Empoli F.C.

Empoli

Full name

Empoli Football Club SpA

Nickname(s)

Azzurri (The Blues)

Founded

1920

Ground

Stadio Carlo Castellani

Capacity

16,284

Chairman

Fabrizio Corsi

Manager

Giovanni Martusciello

League

Serie A

2015–16

Serie A, 10th

Website

Club home page

Home colours

Away colours

Third colours

Empoli Football Club is an Italian professional football club based in Empoli in the province of Florence. Founded in 1920, it is part of a select group of Italian football clubs that do not belong a provincial capital city that have participated in the top flight, which it played in the 2014–15 season.^[1]

Including the current season, Empoli has participated in 79 national championships, including 50 championships in the third tier, 19 in Serie B and 10 in Serie A.^[2] In Europe, the best results obtained was participation in the 2007–08 UEFA Cup.^[3]

History

From the 1920s to the 1970s

In August 1920, Foot Ball Club Empoli and the football section Unione Sportiva Empoli were born. After the participation of a tournament in San Miniato, the two merged into a single local football club. The next season, the new club, after having obtained in September affiliation in the Italian Football Federation (FIGC) ratified by the Tuscan Regional Committee, was included in Group A of the Tuscan Promozione 1921–22, but did take part due to economic problems, choosing instead to join the league of Terza Categoria, where the team achieved second place in the group A.^[1]

In the 1922–23 season, Empoli finished in second place in Group A of the Terza Categoria, gaining admission to the final round after winning the play-off in Florence, held on 15 April 1923 against Pontedera, 1–0. The season concluded with a third place in the group final.^[1]

The following three seasons, from 1923 to 1926, Empoli continued to play in the Tuscan third division. Then, in the 1926–27 season, Empoli won the Group A division of Tuscany, and was admitted to the interregional finals; thanks to a fourth place in Group G, the Tuscans were promoted in the North Division of the Second Division 1927–28, the third Italian football tier of the era. In the following season the team was then inserted in Group C of the North Division, which concluded in fourth place, but for economic reasons refused the invitation to take part in the next championship of Prima Divisione, and therefore followed the downgrading of the Seconda Divisione from third to fourth tier. However, already the following season, in the 1928–29 Seconda Divisione, the club won promotion, winning the Tuscan championship, and returned to the North Division of Prima Divisione.^[1]

Empoli was in the Prima Divisione, then Serie C, until the 1935–36 season, when the team withdrawn halfway through the season because of the call to arms for many of its players. Empoli resumed competitive activity from Prima Divisione the next season, under the name of OND Empoli, with the colours gray and blue; the team won the Tuscan Group A again gaining admission in Serie C. Until the shutdown from the causes of war, Empoli played in Serie C, obtaining a best result of sixth place in 1938–39. Meanwhile, the club was renamed OND Interaziendale Italo Gambaccioni Section Soccer from 1938 to 1941, until the name was changed again to Associazione Calcio Empol. In this period, exactly on 15 September 1935, Empoli debuted in the Coppa Italia with a 1–0 home success against Pontedera.

After World War II, Empoli took up the club name of Empoli Foot Ball Club after being called Sports Group Azelio Landi for a brief period between October and November 1944, and was admitted into Serie B thanks to a third-place finish in the 1945–46 season. In Serie B, Empoli played for four consecutive seasons, finishing in third place in the 1946–47 season. Relegation of the club – which by then had adopted the colour blue – occurred at the end of 1949–50 championship. The permanence in Serie C lasted for six seasons: in the summer of 1955, the club sold most of its players and at the end of the 1955–56 season, the Tuscan side were relegated to Serie D. After three seasons in the fourth division, in 1959–60 the Azzurri risked relegation to the regional level after finishing in 15th place, on equal points with Carrarese and Rieti. The club managed to escape relegation before drawing with Carrarese and then surpassing Lazio, in Pesaro, with a goal from Vezzosi. In 1960–61, Empoli returned to the third tier of Italian football, but for only one season, again suffering relegation.

The club returned to Serie C on 9 June 1963 after beating Tempio 2–0 in the play-off in Genoa. The club's permanence in the third tier of Italian football, then called Serie C1, lasted for 20 years until the 1982–83 season.

The 1980s and 1990s

In 1986, the small-town club was promoted to Serie A. Playing their first few home games in Florence, Empoli's Serie A debut resulted in a 1–0 win over Internazionale. Helped by a nine-point deduction from Udinese, they avoided relegation with 23 points and 13 goals in 30 games. Empoli themselves received a five-point penalty the following season, and were relegated despite an improved showing. They were relegated again to Serie C1 in 1989.

