![Udinese through the ages](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/65/Udinese_through_the_ages.jpg)
Udinese Calcio, commonly referred to as Udinese, is a professional
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 based in
Udine
Udine ( , ; fur, Udin; la, Utinum) is a city and ''comune'' in north-eastern Italy, in the middle of the Friuli Venezia Giulia region, between the Adriatic Sea and the Alps (''Alpi Carniche''). Its population was 100,514 in 2012, 176,000 with t ...
,
Friuli-Venezia Giulia, that currently plays in
Serie A
The Serie A (), also called Serie A TIM for national sponsorship with TIM, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and the winner is awarded the Scudetto and the Cop ...
. It was founded on 30 November 1896 as a sports club, and on 5 July 1911 as a football club.
The traditional team home kit is black and white striped shirt, black shorts, and white socks. The club broadcasts on channel 110 (
Udinese Channel) on
digital terrestrial television
Digital terrestrial television (DTTV or DTT, or DTTB with "broadcasting") is a technology for terrestrial television in which land-based (terrestrial) television stations broadcast television content by radio waves to televisions in consumers' ...
in the north-east of Italy. It has many fans in
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 ...
and the surrounding areas.
History
Foundation and early years
Udinese Calcio was established in 1896 as part of the ''Società Udinese di Ginnastica e Scherma'', (Udinese Society of Gymnastics and Fencing). In its inaugural year, the club won the Torneo FNGI in
Treviso
Treviso ( , ; vec, Trevixo) is a city and '' comune'' in the Veneto region of northern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Treviso and the municipality has 84,669 inhabitants (as of September 2017). Some 3,000 live within the Ven ...
beating Ferrara 2–0; however this title is not recognised as official.
On 5 July 1911, some gymnasts of Udinese, headed by Luigi Dal Dan, founded the A.C. Udinese, which joined the
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.
It ...
. The new side made its debut in a friendly match against Juventus Palmanova, and won 6–0.
It was only in
1912–13 that Udinese first took part in an official FIGC championship. In that year they enrolled in the ''Campionato Veneto di Promozione'', which consisted of just three teams (the others were Petrarca and Padova). With two victories against Padova (3–1 and 5–0), Udinese finished the tournament in second place behind Petrarca and were promoted to first-level
Prima Categoria
The Prima Categoria is a level of football in Italy. It is the seventh level (since 2014–15) in the Italian football league system and is organized by the National Amateur League by the Regional Committees. Each individual league winner within ...
. In Prima Categoria, Udinese failed to reach the national stage, always knocked out in the ''Eliminatoria Veneta''.
1920s: Coppa Italia final
The
1920–21 season, which ended with the Friulani eliminated in the ''Eliminatoria Veneta'', was memorable because it was the debut of Gino Bellotto, who is still the player who has played the most seasons with Udinese, spending 17 seasons with the ''Zebrette''.
In 1922, Udinese, taking advantage of the absence of big clubs, entered the
FIGC Italian Football Championship and reached 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 ...
final losing 1–0 against
Vado, thanks to an overtime goal.
In the league, Udinese finished second in ''Girone Eliminatorio Veneto'', which allowed them to remain in the top flight for the next season, despite a reform of the championships that reduced the number of teams in the competition.
The
1922–23 season was a disastrous one for Udinese, as they came last in and were relegated to the second division. The team risked failure for debts in 1923. On 24 August 1923, AS Udinese separated from AC Udinese Friuli, and the club was forced to set up a budget and an autonomous board. All debts were paid by President Alessandro Del Torso through the sale of some of his paintings and Udinese could thus join the
Second Division
In sport, the Second Division, also called Division 2 or Division II is usually the second highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Following the rise of Premier League style compet ...
in which they came fourth.
The 1924–25 season was memorable. The team was included in Group F II Division. The championship was very even and at the end of the tournament three teams were in contention to win: Udinese,
Vicenza
Vicenza ( , ; ) is a city in northeastern Italy. It is in the Veneto region at the northern base of the ''Monte Berico'', where it straddles the Bacchiglione River. Vicenza is approximately west of Venice and east of Milan.
Vicenza is a thr ...
and Olympia River. Playoffs were needed to determine who would reach the final round.
