with Alessandro Diamanti plus a number of young and quasi-unknown foreign players. Ballardini, who was originally confirmed as head coach, left his position after a draw at
Inter Milan Football Club Internazionale Milano, commonly referred to as Internazionale () or simply Inter, and colloquially known as Inter Milan in English-speaking countries, is an Italian professional football club based in Milan, Lombardy. Inter i ...
at the second matchday of the season and was replaced with Serie A newbie
Roberto De Zerbi Roberto De Zerbi (; born 6 June 1979) is an Italian professional football manager and former player who is the head coach of club Brighton & Hove Albion. Playing career De Zerbi started his professional career at AC Milan. He spent four season ...
who ended his stay after seven league losses in a row, with former club captain
Eugenio Corini Eugenio Corini (born 30 July 1970) is an Italian professional football coach and former player, currently in charge of Serie B club Palermo. A talented, dynamic, and hard-working playmaker, known for his precise long passing, flair, and his ...
taking over. More managerial and staff changes followed with little luck and, on 27 February 2017, Zamparini stepped down as chairman of Palermo after 15 years in charge, announcing he had agreed in principle to sell his controlling stake to an unspecified Anglo-American fund, led by Italian-American
Paul Baccaglini Paul Baccaglini is an Italian American entrepreneur, investor, and former chairman of U.S. Città di Palermo, football (soccer) club based in Palermo, Italy. Baccaglini is an eccentric personality, known for his career in television. In 2017 ...
who was named new club president on 6 March. Palermo ended the season in 19th place, being relegated to Serie B. The takeover, originally scheduled to be finalized by 30 April 2017 and then delayed by 30 June, eventually collapsed after Zamparini, who in the meantime had appointed Bruno Tedino as new head coach for the
2017–18 Serie B The 2017–18 Serie B (known as the Serie B ConTe.it for sponsorship reasons) was the 86th season since its establishment in 1929. A total of 22 teams contested the league: 15 returning from the 2016–17 Serie B season, 4 promoted from 2016– ...
campaign, rejected the final offer he received from Baccaglini. On 4 July 2017, Baccaglini resigned as Palermo chairman, falling back into the hands of Zamparini, after the necessary funds were not in place. Palermo's campaign in the
2017–18 Serie B The 2017–18 Serie B (known as the Serie B ConTe.it for sponsorship reasons) was the 86th season since its establishment in 1929. A total of 22 teams contested the league: 15 returning from the 2016–17 Serie B season, 4 promoted from 2016– ...
aimed for an immediate return to the top flight, with Bruno Tedino as head coach and Fabio Lupo as director of football. Initially, the team's form was good and the ''Rosanero'' ended the first half of the season in first place; however, a string of negative results led to the appointment of new manager Roberto Stellone, who was ultimately unable to win promotion, ending the regular season in fourth place and eventually losing the playoff finals to
Frosinone Frosinone (, local dialect: ) is a town and ''comune'' in Lazio, central Italy, the administrative seat of the province of Frosinone. It is located about south-east of Rome close to the Rome-Naples A1 Motorway. The city is the main city of the ...
.


New ownerships, financial issues and Serie B exclusion (2018–2019)

