AC Legnano

AC Legnano
Associazione Calcio Dilettantistica Legnano, commonly referred to as Legnano, is an Italian football club based in Legnano, Lombardy.
Founded in 1913, Legnano played three seasons in Serie A and a total of eleven seasons in the top tier of the Italian football league system.
Legnano's most recent appearance in Serie A dates back to 1954, whereas in 1957 the club took part for the last time – to date – in a Serie B championship (the second tier of Italian football).
Since then the club have played at their highest at the third tier of the Italian league.
The team's colours are lilac and white.
After financial struggles and bankruptcy in 2010 the club folded and reformed in 2011 as ASD Legnano Calcio 1913; in 2015 they regained the right to name themselves ACD Legnano Calcio and to merge their history with the one of the 97-year-old club previously folded.
History
Foundation
The club were founded in 1913 as Football Club Legnano.
Several notable players appeared for Legnano in its early years. Goalkeeper Angelo Cameroni was called up to the Italy national side in 1920; he was the first Legnano player to achieve this. Luigi Allemandi played four seasons with the club from 1921 onwards, until he was bought by Italian giants Juventus. He later won the World Cup with Italy at the 1934 FIFA World Cup.
Serie A: Club at their peak
Legnano first gained access to Serie A for the 1930–31 season; the previous year they had finished as runners up in Serie B. The first match at the top level of Italian football was the shocking 2–1 defeat of Italy's oldest club, Genoa C.F.C.
Unfortunately for Legnano, they finished at the bottom of the table that season and were relegated; other notable results however were a 1–1 draw with eventual runners up A.S. Roma, and a 2–1 defeat of S.S.C. Napoli in Naples.
In the 1935–1936 season, the club changed their name to Associazione Calcio Legnano.
Left-winger Emilio Caprile was called up by the azzurri, to play in two international games during 1948. He became the first Legnano player to score for Italy with a goal in each match.
Slide down the Italian league
After their last relegation in from Serie A in 1953–54, the club have gradually declined. First they came close to promotion back into the league with a 3rd position in B, but two years later they were relegated down to Serie C.
Legnano spent 18 years in a row competing in Serie C, only able to finish as high as 5th in that time (they achieved this three times). 1974–75 saw the club slump down to Serie D; this was soon rectified as coach Luciano Sassi pulled the club back into Serie C2 with a runners up spot in 1977–78.
Giovanni Mari lifts Legnano
Giovanni Mari took over as club president in 1979 and under him, Legnano would achieve the championship of Serie C2. This was the first time A.C. Legnano had finished first position in any league since 1919. The club's stadium was later named Stadio Giovanni Mari in honour of the man.
The refoundation
Following bankruptcy in 2010, Legnano subsequently folded.
It was refounded on 15 July 2011, as A.S.D. Legnano Calcio 1913 and was admitted to Group N of Prima Categoria Lombardy in the 2011–12 season. The club was promoted to Group A of Promozione Lombardy.
The club had a successive second promotion after finishing as champions of Group A of Promozione Lombardy next season and was promoted to Group A of Eccellenza Lombardy.
On 7 May 2015, A.S.D. Legnano Calcio 1913 re-acquired the name Associazione Calcio Legnano. They finished Eccellenza Lombardy as 4th in 2014–15 but were eliminated in the play-offs. They finished Group A of Eccellanza Lombardy as 2nd and were qualified for the play-offs again. They defeated Torviscosa with 4–1 aggregate in semifinal and Sankt Georgen with 4–3 aggregate in final and were promoted to Serie D.
Players
Notable former players
Luigi Allemandi
Attilio Demaría
Gigi Riva
Nicholas Frey
Pedro Kamata
Karl-Erik Palmér
Paolo Pulici
Davide Fontolan
Chedric Seedorf
Marco Simone
Hermann Lindemann
Staff
Presidential history
Over the years Legnano has had various owners, chairmen or presidential figures; here is a chronological list of the presidents;
1913–1916 Aldo Visconti and Eugenio Tosi (honorary president)
1917–1924 Antonio Bernocchi
1924–1925 Carlo Delle Piane