Udinese beat Olympia in a playoff 1–0 and drew 1–1 with Vicenza. In the play-off standings, Udinese and Vicenza were still in the lead with 3 points each. Another play-off was then played to determine the winner. After a first encounter finished 0–0, Udinese lost a replay 2–1 but were awarded the win as Vicenza fielded an ineligible player, a Hungarian called Horwart. Udinese reached the finals in place of Vicenza.
In the final round, Udinese finished first and was promoted, alongside
Parma
Parma (; egl, Pärma, ) is a city in the northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna known for its architecture, music, art, prosciutto (ham), cheese and surrounding countryside. With a population of 198,292 inhabitants, Parma is the second mos ...
, to
First Division. In the following season, Udinese finished 10th and was relegated again. However, the format of the championship was again reformed and Udinese had another chance to reclaim their place in the top flight. They competed in play-offs with seven other sides for the right to play in Serie A. The winner would remain in the top flight. The club, however, lost the playoff against Legnano and lost their place in the top flight.
They remained in Second Division until the end of the 1928–29 season when
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 ...
and
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 ...
were created, with Udinese falling into the third tier (Terza Serie). The first season in Terza Serie was a triumphant one and Udinese were promoted up to Serie B.
1930s and 1940s
The stay in Serie B lasted only two years, and after the 1931–32 season, the team returned to the third division. Udinese remained in the third tier (later renamed
Serie C
The Serie C () is the third-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie B and Serie A. The Lega Italiana Calcio Professionistico (Lega Pro) is the governing body that runs the Serie C.
The unification of the Lega Pro ...
in 1935) until 1938–39, when coming second in Girone Finale Nord di Serie C, they were promoted to Serie B.
The Zebrette remained in Serie B for a dozen years, with average performances and were relegated to Serie C at the end of the 1947–48 season due to a reform of the championships. This relegation, however, was followed by two consecutive promotions, and thanks to an excellent second-place finish in the
Serie B 1949-50
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 sets used in ...
, the Friulani won a historic promotion to
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 ...
.
1950s: second place in A, and relegation back to B
Udinese remained in Serie A for five seasons and almost claimed an historic Scudetto in the
1954–55 season, when they came second only behind
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 h ...
. It was after that season, however, that Udinese was relegated because of an offence committed on 31 May 1953, the last day of the championship, which was exposed two years later. The Friuliani returned to Serie A after one season in B and in the following season was confirmed among the best Italian teams with an excellent fourth-place finish.
1960s and 1970s
A decline followed those good seasons, however, with Udinese first relegated back down to Serie B in 1961–62 and then to Serie C in 1963–64. Udinese remained in C for about fifteen years, missing promotion back to B on numerous occasions. It was only after the 1977–78 season that the Friuliani, led by manager
Massimo Giacomini
Massimo Giacomini (born 14 August 1939) is a retired 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 ...
, returned to B winning Girone A. In the same season, they won the ''Coppa Italia Semiprofessionisti'', beating
Reggina
Reggina 1914 S.r.l., commonly referred to as Reggina, is an Italian football club based in Reggio Calabria. Founded in 1914, they currently play in Serie B, and play their home matches at the 27,763 seater Stadio Oreste Granillo.
They are n ...
and also won the
Anglo-Italian Cup.
1980s: Mitropa Cup and the scandal of 1986
During the next season, Udinese with
Massimo Giacomini
Massimo Giacomini (born 14 August 1939) is a retired 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 ...
as their manager, won
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 ...
and returned after more than two decades to
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 their first year back after so long, the team survived after a disappointing 15th-place finish. In Europe, they fared much better, winning the
Mitropa Cup
The Mitropa Cup, officially called the La Coupe de l'Europe Centrale or Central European Cup, was one of the first international major European football cups for club sides. It was conducted among the successor states of the former Austria-Hunga ...
, a European Cup for teams that had won the previous season of Serie B.
In subsequent seasons the team managed to survive relegation without any particular difficulty also managing an impressive sixth place in
1982–83. At that time Udinese had on its books one of the club's all-time greatest players, the Brazilian midfielder
Zico.
At the end of the
1985–86 season, the team was embroiled in a betting scandal and was penalised nine points for the
1986–87 season. Despite a desperate comeback towards the end of the season, Udinese were relegated 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 ...
. Had they not been deducted points, Udinese would have survived.
1990s and early 2000s: Europe
During the following years, Udinese were promoted to Serie A and relegated back to B on several occasions. This situation lasted until the
1995–96 season, from which point on, they established themselves in Serie A.