For the
2018–19 Serie B The 2018–19 Serie B (known as Serie BKT for sponsorship reasons) was the 87th season of Serie B in Italy since its establishment in 1929. A total of 19 teams contested in the 2018–19 season, instead of the usual 22 teams, due to the exclus ...
season, Palermo (with Rino Foschi back for a third time as sporting director) found themselves having to sell a number of players for financial reasons. On 22 November 2018, the club formally confirmed a takeover agreement between Zamparini and an undisclosed investor, later confirmed to be the
London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
based Sport Capital Group Investments Ltd., with English businessman Clive Richardson, head of the new group, being named as new club chairman. Following a January 2019 transfer window with no signings at all and serious tensions within the board, Clive Richardson (chairman) and John Treacy (director) both resigned from the club with immediate effect on 4 February 2019, citing that the full nature of the serious financial situation at the club had not been fully disclosed to them at the time of their purchase. Days later, the club was acquired for a nominal fee by Daniela De Angeli (former managing director from the Zamparini days) and Rino Foschi (appointed as chairman), only for them to sell it again to hotel and tourism company Arkus Network S.r.l. later in May. The new owner, Sporting Network S.r.l., subscribed a €5 million capital increase to the club. At the end of the
2018–19 Serie B The 2018–19 Serie B (known as Serie BKT for sponsorship reasons) was the 87th season of Serie B in Italy since its establishment in 1929. A total of 19 teams contested in the 2018–19 season, instead of the usual 22 teams, due to the exclus ...
, Palermo finished in third place with 63 points but was demoted by
FIGC 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. I ...
to last place in Serie B on 13 May due to serious financial irregularities, which meant relegation 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 P ...
for the following season. The club appealed to
FIGC 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. I ...
against this ruling and were successful in having the penalty revised; rather than automatic demotion, the club was merely docked 20 points instead, which consequently placed them in a comfortable mid-table eleventh position. However, on 24 June 2019, Palermo incorrectly submitted to
FIGC 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. I ...
their standard application for the following 2019–20 Serie B season, by failing to provide evidence of a valid insurance policy for the new season. A club trading with no insurance is an extremely serious breach of Italian company law, and as such
FIGC 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. I ...
had no alternative but to formally exclude the club not only from Serie B, but indeed all professional leagues, on 12 July 2019.


A fresh start, City Football Group ownership (2019–present)

On 23 July 2019, in compliance of
Article 52 of N.O.I.F. ("Article 52 of the Italian Football Federation regulations for internal organisation") governs the status of phoenix clubs in football in Italy. The article was revised in 2004, 2008, 2010 and 2014. Comma 1 describes the matter of the article, wh ...
, Mayor of Palermo Leoluca Orlando confirmed six declarations of interests had been presented for a new phoenix club to be admitted in
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 Dilettanti ...
, the highest level of non-professional football in Italy, for the 2019–20 season. The next day, Orlando announced his choice of a bid by a company named "Hera Hora srl", jointly owned by entrepreneurs Dario Mirri (a Palermo native, and
Renzo Barbera Renzo Barbera ( Palermo, 19 April 1920 – Palermo, 20 May 2002) was an Italian businessman and the chairman of Palermo Football Club from 1970 to 1980. He was nicknamed ''"Presidentissimo"'' and ''"The Last Leopard"''. During his presidency th ...
's nephew) and a Sicilian-American, Tony DiPiazza. Palermo completed their
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 Dilettanti ...
campaign in first place, and was awarded promotion to Serie C by the Italian Football Federation after all the amateur leagues were stopped in March 2020 due to the global
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
. On 16 July 2020, the club changed its name to Palermo Football Club. Palermo, under the guidance of
Silvio Baldini Silvio Baldini (born 11 September 1958 in Massa) is an Italian association football manager, last in charge of Serie B club Perugia. Career Early years Born in Massa but hailing from nearby Carrara, Baldini started his coaching career in 1984 ...
, concluded the
2021–22 Serie C The 2021–22 Serie C is the eighth season of the unified Serie C division, the third tier of the Italian football league system. Changes The league is composed by 60 teams, divided into three different groups. On 31 May 2021, the league committee ...
campaign in third place in the Group C, behind
Bari Bari ( , ; nap, label= Barese, Bare ; lat, Barium) is the capital city of the Metropolitan City of Bari and of the Apulia region, on the Adriatic Sea, southern Italy. It is the second most important economic centre of mainland Southern Ital ...
and
Catanzaro Catanzaro (, or ; scn, label= Catanzarese, Catanzaru ; , or , ''Katastaríoi Lokrói''; ; la, Catacium), also known as the "City of the two Seas", is an Italian city of 86,183 inhabitants (2020), the capital of the Calabria region and of its p ...
, and then made it to the promotion playoff final after eliminating
Triestina Unione Sportiva Triestina Calcio 1918, commonly referred to as Triestina, is an Italian football club based in Trieste, Friuli-Venezia Giulia. Originally founded in 1918, the club has been re-established several times in its history. As of the ...
,
Virtus Entella Virtus Entella, commonly referred to as Entella, is an Italian professional football club based in Chiavari, Liguria. Founded in 1914, the club currently competes in the . History 1914: Foundation The club was founded in 1914 as Foot-Ball Club ...
and Feralpisalò in the process. On 12 June 2022, Palermo were promoted 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 ...
after defeating
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 ...
2–0 on aggregate, thus returning to the Italian second division just three years after having been excluded from the league. On 4 July 2022, at the presence of Manchester City F.C. CEO
Ferran Soriano Ferran Soriano i Compte (born 16 June 1967 in Barcelona) is a Spanish businessman who is the chief executive officer of the Premier League club Manchester City F.C. He also operates in the same role for Major League Soccer's New York City F.C. ...
, the club was formally announced to have been acquired by
City Football Group City Football Group Limited (CFG) is a holding company that administers association football clubs. The group is owned by three organisations; of which 81% is majority owned by Newton Investment and Development LLC, 18% by the American firm Si ...
, with outgoing owner Dario Mirri (who was confirmed as club chairman) keeping a 20% of the quotes.


