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Torino FC

Italy

History

The foundation and first steps

Football first arrived in the city of Turin at the end of the 19th century, introduced by the industrial Swiss and English. By 1887, Football & Cricket Club – the oldest Italian football club – had already been founded in the capital of Piedmont, followed in 1889 by Nobili Torino. In 1891 the two clubs merged to form Internazionale Torino, after which Football Club Torinese was founded in 1894.

Alfred Dick, founder and then president of the newly born Foot-Ball Club Torino

The new game quickly supplanted the popularity of pallapugno, which led to the foundation of the football sections of the sports clubs Ginnastica Torino and Juventus. On 8 May 1898 Internazionale Torino, Football Club Torinese and Ginnastica Torino, along with Genoa as part of the International Exhibition for the fiftieth anniversary of the Statuto Albertino gave birth to the first Italian Football Championship.

In 1900, Football Club Torinese absorbed Internazionale Torino, and on 3 December 1906 at the Voigt brewery (now bar Norman) on Via Pietro Micca an alliance was formed with a group of Juventus dissidents, led by the Swiss financier Alfred Dick.[7] Through the merger of Football Club Torinese and the aforementioned group, "Foot-Ball Club Torino" was formed. The first official match was played on 16 December 1906 in Vercelli against Pro Vercelli, won 3–1 by Torino.

Torino players pose for a photograph in 1906

The first derby was played in the new year, dated 13 January 1907, in which Torino defeated Juventus 2–1. Torino successfully replicated this by a margin of 4–1 a month later and gained the right to enter the final round of the Italian Football Championship, placed second behind Milan.

Torino did not participate in the 1908 Italian Football Championship as a rule was passed which limited the use of foreign players. The club instead played in two popular "minor" tournaments: the coveted "Palla Dapples" (a silver trophy in the shape of a regulation football), won against Pro Vercelli; and an international tournament organised by La Stampa, which took place in Turin that year. Torino lost in the final to Swiss side Servette.

In 1915, Torino were denied their first real championship attempt by the outbreak of World War I. With one match left to play, Torino (in second), were two points behind leaders Genoa. In the final game of the championship, Torino would have had the opportunity to play the Genoese head-on after defeating them in the first leg 6–1.

The first scudetto

Torino during a tour of Argentina in 1929

The club experienced its first success under the presidency of Count Enrico Marone Cinzano, who was responsible for building the Stadio Filadelfia.[9] In attack, Torino boasted the Trio delle meraviglie (Trio of Wonders), composed of Julio Libonatti, Adolfo Baloncieri and Gino Rossetti, and won their first scudetto on 10 July 1927 after a 5–0 win against Bologna. However, the title was revoked on 3 November 1927 due to the "Allemandi Case".

After the revoking of the prior scudetto, Torino were reconfirmed champions of Italy in the 1927–28 season. The "Trio of Wonders" scored 89 goals between them, with the title won on 22 July 1928, a 2–2 draw against Milan.

After the resignation of Cinzano, the club began a slow decline in the early 1930s and often finished mid-table. It was not until the 1935–36 season that it began its revival, with a third-place finish in the league and first victory of the Coppa Italia. Renamed "Associazione Calcio Torino" due to the Italian fascist regime, Torino finished in second place in the 1938–39 season, under the technical director Ernest Erbstein.

In 1939–40, Torino finished in fifth place, and saw the arrival of club president Ferruccio Novo. Novo provided financial support to the club and utilised his skill as a careful administrator. With valuable contributions from Antonio Janni, Giacinto Ellena and Mario Sperone, Novo was able to build a team known as the "Grande Torino".

Grande Torino

Main article: Grande Torino

The Invincibles of the "Grande Torino", winners of five consecutive Serie A titles

The club's greatest period is encapsulated in the Grande Torino, a team which won five titles in a row (not considering the interruption to the league in the 1944 Campionato Alta Italia, in which the Italian Football Federation (FIGC) in 2002 recognised only honorary value to Spezia) between 1942 and 1949, and the Coppa Italia in 1943 (due to this success, Torino was the first team to win the coveted Scudetto and Coppa Italia "double" in Italy during the same season). Torino's players formed the backbone of the Italian national team in this period, at one point fielding ten players simultaneously in the Azzurri.

The captain and undisputed leader of the team was Valentino Mazzola, father of Ferruccio and Sandro, who would subsequently follow their father in becoming footballers. The typical starting lineup was: Bacigalupo; Ballarin; Maroso; Grezar; Rigamonti; Castigliano; Menti; Loik; Gabetto; Mazzola; Ossola. Their success came to an abrupt end on 4 May 1949 when the Fiat G.212 airliner carrying the whole team crashed against the retaining wall of the Basilica of Superga in Turin. The crash was attributed to dense fog and spatial disorientation due a faulty altimeter in the cockpit. The team had been returning from a friendly with Benfica played in Lisbon. In addition to the entire team and reserve players, the crash claimed the lives of coaches Egri Erbstein and Leslie Lievesley, two club officials, the club masseur, three journalists, and the four members of the crew.

From relegation to the title

La Farfalla Granata, Gigi Meroni in the 1960s

Difficult years followed in the aftermath of the tragedy. A slow decline led to the club's first relegation to Serie B, which took place under the name "Talmone Torino" in 1958–59. The stay in Serie B would only last one season, with Torino's return to the top flight in 1960–61. In 1963, Orfeo Pianelli assumed presidency. He appointed Nereo Rocco as manager and signed club icon Gigi Meroni, nicknamed "The Maroon Butterfly" (La Farfalla Granata).[11] In 1964–65, the team finished in third place.