The
1996–97 season saw Udinese qualify for the
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 ...
, with
Alberto Zaccheroni
Alberto Zaccheroni (; born 1 April 1953) is an Italian football manager, formerly in charge of the United Arab Emirates and Japan national football teams.
He has managed a number of top clubs in Serie A, the high point of his career being his s ...
as manager. The following season, they managed a third-place finish behind
Juventus and
Internazionale
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 is t ...
, largely thanks to
Oliver Bierhoff
Oliver Bierhoff (born 1 May 1968) is a German football official and former player who played as a forward. He has previously served as the national team director of the German Football Association.
A tall, strong and prolific goalscorer, Bierh ...
's 27 goals.
In March 2001,
Luciano Spalletti was appointed manager, replacing
Luigi De Canio
Luigi De Canio (born 26 September 1957) is an Italian football manager and a former player who played as a full-back.
Career Player
De Canio, a full back, played mostly with Serie C1 and Serie C2 teams, his lone season in Serie B being 1979– ...
. Spalletti managed to lead the team to survival on the penultimate matchday. Following brief periods with
Roy Hodgson and
Giampiero Ventura
Gian Piero Ventura (; born 14 January 1948) is an Italian football manager.
His playing career as a midfielder was spent in the lower leagues, having not made the grade at Sampdoria, where he began his coaching career with the youth team in 197 ...
on the bench, Spalletti was again appointed manager of Udinese at the beginning of the
2002–03 season, finding an organised and ambitious club which again reached the
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 ...
, playing attacking and entertaining football.
The surprising fourth-place finish at the end of the
2004–05 season saw Udinese achieve their first qualification for the
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competi ...
in the history of the club. At the end of that same season, Spalletti announced his intention to leave Udinese.
The following season, Udinese played in the Champions League preliminary round, beating
Sporting CP
Sporting Clube de Portugal, founded Sporting Club de Portugal (), otherwise referred to as Sporting CP, often known abroad as Sporting Lisbon , is a Portuguese professional sports club based in Lisbon. It is best known for the professional foot ...
4–2 on aggregate. Udinese were drawn in a tough group alongside
Panathinaikos,
Werder Bremen
Sportverein Werder Bremen von 1899 e. V. (), commonly known as Werder Bremen (), Werder or simply Bremen, is a German professional sports club based in Bremen, Free Hanseatic City of Bremen. Founded on 4 February 1899, they are best known for the ...
and
Barcelona
Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...
.
Despite a 3–0 win over
Panathinaikos in their first match, courtesy of a
Vincenzo Iaquinta
Vincenzo Iaquinta (; born 21 November 1979) is an Italian former professional footballer who played as a striker.
Prior to joining Juventus in 2007, he initially played for several smaller Italian clubs, and subsequently moved to Udinese in ...
hat trick, the team failed to qualify for the knockout rounds, coming in third in their group, equal on points with second placed Werder and behind eventual champions Barcelona.
Recent history
After a year in the Champions League, Udinese finished tenth and returned once more to mid-table mediocrity. The turning point occurred during the summer of 2007, when the club announced the appointment of
Sicilian manager
Pasquale Marino
Pasquale Marino (born 13 July 1962) is an Italian football manager and former midfielder. He most recently served as the manager of Crotone.
Career
Playing career
In his playing career, started for his home team, Marsala, Marino never played in ...
and also made various quality purchases including
Fabio Quagliarella and
Gökhan Inler
Gökhan İnler (born 27 June 1984) is a Swiss professional footballer who plays as a central midfielder for club Adana Demirspor.
İnler began his professional career with FC Basel and later joined FC Aarau and FC Zürich, winning the Swiss Sup ...
.
![Dinatale v Arsenal](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c0/Dinatale_v_Arsenal.jpg)
The
2007–08 season started well with a draw at home against champions
Internazionale
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 is t ...
, but the enthusiasm was quickly erased after the first home match which finished in a 5–0 loss to newly promoted
Napoli
Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...
. After this match, Udinese's fortunes changed, starting with a victory over
Juventus thanks to a late
Antonio Di Natale
Antonio Di Natale (; born 13 October 1977) is an Italian fotball coach and former professional player who played as a striker.
After being a member of the Empoli youth side since 1994, Di Natale started his professional career with the Empol ...
goal. Udinese remained in contention for the fourth Champions League spot with
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 h ...