Colours and badge

The new official badge as of 2019 is a white eagle's head and three pink/black feathers within a black stylized letter 'P'. The eagle represents the city of Palermo, as it is also part of the city's official coat of arms. This new badge replaced the long-standing badge of the previous formation of the club, an escutcheon with an eagle poised for flight within it, and the previous official club denomination "U.S. Città di Palermo" in
capital letters Letter case is the distinction between the letters that are in larger uppercase or capitals (or more formally ''majuscule'') and smaller lowercase (or more formally ''minuscule'') in the written representation of certain languages. The writin ...
on the top. From its foundation, Palermo originally played with a red and blue shirt as its official colours, but decided to switch to the unusual current choice of pink and black on 27 February 1907, contemporaneously with the change of denomination to "Palermo FootBall Club". The colour choice of pink and black was suggested by Count Giuseppe Airoldi, a prominent founding member of the club. In a personal letter Airoldi wrote on 2 February 1905 to English club councillor
Joseph Whitaker Joseph Whitaker may refer to: * Joseph Whitaker (industrialist) (1789–1870), American iron master and landowner * Joseph Whitaker (naturalist) (1850–1932), English naturalist *Joseph Whitaker (ornithologist) (1850–1936), Sicilian-English orni ...
, he defined pink and black poetically as "colours of the sad and the sweet", a choice he amusingly asserted to be suited for a team characterised by "results as up and down as a Swiss clock", noting also the fact that red and blue were a very commonly used choice of colours around Italy at the time. The club had to wait for their new jerseys for three months, because no pink cotton
flannel Flannel is a soft woven fabric, of various fineness. Flannel was originally made from carded wool or worsted yarn, but is now often made from either wool, cotton, or synthetic fiber. Flannel is commonly used to make tartan clothing, blankets, ...
material was available in Palermo and the appointed tailoring company could only find suitable material from England and had to import it from there. The vivid new shirts were first worn in a friendly match against Sir Thomas Lipton's crew team; the match ended in a 2–1 win for Palermo. From 1936 to 1940, the team were forced to play in red and yellow jerseys due to an imposition by the fascist regime of
Benito Mussolini Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (; 29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who founded and led the National Fascist Party. He was Prime Minister of Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 until his deposition in ...
(red and yellow being the official colours of the municipality of Palermo.) When the club was refounded in 1941 following a merger with Juventina Palermo, they started dressing in light blue shirts on the pitch, but switched back to the very popular pink and black only one year later.


