Here is a brief history and some key dates and figures for Roma, one of the seven sisters of Italian football who helped break the domination of the country’s Northern clubs. Roma is a club with a strong identity, viscerally linked to its city and which has given great feats to its fans. When talking about sticking to tradition and not letting money ruin the beauty and spirit of a particular team, the first club that comes to mind is Roma.
So, even though this club doesn’t win much, its player base is constantly growing. The icon of the club itself, Francesco Totti, spent his entire career with this club and never left it despite the tempting offers made to him. If you are also loyal to this club, you can bet at non GamStop bookmakers.
Now, let’s take a look at the history of this great club and some of its greatest achievements.
How & When Was Rome Born?
AS Roma was established in 1927 by the merger of three football clubs (Fortitudo Pro Roma, Alba Audace and Roman) by two influential political figures in the Roman environment of the time: Italo Foschi, president of Fortitudo, but also secretary of the Rome section of the Fascist Party and member of CONI, and the honourable Ulisse Igliori, president of Alba Audace and member of the Council of the Fascist Party. The objective of the two presidents was to form a team that would lift the name of the city of Rome on the football pitch, hitherto practised at high levels mainly by teams in Northern Italy.
The exact date of birth of Roma is traced back to 7 June 1927, the day on which the managers of the three clubs signed the deed of incorporation of the new club.
The colours chosen for the newborn club were those of the Capitol banner: golden yellow and purple-red, also used by the Roman. In addition, the she-wolf nursing Romulus and his brother Remus were chosen as the club symbol.
The old Roman offices, located in the Campo Marzio district, became the first headquarters of Roma, while the first pitch was the Motovelodromo Appio.
Club History: Roma in a Nutshell
Roma’s first roster was made up of the best players of the three merged companies, with a clear majority of Fortitudo players.
A few weeks after its establishment, the club played their first friendlies on 16 and 17 July against the Hungarians of Újpest (1-1 in the match between reserves, 2-1 for Roma in the next match between the owners).
The First Championship & the First Trophy
Roma made their debut immediately in the Italian league and at the end of the season, they were the only club in the Center-South to avoid relegation. The eighth place in the standings allowed the club to play the CONI Cup, won on 29 July 1928 against Modena after three finals (0-0, 2-2, 1-2).
The First Derby in Rome
On 8 December 1929, at the Rondinella stadium, the first derby of the capital was held between Roma and Lazio. A strong rivalry immediately arose between the two supporters because, two years earlier, the Lazio managers decided not to merge with the other clubs to form AS Roma.
By grouping fans of Fortitudo, Alba Audace and Roman, the Roma supporters were much more numerous than those of Lazio, making the Lazio team and supporters look like guests in their own stadium. The match was won by Roma thanks to a goal by Rodolfo Volk in the 73rd minute.
The First Championship & the Decline
The first important trophy won by Roma was the scudetto of the 1941/42 season, when they finished at the top of the standings ahead of Torino and Venice.
The Roma management, however, was not far-sighted and in the following season confirmed the Italian champion squad, already short in itself and with a high average age. Added to this was the rise of the Grande Torino, which caused Roma to fall behind in the next few years.
The 80s & the Second Scudetto
After decades of lows, the ’80s marked an important turning point in Roma’s history.
The club was taken over by Dino Viola, a former member of the Roma board, who completely revolutionized the team to return to the top of the league. Viola convinced Nils Liedholm, fresh off a Scudetto victory with Milan, to return to the Roma bench, bought Carlo Ancelotti and recalled Bruno Conti from Genoa. The season started well for Roma, who managed to express themselves at high levels. In the end, he finished sixth but obtained his third Coppa Italia by beating Torino on penalties in the final.
After a third place finish in the league, the 1982/83 season was the good one: Roma led the standings for most of the season, in a head-to-head race with Juve that ended on 8 May 1983 when, on the penultimate match day, Roma drew 1-1 with Genoa, winning the second Scudetto in club history.
The following season was still marked by the heated rivalry between Roma and Juve. This time it was the Bianconeri who won, but the Roma lifted the fifth Italian Cup by beating Verona in the final. That year Roma came close to winning the Champions Cup, suffering a defeat in the final by Liverpool on penalties.
After a year of transition with the arrival of Sven-Göran Eriksson on the bench, in 1986 Roma once again fought for the title against Juventus, finishing second, and won the Italian Cup for the sixth time, beating Sampdoria in the final.
Totti’s Roma
After an unexciting decade culminating in the victory of the Scudetto by their city rivals, Lazio, the 2000s opened with a bang. In the summer of 2000, President Franco Sensi carried out one of the most expensive signing campaigns in his management, with Gabriel Omar Batistuta leading Roma to their third championship.
The following season opened with the victory of the first Italian Super Cup against Fiorentina. Due to too many missteps against lesser teams, Roma failed to repeat themselves in the league, finishing second only one point behind Juve.
These are the years of the consecration of Francesco Totti, one of the most crystalline talents in Italian and world football, sought after by top clubs throughout Europe, but destined to become a legend of Rome.
The 2010’s & 2020’s
Over the next decade, Roma experienced fluctuating seasons. The arrival of Luciano Spalletti on the Roma bench brought the club some success, capturing two Coppa Italia and a Super Coppa Italia titles during his reign.
However, this would mark the beginning of a dry spell for the Giallorossi, who would have to wait nearly fifteen years before getting their hands on silverware.
Unsurprisingly, Roma’s trophy drought was ended by serial winner José Mourinho in his first season with the club. The “Special One” led the Giallorossi to their first European title and his fifth European trophy in late May 2022 when they defeated Feyenoord 1-0 in the newly formed Conference League final.