On 15 October 1967, Meroni was killed while crossing the street after a league game.[12] Despite the tragedy, Torino finished the season in seventh place and won the Coppa Italia. The reconstruction of a winning team, initiated by the club president Pianelli, continued with the victory of another Coppa Italia in the 1970–71 season.

In the 1971–72 season, Torino managed a third-place finish, placed just one point behind Juventus. Across the following three seasons, Torino placed sixth, fifth, and sixth again ahead of what would be their seventh Serie A title in the 1975–76 season. The scudetto was won after a comeback against Juventus, who held a five-point advantage over the Granata during the spring. However, three straight losses for the Bianconeri, the second of which was in the derby, allowed Torino to overtake. In the final round, Torino held a one-point advantage and, until then, had won every previous home fixture. Torino hosted Cesena at the Comunale but could only manage to draw; Juventus, however, were defeated at Perugia. The title was won by two points ahead of Juventus, 27 years after the Superga tragedy.

Francesco Graziani and Paolo Pulici, Torino's attacking duo in the 1975–76 season

The same title race was repeated the next year in a season that saw Torino finish with 50 points behind Juventus' 51, a record points total for the 16-team league format. In 1978, Torino finished second again (tied with a Vicenza side led by Paolo Rossi), still behind Juventus but with a larger gulf in points. In later years, whilst still remaining one of Serie A's top teams, the team began a slow decline and was not able to replicate past results, with the exception of the second place in 1984–85, where the team finished behind a Verona side led by Osvaldo Bagnoli.

Journey in Europe and bankruptcy

The Torino of Emiliano Mondonico in the 1991–92 season, finalist of the UEFA Cup

At the end of the 1988–89 season Torino were relegated to Serie B for the second time in their history.[13] The club was promoted back to Serie A in the 1989–90 season, and after having made important signings, qualified for the UEFA Cup under Emiliano Mondonico.[14] The following season, Torino knocked Real Madrid out of the 1991–92 UEFA Cup in the semifinals, but lost the final on the away goals rule to Dutch side Ajax, after a 2–2 draw in Turin and 0–0 in Amsterdam. In Serie A, Torino finished in third place.

In the 1992–93 season, Torino won their fifth Coppa Italia after defeating Roma,[15] however the club subsequently went through a period of severe economic difficulties. The club changed presidents and managers several times, but the results continued to worsen, and at the end of the 1995–96 season, Torino were relegated for a third time.

After a play-off lost on penalties in the 1997–98 season to Perugia, Torino returned to Serie A in 1998–99, but were once again relegated at the end of the 1999–2000 season.[17] The club was immediately promoted back in the 2000–01 season, and the following year finished in 11th place, and qualified for the Intertoto Cup. After being eliminated by Villarreal on penalties, Torino suffered its worst performance in Serie A, and were relegated after finishing in last place.[18] Under Renato Zaccarelli, Torino achieved promotion in the 2004–05 season. However, due to heavy debts accumulated under the president Francesco Cimminelli, Torino were denied entry into Serie A and the club's bankruptcy was announced on 9 August 2005.[19] On 16 August, the FIGC accepted the proposal of a new professional entity known as "Società Civile Campo Torino", formed by a group of businessmen and led by lawyer Pierluigi Marengo.[20] The club was granted admission to the Petrucci Law, which guaranteed registration to Serie B, as well as all of the sporting titles of "Torino Calcio." On 19 August, Urbano Cairo was officially announced as the new president of the club at the bar Norman (once known as Voigt brewery).[21] With the sale, the club changed name to "Torino Football Club".

Torino achieved immediate promotion in the 2005–06 season after winning the play-offs. The following season, Torino escaped relegation in the penultimate round of matches. After three seasons, the club once again were relegated to Serie B. During the 2009–10 season, Cairo named Gianluca Petrachi as the new sporting director at Torino, but the club failed to gain promotion that season and the one following.

Return to Europe

On 6 June 2011, the club officially announced Gian Piero Ventura as the new manager ahead of the 2011–12 Serie B season,[24] with Ventura signing a one-year contract.[25] After a long campaign, Torino secured promotion to Serie A on 20 May 2012, after defeating Modena 2–0 in the penultimate round of the season.[26] After achieving safety from relegation in the 2012–13 season, the 2013–14 season marked a sharp upturn for Torino, who finished seventh place, and qualified for the 2014–15 Europa League.[27] The stars of the year were Alessio Cerci and Ciro Immobile; the latter finished as the top scorer in Serie A.

The 2014–15 season saw Torino reach the round of 16 of the Europa League, where they were eliminated by Zenit Saint Petersburg. In the league, Torino finished ninth, and in spring, won their first derby in 20 years. The following year, Torino finished the 2015–16 season in twelfth place, after which Ventura, after five years in charge, left the club for the Italy national team. He was replaced by Siniša Mihajlović,[30] who finished the 2016–17 season in ninth place. He was replaced by Walter Mazzarri in January, who guided the club to another ninth-place finish at the end of the 2017–18 season. The following season Torino finished in seventh place and qualified for the Europa League after a five-year absence.

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