Shirt sponsors and manufacturers


Stadium

Palermo plays its home matches at
Stadio Renzo Barbera Stadio Renzo Barbera (commonly known as La Favorita) is a football stadium in Palermo, Italy. It is currently the home stadium of Palermo F.C. team. The stadium was inaugurated during the fascist era on 24 January 1932, and was originally nam ...
. The stadium was opened in 1932, during the fascist regime, with the name ''Stadio Littorio'' (after the Italian name for the
fasces Fasces ( ; ; a '' plurale tantum'', from the Latin word '' fascis'', meaning "bundle"; it, fascio littorio) is a bound bundle of wooden rods, sometimes including an axe (occasionally two axes) with its blade emerging. The fasces is an Italian sym ...
symbol). The inaugural match, won by Palermo 5–1, was played on 24 January 1932 against
Atalanta Atalanta (; grc-gre, Ἀταλάντη, Atalantē) meaning "equal in weight", is a heroine in Greek mythology. There are two versions of the huntress Atalanta: one from Arcadia, whose parents were Iasus and Clymene and who is primarily kno ...
. In 1936, the Littorio was renamed ''Stadio Michele Marrone'' after a fascist soldier who died in the
Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlism, Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebeli ...
. Initially the stadium featured a running track and no spectator space behind the goals, only terraces and a stand along the side. In 1948, following the end of World War II and the fall of the fascist regime, the stadium was renamed ''Stadio La Favorita'', after the Favorita neighbourhood where it was located. It was also restructured to remove the running track and add two curved end sections, increasing its capacity to 30,000. In 1984 it was enlarged to 50,000. The new capacity was reached only twice: for a
Serie C1 Lega Pro Prima Divisione was the third highest football league in Italy. It consisted of 33 teams, divided geographically into two divisions of 16 and 17 teams for group A and B respectively. Until 2008 it was known as Serie C1. Before the 1978 ...
league match against Sicilian rivals
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 t ...
and for a friendly match against Juventus. On the occasion of the
1990 FIFA World Cup The 1990 FIFA World Cup was the 14th FIFA World Cup, a quadrennial football tournament for men's senior national teams. It was held from 8 June to 8 July 1990 in Italy, the second country to host the event for a second time (the first being ...
, the stadium was renovated, some new seats added, but the overall capacity reduced to 37,619. During the 1989 renovation works, five employees died following the collapse of a section of the stadium. In 2002 the stadium was renamed in honour of
Renzo Barbera Renzo Barbera ( Palermo, 19 April 1920 – Palermo, 20 May 2002) was an Italian businessman and the chairman of Palermo Football Club from 1970 to 1980. He was nicknamed ''"Presidentissimo"'' and ''"The Last Leopard"''. During his presidency th ...
, legendary Palermo chairman in the 1970s. In 2007 Palermo chairman and owner
Maurizio Zamparini Maurizio Zamparini (9 June 1941 – 1 February 2022) was an Italian businessman. He was the owner and director of football club U.S. Città di Palermo between July 2002 – February 2017 and from July 2017 – December 2018. Biography Zampar ...
announced plans to move the club to a new state-of-the-art stadium possibly to be located in the ''ZEN'' neighbourhood of Palermo not far from the
Velodromo Paolo Borsellino Velodromo Paolo Borsellino is a multi-use stadium in Palermo, Italy, located in the ZEN (Palermo), ''ZEN'' neighbourhood of the city, and currently home to local American football club Sharks Palermo and rugby football club Palermo Rugby 2005. It ...
, a smaller stadium which had previously hosted some Palermo matches.