1925–1927 Ernesto Castiglioni
1927–1929 Antonio Bernocchi
1929–1931 Giuseppe Mario Perozzi, Mario Raimondo and Riccardo Pezzoni (board of regents)
1931–1933 Ernesto Castiglioni
1933–1934 Primo Colombo (extraordinary commissioner)
1934–1945 Giulio Riva
1945–1952 Pino Mocchetti
1952–1953 Luigi Mandelli (extraordinary commissioner), following Giovanni Mari
1953–1954 Giovanni Mari
1954–1956 Giuseppe Mario Perozzi (extraordinary commissioner)
1956–1959 Davide Casero (extraordinary commissioner)
1959–1963 Luciano Caccia
1963–1964 Felice Bossi (extraordinary commissioner)
1964–1975 Augusto Terreni
1975–1979 Rolando Landoni (extraordinary commissioner)
1979–1986 Giovanni Mari
1986 Ulrico Lucarelli
1986–1987 Giovanni Mari
1987–1996 Ferdinando Villa
1996–1999 Mario Pighetti
1999 Mauro Rusignolo
1999–2002 Mauro Rusignolo
2002–2005 Antonio Di Bari
2005–2007 Giovanni Simone
2007–2009 Giuseppe Resta
2009–2010 Giacomo Tarabbia
2010 Alessio Fiore
2011–2015 Nicolò Zanda
2015 Salvatore Verdoliva
2015–incumbent Vanessa Paolillo
Managerial history
Below is a list of AC Legnano coaches from 1913 until the present day:
1913–1914 Adamo Bonacina
1914–1915 Pariani
1915–1916 Primo Colombo
1916–1917 Primo Colombo
Nino Resegotti
1917–1919 Technical Committee: Primo Colombo, Adamo Bonacina and Giuseppe Venegoni
1919–1923 Primo Colombo
1923–1925 Imre Schöffer
1925–1927 Primo Colombo
1927–1928 Imre Schöffer
1928–1929 Armand Halmos
1929–1931 Luigi Barbesino
1931–1933 Otto Krappan
1933–1934 Francesco Lattuada
Vinicio Colombo
1934–1935 Vinicio Colombo
1935–1936 Enrico Crotti
1936–1945 Enrico Crotti
1945–1946 Attilio Demaria
1946–1947 Róbert Winkler
1947–1949 Giuseppe Galluzzi
1949–1950 Ugo Innocenti
1950–1951 Ugo Innocenti and Héctor Puricelli
1951–1952 Héctor Puricelli
1952–1953 Ugo Innocenti
Héctor Puricelli
1953–1954 Giuseppe Galluzzi
1954–1957 Ugo Innocenti
1957–1959 Mario Zidarich
1959–1960 Renato Picentini
1960–1962 Giuseppe Molina
1962–1963 Luciano Lupi
1963–1964 Fausto Braga
1964–1967 Luciano Lupi
1967–1968 Carlo Facchini
1968–1969 Sergio Realini
1969–1970 Carlo Facchini
1970–1971 Carlo Facchini
Luciano Sassi
1971–1973 Luciano Sassi
1973–1974 Luciano Sassi
Giovanni Visentin
1974–1975 Fausto Braga
Mario Trezzi
1975–1979 Mario Trezzi
1979–1980 Adelio Crespi
1981–1983 Pietro Maroso
1983–1984 Pietro Maroso
Romualdo Capocci
1984–1986 Andrea Valdinoci
1986–1987 Giovanni Ardemagni
1987–1988 Mauro Bicicli
1989–1990 Giorgio Veneri
1990–1991 Luciano Magistrelli
Mauro Bicicli
1991–1992 Abramo Rossetti
Giancarlo Danova
1992–1993 Marco Torresani
1993–1995 Luigi Vallongo
1995–1996 Renzo Contratto
Giovanni Sacchi and Mauro Bicicli
1996–1997 Loris Boni
1997–1998 Carlo Muraro
1998–1999 Gian Marco Remondina
1999–2000 Roberto Bacchin
2000–2001 Roberto Bacchin
Carlo Muraro
Ernestino Ramella
2001–2002 Mario Belluzzo
Ernestino Ramella
2002–2003 Ernestino Ramella
Angelo Gregucci
2003–2004 Pierluigi Casiraghi
Stefano Di Chiara
2004–2005 Stefano Di Chiara
Arcangelo Sciannimanico
Giancarlo Oddi
2005–2006 Vincenzo Maiuri and Gianpaolo Spagnulo
Gianpaolo Spagnulo
Luciano Miani
Gianpaolo Spagnulo, and Nicolas Gennarielli
2006–2007 Gianfranco Motta
2007–2008 Claudio Gabetta
Egidio Notaristefano
2008–2009 Attilio Lombardo
2009–2010 Giuseppe Scienza
2011–2013 Massimo Rovellini
2013–2014 Massimo Rovellini
Alessandro Cerri
2014–incumbent Stefano Di Gioia
Honours
Serie C2
Winners (2): 1982–1983 (group B), 2006–2007 (group A)
Campionato Nazionale Dilettanti
Winners: 1992–1993 (group A)
Serie D
Winners: 1999–2000 (group B)
Prima Categoria
Winners: 2011–2012 (group N)
Promozione
Winners: 2012–2013 (group A)
Prima Categoria:
Runners-up (2): 1919–1920 (group C), 1920–1921 (group D)
Prima Divisione:
Runners-up (2): 1922–1923 (group B), 1927–1928 (group B)
Serie B
Runners-up (3): 1946–1947 (group A), 1950–1951, 1952–1953
Serie D:
Runners-up (2): 1976–1977 (group B), 1977–1978 (group B)
Campionato Nazionale Dilettanti:
Runners-up: 1997–1998 (group B)
Eccellenza:
Runners-up: 2013–2014 (group A)
References
External links
Official website
Statistiche lilla
Football clubs in Italy
Football clubs in Lombardy
Association football clubs established in 1913
Association football clubs disestablished in 2010
Italian football First Division clubs
Serie A clubs
Serie B clubs
Serie C clubs
1913 establishments in Italy