The club then spent several seasons in Serie C1 before returning to Serie B in 1996 and achieving a second successive promotion in 1997. With Luciano Spalletti at the helm, Empoli defied the odds to finish in 12th place and avoid relegation. Relegation the following year began a three-year stay in Serie B, in which time the club became renowned for nurturing its own outstanding young talent.

Promotions to Serie A in 2002 and 2005 have seen the club emerge as battlers against relegation. They ended the 2005–06 season in tenth place in the top-flight. As a result of the Serie A match-fixing scandal at the end of that season, they gained qualification for the UEFA Cup for the following season, however they did not play in it because the club management failed to apply for a UEFA license. In the 2006–07 season, the club once again qualified for the UEFA Cup.

The years 2000 and participation in the UEFA Cup

With the prospect of European football approaching, the management strengthened the squad, most notably signing a number of young players from large Serie A clubs, such as Rincón of Inter, Ignazio Abate and Lino Marzoratti of Milan and Sebastian Giovinco, Claudio Marchisio and Rej Volpato of Juventus on loan or co-ownership deals. Empoli marked their debut in the UEFA Cup with a two-legged match against Zürich, losing 4–2 on aggregate. A poor showing in the initial part of the season then led chairman Fabrizio Corsi to sack Luigi Cagni, who led the Tuscans to UEFA Cup qualification, and replace him with Alberto Malesani.^[4] However, the club's fortunes did not change and Malesani was sacked after a 2–0 defeat to Sampdoria which left them at the bottom of the table. Cagni was re-appointed on 31 March 2008 but the team suffered a last-minute relegation. Cagni resigned and was replaced by Silvio Baldini ahead of the 2008–09 season. Baldini's tenure, however, did not prove to be successful, as the Tuscans ended the season only in fifth place, and were later defeated in the promotion playoffs by Brescia.

Serie B / Serie A

Despite modest results, Baldini was sacked. By December 2011, the club had gone through four coaches since the 2009–10 season. The club maintained their Serie B status dramatically in 2011–12. After a poor season, Empoli finished 18th, one point from safety, which meant a relegation play-off against Vicenza over two legs. The first game finished goalless before Vicenza led 2–0 in the second leg with 30 minutes to go. However, two goals in two minutes saw the Azzuri level the tie before Massimo Maccarone secured a 3–2 victory in the fourth minute of injury time. 2012–13 saw the club finish fourth, a dramatic improvement on the previous season, but lost the promotion play-off final to Livorno over two legs. The club secured promotion back to Serie A the following season, finishing as runners-up to Palermo and have stayed in the top flight since, finishing 15th in 2014–15 and 10th in 2015–16.

Colours and badge

The team's colours are blue and white.

Current squad

As of 31 August 2016.^[5]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No.	Position	Player
1	GK	Maurizio Pugliesi
2	DF	Vincent Laurini
3	DF	Marco Zambelli
4	DF	Federico Dimarco (on loan from Inter)
5	MF	José Mauri (on loan from Milan)
6	DF	Giuseppe Bellusci (on loan from Leeds)
7	FW	Massimo Maccarone (Captain)
8	MF	Assane Dioussé
9	FW	Levan Mchedlidze
10	MF	Riccardo Saponara
11	MF	Daniele Croce
13	DF	Freddie Veseli
15	DF	Andrea Costa

No.	Position	Player
17	MF	Raffaele Maiello
18	FW	Alberto Gilardino
19	DF	Federico Barba
20	FW	Manuel Pucciarelli
21	DF	Manuel Pasqual
23	GK	Alberto Pelagotti
24	DF	Uroš Ćosić
28	GK	Łukasz Skorupski (on loan from Roma)
31	MF	Matheus
33	MF	Rade Krunić
77	MF	Marcel Büchel
88	MF	Andrés Tello (on loan from Juventus)^[6]
89	FW	Guido Marilungo

Out on loan

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No.	Position	Player
22	DF	Luca Bittante (at Cagliari until 30 June 2017)
99	FW	Roman Chanturia (at Honvéd until 30 June 2017)
	FW	Alessandro Piu (at Spezia until 30 June 2017)
	MF	Ludovico Gargiulo (at Pistoiese until 30 June 2017)

Primavera

Main article: Empoli F.C. Primavera

Notable former players

Players with international caps, appearances in Olympic Games or 100 league appearances with Empoli

See also: Category:Empoli F.C. players

Former managers

See Category:Empoli F.C. managers.