Supporters

The majority of Palermo supporters come from the city and its neighbourhood. However, Palermo is also widely popular throughout Western Sicily, as well as among Sicilian immigrants in northern Italy, For example, a number of Palermo fans living in and around the German city of Solingen have even founded a club named ''FC Rosaneri'' in honour of Palermo which, as of 2007, plays in the Kreisliga B league. Support for Palermo is traditionally closely associated with a strong sense of Sicilian identity; indeed, it is not uncommon to see Sicilian flags waved by fans and
ultras Ultras are a type of association football fans who are renowned for their fanatical support. The term originated in Italy, but is used worldwide to describe predominantly organised fans of association football teams. The behavioural tende ...
during Palermo matches. Palermo fans are also twinned with
Lecce Lecce ( ); el, label= Griko, Luppìu, script=Latn; la, Lupiae; grc, Λουπίαι, translit=Loupíai), group=pron is a historic city of 95,766 inhabitants (2015) in southern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Lecce, the provi ...
ultras. This friendship was strengthened by the acquisition of Fabrizio Miccoli, who is originally from the city of Lecce and a well-known Lecce supporter who went on to become captain of Palermo and also the club's most prolific player, setting records for: most Serie A league goals (74, from 2007 to 2013); most goals in all competitions (81, from 2007 to 2013); and most Serie A league appearances (165, from 2007 to 2013). Palermo's biggest rivals are fellow islanders
Catania Catania (, , Sicilian and ) is the second largest municipality in Sicily, after Palermo. Despite its reputation as the second city of the island, Catania is the largest Sicilian conurbation, among the largest in Italy, as evidenced also b ...
. Matches between Palermo and Catania are usually referred to as Sicilian derbies, despite the existence of a third Sicilian team,
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 t ...
, who played in Serie A alongside Palermo and Catania in recent years. Rivalry with Messina, although historically older, is generally less intense than that with Catania. The 2006–07 return match between Palermo and Catania, played on 2 February 2007 at
Stadio Angelo Massimino Stadio Angelo Massimino (previously known as Stadio Cibali) is a multi-use stadium in Catania, Italy. It is used mostly for football matches and the home of Calcio Catania. The stadium was built in 1935 by architect Raffaele Leone on behalf of t ...
,
Catania Catania (, , Sicilian and ) is the second largest municipality in Sicily, after Palermo. Despite its reputation as the second city of the island, Catania is the largest Sicilian conurbation, among the largest in Italy, as evidenced also b ...
, is remembered due to the death of policeman
Filippo Raciti On 2 February 2007, football violence occurred between football supporters and the police in Catania, Sicily, Italy. The clashes occurred during and after the Serie A match between the Catania and Palermo football clubs, also known as the Sicil ...
who was injured during riots between the local police and the Catania supporters. According to a survey of 2008, the team has about 1.47 million fans domestically, placing it among the top ten best-supported Italian teams. For example, at the Coppa Italia final played in Rome on 29 May 2011 against Inter, which Palermo lost 3–1, it was estimated that there were 25,000 - 35,000 fans from Palermo, easily outnumbering the ''Nerazzurri'' fans present.


Players


Current squad


Out on loan


Former players

In 2020, as part of the celebrations for the club's 120th anniversary, Palermo announced a
hall of fame A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actual halls or muse ...
selection, with eleven players and a manager selected from a list of over 100 proposals. The most voted players were: *
Stefano Sorrentino Stefano Sorrentino (born 28 March 1979) is an Italian former footballer. A professional goalkeeper for his whole career, he is currently a football agent, as well as owner/chairman of Chieri in the Serie D league. Sorrentino played for several ...
* Federico Balzaretti * Andrea Barzagli *
Fabio Grosso Fabio Grosso (; born 28 November 1977) is an Italian former professional footballer and current manager of Frosinone Calcio. After playing for several smaller Italian clubs, such as Renato Curi, Chieti and Perugia, he made his breakthrough duri ...
*
Eugenio Corini Eugenio Corini (born 30 July 1970) is an Italian professional football coach and former player, currently in charge of Serie B club Palermo. A talented, dynamic, and hard-working playmaker, known for his precise long passing, flair, and his ...
*
Josip Iličić Josip Iličić (; born 29 January 1988) is a Slovenian professional footballer who plays as a forward for Slovenian PrvaLiga club Maribor. Iličić began his professional career with Slovenian club Bonifika, later also playing for Interblock ...
*
Javier Pastore Javier Matías Pastore (; born 20 June 1989) is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for Qatar SC. Pastore began his club career with Talleres and then Huracán in his native Argentina before moving to ...
*
Lamberto Zauli Lamberto Zauli (born 19 July 1971) is an Italian professional football coach and former player who is the head coach of club Crotone. As a player, he spent his career as an attacking midfielder, but was also capable of playing on the left win ...
* Paulo Dybala * Fabrizio Miccoli *
Luca Toni Luca Toni (; born 26 May 1977) is an Italian former professional footballer who played as a striker. A prolific goalscorer, Toni scored over 300 goals throughout his career, and is one of the top-five highest scoring Italians in all competition ...