,
Fiorentina
ACF Fiorentina, commonly referred to as Fiorentina (), is an Italian professional football club based in Florence, Tuscany, Italy. The original team was founded by a merger in August 1926, while the actual club was refounded in August 2002 fol ...
, and
Sampdoria
Unione Calcio Sampdoria, commonly referred to as Sampdoria (), is an Italian professional football club based in Genoa.
The club was formed in 1946 from the merger of two existing sports clubs whose roots can be traced back to the 1890s, ...
until the end of the season, but ultimately finished in seventh place, qualifying for the
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 ...
.
At the start of the
2008–09 season, during the press conference to present the new season's kit, the new official website was also presented, and an absolute novelty in the Italian championship, the first Web TV channel dedicated to a football club called Udinese Channel was launched, totally free and visible worldwide.
In the 2008–09 season, Udinese had a mixed bag of results in Serie A with a 3–1 win at
Roma and a 2–1 win over
Juventus, but 10 losses against teams including
Reggina
Reggina 1914 S.r.l., commonly referred to as Reggina, is an Italian football club based in Reggio Calabria. Founded in 1914, they currently play in Serie B, and play their home matches at the 27,763 seater Stadio Oreste Granillo.
They are n ...
,
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
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 ...
dented their hopes of Champions League qualification. In the
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 ...
, Udinese found themselves in a group with potential favourites
Tottenham Hotspur
Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as Tottenham () or Spurs, is a professional football club based in Tottenham, London, England. It competes in the Premier League, the top flight of English football. The team has playe ...
,
NEC
is a Japanese multinational information technology and electronics corporation, headquartered in Minato, Tokyo. The company was known as the Nippon Electric Company, Limited, before rebranding in 1983 as NEC. It provides IT and network soluti ...
,
Spartak Moscow Spartak Moscow may refer to the following teams based or formerly based in Moscow, Russia:
* FC Spartak Moscow, an association football club
* HC Spartak Moscow, a professional ice hockey team
* Spartak GM Moscow, a semi-professional rugby club
* WB ...
, and
Dinamo Zagreb
Građanski nogometni klub Dinamo Zagreb ( en, Dinamo Zagreb Citizens' Football Club, link=yes, italics=yes), commonly referred to as GNK Dinamo Zagreb or simply Dinamo Zagreb (), is a Croatian professional football club based in Zagreb. Dinamo ...
, but eased through the group with a convincing 2–0 win against Tottenham. They beat
Lech Poznań in the next round 4–3 on aggregate, and then beat holders
Zenit Saint Petersburg
Football Club Zenit (russian: link=no, Футбольный клуб «Зенит» ), also known as Zenit Saint Petersburg or simply Zenit, is a Russian professional football club based in Saint Petersburg. Founded in 1925 (or in 1914, acco ...
2–1 on aggregate. In the quarter-final against
Werder Bremen
Sportverein Werder Bremen von 1899 e. V. (), commonly known as Werder Bremen (), Werder or simply Bremen, is a German professional sports club based in Bremen, Free Hanseatic City of Bremen. Founded on 4 February 1899, they are best known for the ...
, with injuries to star players Antonio Di Natale,
Samir Handanovič
Samir (variantly spelled Sameer) is a male name found commonly in the Middle East, Central Asia and Europe. In Arabic, Samir () means holy, jovial, loyal or charming. In Albanian, it translates literally as “so good” but the connotation is clo ...
, and
Felipe, they lost 6–4 on aggregate.
Fabio Quagliarella managed eight goals in the campaign. They finished the season in seventh place, missing out on any European football the following year.
The
2009–10 season was an extremely disappointing one for players and fans alike. Even though Antonio Di Natale managed to score 29 goals in the league and finished top goalscorer, the season was spent battling against relegation. In the end, they finished in 15th, nine points and three places clear of the relegation zone. The only highlight of the campaign was reaching the semi-final of 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 ...
, beating
Lumezzane
Lumezzane (Brescian: ; locally ) is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Brescia, in Lombardy. With a population of 22,255 () it is one of the largest towns in the province of Brescia. It is situated in the Gobbia Valley, which is a side val ...
in the round of 16,
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 h ...
in the quarter-finals, and eventually losing 2–1 to
Roma on aggregate.
In the summer transfer window of 2010, Udinese sold
Gaetano D'Agostino,
Simone Pepe
Simone Pepe (; born 30 August 1983) is an Italian former footballer who played as a winger, on either side of the pitch.