Antonio Vojak (1937–39)
Enrico Colombari (1939–40)
Sergio Cervato (1957)
Sergio Castelletti (1971–72)
Renzo Ulivieri (1972–76)
Bruno Giorgi (1976–77)
Vincenzo Guerini (1983–85)
Luigi Simoni (1988–89)
Vincenzo Montefusco (1989–91)
Francesco Guidolin (1991–92)
Adriano Lombardi (1993–94)
Luciano Spalletti (1995–98)
Luigi Delneri (1998)
Mauro Sandreani (1998–99)
Corrado Orrico (1998–99)

Elio Gustinetti (1999–00)
Silvio Baldini (1999–03)
Mario Somma (2004–06)
Luigi Cagni (2006–07)
Alberto Malesani (2007–08)
Luigi Cagni (2008)
Silvio Baldini (2008–09)
Salvatore Campilongo (2009–10)
Alfredo Aglietti (2010–11)
Giuseppe Pillon (2011)
Guido Carboni (2011–12)
Alfredo Aglietti (2012)
Maurizio Sarri (2012–15)
Marco Giampaolo (2015–16)
Giovanni Martusciello (2016–)

References

1 2 3 4 "1920–1929". empolicalcio.net. Retrieved 8 November 2014.
↑ "Storia". empolicalcio.net. Retrieved 8 November 2014.
↑ "2000–2009". empolicalcio.net. Retrieved 8 November 2014.
↑ "Empoli axe Cagni". Football Italia. 26 November 2007. Archived from the original on 28 November 2007. Retrieved 27 November 2007.
↑ "Prima squadra". Empoli F.C. (in Italian). Retrieved 22 August 2014.
↑ http://www.empolicalcio.net/Preso-Andres-Felipe-Tello-Munoz.htm

External links

Empoli's official website

Serie A

2016–17 clubs	Atalanta Bologna Cagliari Chievo Crotone Empoli Fiorentina Genoa Internazionale Juventus Lazio Milan Napoli Palermo Pescara Roma Sampdoria Sassuolo Torino Udinese

Former clubs	Alessandria Ancona Ascoli Avellino Bari Brescia Carpi Casale Catania Catanzaro Cesena Como Cremonese Foggia Frosinone Hellas Verona Lecce Lecco Legnano Livorno Lucchese Mantova Messina Modena Novara Padova Parma Perugia Piacenza Pisa Pistoiese Pro Patria Pro Vercelli Reggiana Reggina Salernitana Siena SPAL Ternana Treviso Triestina Varese Venezia Vicenza

Organisations	Lega Serie A Lega Calcio (defunct)

Competition	Champions Foreign players Managers Broadcasters

Statistics and awards	Records Average attendances Team of the Year Footballer of the Year Coach of the Year Goalkeeper of the Year Referee of the Year Football Club of the Year Italian Footballer of the Year Foreign Footballer of the Year Young Footballer of the Year Defender of the Year Top scorers Players with 100+ goals

Finances	Richest clubs: Deloitte list Forbes' list

Associated competitions	Coppa Italia Supercoppa Italiana Serie B Lega Pro Serie D European UEFA Champions League UEFA Europa League

Serie A seasons

Prima Categoria Prima Divisione Divisione Nazionale	1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1909–10 1910–11 1911–12 1912–13 1913–14 1914–15 1919–20 1920–21 1921–22 1922–23 1923–24 1924–25 1925–26 1926–27 1927–28 1928–29

Other	1921–22 (C.C.I.)^† 1944 1945–46^†

Serie A seasons	1929–30 1930–31 1931–32 1932–33 1933–34 1934–35 1935–36 1936–37 1937–38 1938–39 1939–40 1940–41 1941–42 1942–43 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50 1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60 1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17

^†Championships recognized as official by the Italian Football Federation

Football in Italy

Overview	National association League system List of clubs List of venues Records Scudetto Capocannoniere

International	Italy Under-21 Under-20 Under-19 Under-18 Under-17 Under-16 Under-15 Italy women

Leagues	Lega Serie A Lega Serie B Lega Pro Lega Nazionale Dilettanti Lega Calcio defunct

League competitions	Serie A Prima Divisione defunct Divisione Nazionale defunct Serie B Lega Pro Lega Pro Prima Divisione defunct Lega Pro Seconda Divisione defunct Serie D Eccellenza Promozione Prima Categoria Seconda Categoria Terza Categoria

Cup competitions	Coppa Italia Supercoppa Italiana Coppa Italia Lega Pro Supercoppa di Lega Pro Supercoppa di Lega di Seconda Divisione defunct Coppa Italia Serie D Coppa Italia Dilettanti

Youth competitions	Campionato Nazionale Primavera Coppa Italia Primavera Supercoppa Primavera Torneo di Viareggio Campionato Nazionale Dante Berretti

Women's competitions	Serie A Coppa Italia Supercoppa Italiana

Awards	Gran Galà del Calcio AIC Italian Football Hall of Fame

Miscellaneous	Totonero 1980 Totonero 1986 Italian Law 91/1981, Article 18B financial doping scandals 2006 Italian football scandal 2011–12 Italian football scandal 2015 Italian football scandal Article 52 of N.O.I.F. Foreign Serie A players Foreign Serie B players

Seasons	1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17

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