Club officials


Board of directors

* Last updated: 7 August 2022 * Source: Board of directors


Current technical staff

* Last updated: 7 August 2022 * Source: Technical staff


Managers

In 2020, as part of the celebrations for the club's 120th anniversary, Palermo announced a
hall of fame A hall, wall, or walk of fame is a list of individuals, achievements, or other entities, usually chosen by a group of electors, to mark their excellence or fame in their field. In some cases, these halls of fame consist of actual halls or muse ...
selection, asking their supporters to select the best manager in the club's history among a list of successful ones from the past. The best manager in the club's history was selected to be
Francesco Guidolin Francesco Guidolin (; born 3 October 1955) is an Italian football manager and former player, most recently the manager of Premier League team Swansea City. He has coached various Italian club sides in Serie A, winning the 1996–97 Coppa Ital ...
, who led Palermo to win promotion to Serie A in 2004 after a 31-year absence, and sixth place in the top flight (best result in the club's history) and consequent first ever European qualification the year after. Other candidates for all-time manager were (in order of votes): * Delio Rossi *
Giuseppe Iachini Giuseppe Iachini (; born 7 May 1964) is an Italian professional football manager and former player who most recently managed Serie B club Parma. He played as a midfielder. Club career Iachini was born in Ascoli Piceno. He started his playing car ...
* Ignazio Arcoleo *
Čestmír Vycpálek Čestmír Vycpálek ( Prague, 15 May 1921 – Palermo, 5 May 2002) was a Czech football player and manager who played as a midfielder. He was an uncle of noted football manager Zdeněk Zeman. Playing career A good right winger, Vycpálek mov ...
* Fernando Veneranda * Giuseppe Caramanno * Rosario Pergolizzi * Corrado Viciani * Carmelo Di Bella * Gipo Viani * Benigno De Grandi


Chairmen history

Over the years Palermo has had various owners and chairmen; here is a chronological list of the known chairmen: * Edward De Garston ''(1900–1903)'' * Barone Michele Vannucci ''(1903–1904)'' * Cavaliere Ignazio Majo Pagano ''(1904–1908)'' * Barone Roberto Pottino ''(1908–1915)'' * Valentino Colombo ''(1920–1923)'' * Cavaliere Michele Utveggio ''(1923–1925)'' * Valentino Colombo ''(1925–1926)'' * Conte Liotta di Lemos ''(1928)'' * Barone Giovanni Sergio ''(1928)'' * Conte Guido Airoldi ''(1928–1929)'' * Barone Luigi Bordonaro di Gebbiarossa ''(1929–1931)'' * Francesco Paolo Barresi ''(1931–1933)'' * Cavaliere Giovanni Lo Casto Valenti ''(1933–1934)'' * Valentino Colombo ''(1934–1935)'' * Giovanni De Luca ''(1935)'' * Luigi Majo Pagano ''(1935–1936)'' * Valentino Colombo ''(1936–1937)'' * Paolo Di Pietra ''(1937–1938)'' * Salvatore Barbaro ''(1938–1940)'' * Duilio Lanni ''(1941–1942)'' * Giuseppe Agnello ''(1942–1947)'' * Stefano La Motta ''(1947–1948)'' * Giuseppe Guazzardella ''(1948–1951)'' *
Raimondo Lanza di Trabia Raimondo Lanza di Trabia ( Arcellasco, 11 September 1915 – Rome, 30 November 1954) was an Italian nobleman, soldier and sportsman. Member of an important Sicilian noble family, he was chairman of the football team Palermo Football Club from ...
''(1951–1952)'' * Barone Carlo La Lomia ''(1952–1953)'' *
Mario Fasino Mario Fasino (26 July 1920 – 17 January 2017) was an Italian politician, journalist, and one of the co-founders of Christian Democratic Party (DC) in Sicily. He served as the President of the region of Sicily from 20 September 1969 until 22 De ...
''(1953–1954)'' * Ernesto Pivetti ''(1954–1955)'' * Giuseppe Trapani ''(1955)'' * Conte Arturo Cassina ''(1955–1956)'' * Giuseppe Seminara ''(1956–1957)'' * Casimiro Vizzini ''(1957–1963)'' * Conte Guglielmo Pinzero ''(1963–1964)'' * Ernesto Di Fresco, Luigi Barbaccia, Franz Gorgone ''(1964)'' * Casimiro Vizzini ''(1964)'' * Conte Guglielmo Pinzero ''(1964)'' * Totò Vilardo ''(1964–1965)'' * Franco Spagnolo ''(1965)'' * Franz Gorgone ''(1965)'' * Luigi Gioia ''(1965)'' * Giuseppe Pergolizzi ''(1967–1970)'' *
Renzo Barbera Renzo Barbera ( Palermo, 19 April 1920 – Palermo, 20 May 2002) was an Italian businessman and the chairman of Palermo Football Club from 1970 to 1980. He was nicknamed ''"Presidentissimo"'' and ''"The Last Leopard"''. During his presidency th ...
''(1970–1980)'' * Gaspare Gambino ''(1980–1982)'' * Roberto Parisi ''(1982–1985)'' * Salvatore Matta ''(1985–1986)'' * Salvino Lagumina ''(1987–1989)'' * Giovanni Ferrara ''(1989–1993)'' * Liborio Polizzi ''(1993–1995)'' * Giovanni Ferrara ''(1995–2000)'' *
Sergio D'Antoni Sergio Antonio D'Antoni (born 10 December 1946 in Caltanissetta) is an Italian politician, syndicalist and sports manager, current President of CONI Sicilia. Biography Graduated in law, D'Antoni became a researcher at the University of Pal ...
''(2000–2002)'' *
Maurizio Zamparini Maurizio Zamparini (9 June 1941 – 1 February 2022) was an Italian businessman. He was the owner and director of football club U.S. Città di Palermo between July 2002 – February 2017 and from July 2017 – December 2018. Biography Zampar ...
''(2002–2017)'' *
Paul Baccaglini Paul Baccaglini is an Italian American entrepreneur, investor, and former chairman of U.S. Città di Palermo, football (soccer) club based in Palermo, Italy. Baccaglini is an eccentric personality, known for his career in television. In 2017 ...
''(2017)'' * Giovanni Giammarva ''(2017-2018)'' * Clive Richardson ''(2018-2019)'' * Rino Foschi ''(2019)'' * Alessandro Albanese ''(2019)'' * Dario Mirri ''(2019–)''