After starting out at Roma, he went on to compete in Serie A for 12 seasons, spending most of his time at Udinese and Juve ...
,
Marco Motta
Marco Motta (; born 14 May 1986) is an Italian professional footballer who plays as a right back.
Motta is a former Italy international and made his senior international appearance in 2010; at youth level, he participated in the 2008 Summer ...
, and
Aleksandar Luković
Aleksandar Luković (Serbian Cyrillic: Александар Луковић; born 23 October 1982) is a Serbian football manager and a former player who played as a defender. He is the manager of Serbia national under-16 football team. He appe ...
. They also brought in players that proved to be the key to their success in the
2010–11 Serie A;
Mehdi Benatia and
Pablo Armero
Pablo Estífer Armero (born 2 November 1986) is a Colombian former footballer who played as a left back. He is known in Colombia by the nickname "Miñía", reportedly after a phrase commonly used to call infants in his hometown.
Club career
Pa ...
, a central defender and wingback, respectively. After a poor start to the season, losing their first four games and drawing the fifth, Udinese went on to record their highest points total in history and finished in fourth place, again earning themselves a spot in the
Champions League qualifying round. Di Natale, with 28 goals, became the first back-to-back ''
capocannoniere
The ''Capocannoniere'' award (; literally "head gunner"), known as Paolo Rossi AwardLazio
it, Laziale
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's
Giuseppe Signori
Giuseppe "Beppe" Signori (; born 17 February 1968) is an Italian former professional footballer who played as a forward.
He played for several clubs in Italy throughout his career, and also had spells in Greece and Hungary with Iraklis Thessal ...
accomplished the feat in
1993
File:1993 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Oslo I Accord is signed in an attempt to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict; The Russian White House is shelled during the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis; Czechoslovakia is peacefu ...
and
1994
File:1994 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1994 Winter Olympics are held in Lillehammer, Norway; The Kaiser Permanente building after the 1994 Northridge earthquake; A model of the MS Estonia, which sank in the Baltic Sea; Nelson ...
. A 0–0 home draw with Milan on the final matchday secured the Champions League spot for Udinese. 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 ...
kept his promise of "dancing like Boateng" if they qualified for the Champions League and did a little jig in the middle of the pitch. In 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 ...
, Udinese lost to
Sampdoria
Unione Calcio Sampdoria, commonly referred to as Sampdoria (), is an Italian professional football club based in Genoa.
The club was formed in 1946 from the merger of two existing sports clubs whose roots can be traced back to the 1890s, ...
in the round of 16 on penalties after the match ended 2–2.
The
2011–12 season continued in much the same fashion, even though Udinese lost three key players to larger clubs –
Alexis Sánchez
Alexis Alejandro Sánchez Sánchez (; born 19 December 1988), also known mononymously as Alexis, is a Chilean professional footballer who plays as a forward for Ligue 1 club Marseille and the Chile national team. He is often lauded as the g ...
to
Barcelona
Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...
,
Gökhan Inler
Gökhan İnler (born 27 June 1984) is a Swiss professional footballer who plays as a central midfielder for club Adana Demirspor.
İnler began his professional career with FC Basel and later joined FC Aarau and FC Zürich, winning the Swiss Sup ...
to
Napoli
Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...
, and
Cristián Zapata to
Villarreal
Villarreal ( ca-valencia , Vila-real) is a city and municipality in the province of Castellón which is part of the Valencian Community in the east of Spain.
The town is located at 42 m above sea level, 7 km to the south of the province's ...
. In the Champions League qualifying round, Udinese were drawn against
Arsenal and lost the away leg 1–0. At the
Stadio Friuli, Udinese lost 2–1, 3–1 on aggregate, and entered the
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. It ...
group stage, Antonio Di Natale missing a penalty that at the time would have taken Udinese through. Domestically, Udinese started strong but with their quality shown in defence, conceding the least of all teams after 15 games, only seven. For the second consecutive season, Udinese qualified for the Champions League, clinching third place on the final day of the season with a 2–0 away win against
Catania. In the summer transfer window, key players
Kwadwo Asamoah
Kwadwo Asamoah (, ; born 9 December 1988) is a Ghanaian former professional Association football, footballer. Mainly a Midfielder#Wide midfielder, left midfielder or Defender (association football)#Full-back, left-back, he was also occasionally d ...
and
Mauricio Isla
Mauricio Aníbal Isla Isla (; born 12 June 1988) is a Chilean professional footballer who plays as a right-back and midfielder for Chilean Primera División club Universidad Católica and the Chile national team.