Honours

*
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 ...
**Champions (5): 1931–32, 1947–48, 1967–68, 2003–04, 2013–14 *
Serie C1 Lega Pro Prima Divisione was the third highest football league in Italy. It consisted of 33 teams, divided geographically into two divisions of 16 and 17 teams for group A and B respectively. Until 2008 it was known as Serie C1. Before the 1978 ...
**Champions (4): 1941–42, 1945–46,
1992–93 Year 199 ( CXCIX) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was sometimes known as year 952 '' Ab urbe condita''. The denomination 199 for this year has been used since t ...
, 2000–01 *
Serie C2 Lega Pro Seconda Divisione was the fourth highest football league in Italy, the lowest with a professional status. Usually it consisted of 36 teams, but in the 2011–12 season, there were 41 teams divided geographically into two divisions of 2 ...
**Champions (1): 1987–88 *
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 Dilettanti ...
**Champions (1): 2019–20 *''
Prima Divisione Prima Divisione (''First Division'') was the name of the first level of the Italian Football Championship from 1921 to 1926. The competition was initially founded in opposition to the FIGC by the richest clubs of Northern Italy, which disagreed the ...
'' **Champions (1): 1929–30 *
Coppa Italia Serie C Coppa Italia Serie C ( it, Serie C Italian Cup), formerly named Coppa Italia Lega Pro, is a straight knock-out based competition involving teams from Serie C in Italian football first held in 1972. Format There are a total of six rounds in the ...
**Winners (1): 1992–93


Other Titles

*
Coppa Federale Siciliana Coppa Federale Siciliana (which translates as the Sicilian Federal Cup) was a Sicilian football competition which took place during May 1920. The tournament took place just once, in the aftermath of World War I. The winners of the competition were ...
:*Winners (1): 1920 *Whitaker Challenge Cup :*Winners (1): 1908 *
Lipton Challenge Cup The Lipton Challenge Cup also known as Coppa Lipton was a football competition competed between clubs from Southern Italy and Sicily. It was played during the period leading up to World War I when football in the country was still in its infancy ...
:*Winners (5): 1910, 1912, 1913, 1914, 1915 *Torneo di Tunisi **Winners (1): 1923 * Campionato Primavera: **Winners (1): 2008–09 *
Campionato Nazionale Dante Berretti Campionato Primavera 3, formerly Campionato Nazionale Dante Berretti (or simply ''Campionato Berretti''), is an Italian football competition played by youth teams (under 19) organized by the Lega Pro, and mainly composed by Serie C clubs but also ...
: **Winners (1): 2000–01 *Coppa Allievi Professionisti: **Winners (1): 1997–98 *Campionato Giovanissimi Regionali: **Winners (2): 2011–12, 2012–13


Records

*Most appearances in all competitions – 372, Roberto Biffi (1988–1999) *Most European appearances – 15, Andrea Barzagli,
Franco Brienza Franco Brienza (; born 19 March 1979) is an Italian former professional footballer who played as a forward or attacking midfielder. Throughout his career, he played for several Italian clubs, but is mainly known for his time with Palermo. At in ...
and
Mattia Cassani Mattia Cassani (; born 26 August 1983) is an Italian footballer who last played as a defender for Bari. Club career Juventus Cassani started his career at Juventus during the 2002–03 Serie A season, and then left for Sampdoria on loan in Ja ...
*Most Serie A league appearances – 165, Fabrizio Miccoli (2007–2013) *Most league goals – 74, Fabrizio Miccoli (2007–2013) *Most Serie A league goals – 74, Fabrizio Miccoli (2007–2013) *Most Coppa Italia cup goals – 7,
Massimo De Stefanis Massimo, also Massimino, and Massimine () is a masculine Italian given name. Notable people with the name include: Given name: * Massimo Agostinelli (Max Agos) (born 1987), Swiss based Italian American artist, entrepreneur and activist * Massimo A ...
(1979–1984) *Most Europa League/UEFA Cup goals – 4,
Franco Brienza Franco Brienza (; born 19 March 1979) is an Italian former professional footballer who played as a forward or attacking midfielder. Throughout his career, he played for several Italian clubs, but is mainly known for his time with Palermo. At in ...
(2000–2013),
Abel Hernández Abel Mathías Hernández Platero (born 8 August 1990) is a Uruguayan professional footballer who plays as a striker for Liga MX club Atlético San Luis. Hernández began his career with Central Español and Peñarol, and spent five-and-a-half ...
(2009–2014) *Most goals in all competitions – 81, Fabrizio Miccoli (2007–2013) *Most goals in a season – 30,
Luca Toni Luca Toni (; born 26 May 1977) is an Italian former professional footballer who played as a striker. A prolific goalscorer, Toni scored over 300 goals throughout his career, and is one of the top-five highest scoring Italians in all competition ...
(2003–2004) *Current player with most appearances – 78, Roberto Floriano (as of 12 June 2022) *Biggest win and biggest home win in Serie A – 8–0 (''v.'' Pro Patria, 5 November 1950) *Biggest away win – 8–1 (''v.''
Potenza Potenza (, also , ; , Potentino dialect: ''Putenz'') is a ''comune'' in the Southern Italian region of Basilicata (former Lucania). Capital of the Province of Potenza and the Basilicata region, the city is the highest regional capital and one ...
, 1 March 1942) *Biggest defeat and biggest away defeat – 0–9 (''v.''
Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city ...
, 18 February 1951) *Biggest home defeat – 0–7 (''v.''
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 ...
, 27 February 2011) *Highest number of points in Serie A league – 65 pt. ( 2009–10) 5th position *Best series without home defeats – 26 (Palermo–Lecce 5–2, 15 March 2009 – Palermo–Cagliari 0–0, 29 August 2010) *Greatest series of consecutive victories in Serie A league – 5 ( 2006–07)


Competitions


League


National cups


International competitions


In Europe


UEFA Cup / UEFA Europa League


References


Bibliography

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External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Palermo Football clubs in Italy Football clubs in Sicily Association football clubs established in 1900 Serie B clubs 1900 establishments in Italy Phoenix clubs (association football) Coppa Italia Serie C winning clubs 2022 mergers and acquisitions