Isla started his career in ...
were both sold to champions Juventus. The club failed to reach the group stage of the year's Champions League, however, losing on penalties after extra time to Portuguese club
SC Braga
Sporting Clube de Braga () (), commonly known as Sporting de Braga or just Braga, is a Portuguese sports club from the city of Braga. It is best known for the professional football team playing in the Primeira Liga, the top flight of Portugues ...
.
Antonio Di Natale
Antonio Di Natale (; born 13 October 1977) is an Italian fotball coach and former professional player who played as a striker.
After being a member of the Empoli youth side since 1994, Di Natale started his professional career with the Empol ...
scored 23 goals to record his third consecutive season with 20+ goals in Serie A.
Udinese started off the
2012–13 Serie A
The 2012–13 Serie A (known as the Serie A TIM for sponsorship reasons) was the 111th season of top-tier Italian football, the 81st in a round-robin tournament, and the 3rd since its organization under a league committee separate from Serie B. ...
season in mixed form, with seven draws and three losses in their first thirteen games. However, starting in December the team began to pick up wins more frequently, concurrent with Di Natale finding the net on a regular basis. After a period of balancing wins with losses, the team went on a phenomenal eight game winning streak to end the season, with
Luis Muriel
Luis Fernando Muriel Fruto (born 16 April 1991) is a Colombian professional footballer who plays as a forward for club Atalanta and the Colombia national team.
Having started his professional career with Colombian side Deportivo Cali, Mur ...
emerging as a key player. Like the 2011–12 season, Di Natale again finished with 23 goals, becoming the first player since
Gabriel Batistuta
Gabriel Omar Batistuta (; born 1 February 1969) is an Argentine former professional footballer. During his playing career, Batistuta was nicknamed Batigol () as well as El Ángel Gabriel (; Spanish for ''Angel Gabriel''). Regarded as one of th ...
, of
Fiorentina
ACF Fiorentina, commonly referred to as Fiorentina (), is an Italian professional football club based in Florence, Tuscany, Italy. The original team was founded by a merger in August 1926, while the actual club was refounded in August 2002 fol ...
, to score 20 or more goals in four or more consecutive seasons.
Over the coming years, Udinese would go on to finish middle to lower table in
Serie A
The Serie A (), also called Serie A TIM for national sponsorship with TIM, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and the winner is awarded the Scudetto and the Cop ...
. In the 2017–18 season, Udinese manager
Massimo Oddo
Massimo Oddo (; born 14 June 1976) is an Italian professional football manager and a former player who played as a full-back. He was most recently in charge as the head coach of Serie C club Padova.
Oddo played for several Italian clubs thro ...
was sacked after the club lost 11 straight games. Oddo was then replaced by
Igor Tudor who guided the club to safety away from the relegation places.
Honours
National
League
*
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 ...
**Winners (3):
1924–25,
1955–56,
1978–79
*
Serie C
The Serie C () is the third-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie B and Serie A. The Lega Italiana Calcio Professionistico (Lega Pro) is the governing body that runs the Serie C.
The unification of the Lega Pro ...
**Winners (3):
1929–30,
1948–49,
1977–78
Cups
*
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): 1977–78
International
*
UEFA Intertoto Cup
**Winners (1):
2000
File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from S ...
Other Titles
*
Anglo-Italian Cup
**Winners (1): 1978
*
Mitropa Cup
The Mitropa Cup, officially called the La Coupe de l'Europe Centrale or Central European Cup, was one of the first international major European football cups for club sides. It was conducted among the successor states of the former Austria-Hunga ...
**Winners (1): 1979–80
Divisional movements
Stadiums
*
Stadio Moretti (1924–76)
*
Stadio Friuli (1976–Present)
Players
Current squad
Out on loan
Notable players
The following is a provisional list of players that were international while playing for Udinese, sorted by nationality.
Coaching staff
Managerial history
References
External links
*
Udinese Calcioat
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 ...
Udinese Calcioat UEFA.com
{{Authority control
Football clubs in Italy
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 ...
Association football clubs established in 1896
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
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 ...
1896 establishments in Italy
Sport in Udine
Coppa Italia Serie C winning clubs
UEFA Intertoto Cup winning clubs