Atalanta B.C.

Performances of Atalanta in the Italian league since the first season of a unified Serie A

Atalanta was founded on 17 October 1907 by students of the Liceo Classico Paolo Sarpi and was named after the female athlete of the same name from Greek mythology.[4] Though it immediately established a football sector,[5] it was not the first football association based in Bergamo: Football Club Bergamo was founded by Swiss emigrants in 1904,[6] and was absorbed into another club, Bergamasca, in 1911. The Italian Football Federation did not recognize Atalanta until 1914, and in 1919 announced that it would only allow one club from Bergamo to compete in the highest national league (then called the Prima Categoria).[7] As Atalanta and Bergamasca were rivals and did not come to an agreement, admission to the Prima Categoria was decided by a playoff match; Atalanta won this match 2–0.[8] A merger between the two clubs nevertheless occurred in 1920, forming the new club Atalanta Bergamasca di Ginnastica e Scherma 1907 (shortened to Atalanta Bergamasca Calcio) and establishing its black and blue (nerazzurri) colors.[7][9]

Atalanta participated in the Seconda Divisione, the second tier, during the early 1920s.[10] In the 1927–28 season, the club won its group and subsequently defeated Pistoiese in the playoffs to win promotion and its first second division league triumph.[11] The club inaugurated its current home stadium in the Borgo Santa Caterina neighborhood in 1928,[12] and was admitted to Serie B, the second tier of the restructured Italian league, in 1929.[13] After almost a decade in Serie B, Atalanta achieved its first promotion to Serie A in 1937 under coach Ottavio Barbieri,[14] though was relegated at the end of the season. The club returned to Serie A in 1940 as Serie B champions.[10]

During the 1940s, Atalanta performed consistently in the top flight, though the league was halted between 1943 and 1945 due to World War II. Atalanta achieved a fifth-place finish in the 1947–48 Serie A under coach Ivo Fiorentini, its highest league finish until 2017.[15][16] The club earned a reputation as the provinciale terribile (terrible provincial team) during this time as a result of its successes against well-known metropolitan teams such as the Grande Torino, who won Serie A five times during the 1940s.[15][17] Atalanta achieved mid-table finishes during much of the 1950s and remained in Serie A until 1958,[10] when it was relegated due to accusations of match fixing. These accusations were found to be false a year later, after the club returned to Serie A by winning its second Serie B title.[18]

Atalanta players Angelo Domenghini and Piero Gardoni hoisting the 1962–63 Coppa Italia

Atalanta won the Coppa Italia in 1963, defeating Torino 3–1 in the final thanks to a hat-trick by striker Angelo Domenghini.[19] This was the senior team's first (and so far only) major trophy. During the early 1960s, the club made its debut in European competitions, among them the 1961–62 Mitropa Cup, the Coppa dell'Amicizia, and the Coppa delle Alpi.[20] As domestic cup winners, the club qualified for the 1963–64 European Cup Winners' Cup, its first major UEFA competition, though was eliminated by Portuguese club Sporting CP in the first round.[19] The club made a few more appearances in international (though not UEFA) cups during the 1960s,[20] though was relegated in 1969 after a decade in the top flight.[10][21]

During the 1970s, the club experienced several movements between Serie A and Serie B, and fell into Serie C1 in 1981. For the first time in its history, the club would play outside the top two tiers; this was a blow that revitalized the club.[22] Under new management,[23] it returned to Serie B the next season and to Serie A in 1984, where it would remain until 1987.[10] Atalanta reached its second Coppa Italia final in 1987, though lost 4–0 to Napoli over two legs.[24] As Napoli also won Serie A that season and therefore qualified for the European Cup, Atalanta qualified for its second European Cup Winners' Cup.[25] This was a turning point for the club; Emiliano Mondonico was appointed as coach and the club would achieve promotion after only one season in Serie B. In the Cup Winners' Cup, Atalanta lost its first match against Welsh club Merthyr Tydfil, but won the return fixture and went on to reach the semi-finals, where it would be eliminated 4–2 on aggregate by Belgian club Mechelen, who would eventually win the tournament.[26] In doing so, Atalanta achieved the best finish in a UEFA competition of a club playing outside its country's top flight league.[27][lower-alpha 1]

With a sixth-place finish in the 1988–89 Serie A, Atalanta qualified for its first UEFA Cup, though was eliminated by Russian club Spartak Moscow in the first round.[23] Atalanta then finished seventh in the 1989–90 Serie A and reached the quarterfinals of the 1990–91 UEFA Cup, losing to local rivals and eventual winners Internazionale.[30] After several mid-table finishes, the club was relegated in 1994, though would return to Serie A in 1995.[10] In the 1996–97 season, striker Filippo Inzaghi scored 24 league goals and became the first (and so far only) Atalanta player to be named capocannoniere (Serie A top scorer).[31][lower-alpha 2]

In the 2000s, Atalanta experienced more divisional movements: it was relegated in 2002–03 and 2004–05,[32] but achieved promotion to Serie A after only one season in Serie B both times, winning the 2005–06 edition.[33][34] After a tumultuous 2009–10 season, the club was once again relegated;[35] after this relegation, entrepreneur Antonio Percassi became the club's new president,[36][lower-alpha 3] and Stefano Colantuono returned as coach.[33][lower-alpha 4] The club won Serie B in 2011 and thus immediately returned to Serie A.[37] Despite this success, club captain Cristiano Doni was named among the suspects in a match-fixing scandal (also known as Calcioscommesse);[38] Doni was handed a three-and-a-half-year ban from football and the club was docked six points in the league table. Nevertheless, the club managed to secure another year in Serie A by obtaining 52 points (46 after the six-point penalty), its highest Serie A point total at the time.[39] The following year, for the same reasons (after further investigation), the club was docked two points in the league,[40] but avoided relegation upon finishing in 15th place. In the 2013–14 season, Atalanta finished eleventh in Serie A,[10] but struggled during the 2014–15 season. After a poor run of form which left Atalanta only three points above the relegation zone, Colantuono was sacked in March 2015.[41] He was replaced by Edoardo Reja, who secured Serie A safety that season, and led the club to a 13th-place finish in 2016.[32]

Atalanta team that finished fourth in Serie A in 2017

Former Genoa coach Gian Piero Gasperini was appointed before the 2016–17 season. Despite initial difficulties, the club's results steadily improved throughout the season. Gasperini integrated players from the club's youth sector and led the club to a fourth-place league finish with 72 points, besting its previous records and qualifying for the 2017–18 UEFA Europa League after a 26-year absence from UEFA competitions.[16][42] In the Europa League, the club reached the round of 32, losing 4–3 on aggregate to Borussia Dortmund.[43] In 2017–18, Atalanta finished seventh in the league, entering the qualifying rounds for 2018–19 UEFA Europa League, though was eliminated in a penalty shootout by Danish club Copenhagen.[44] Despite a difficult start to the 2018–19 season, Atalanta achieved many positive results and finished third in Serie A, its best ever league finish; with this result, the club qualified for the UEFA Champions League group stage for the first time in its history.[45] Atalanta also reached the Coppa Italia final, though lost 2–0 to Lazio.[46]

In the 2019–20 season, Atalanta lost its first three Champions League matches, but went on to qualify for the round of 16.[47][lower-alpha 5] Atalanta then defeated Spanish club Valencia in both legs of the round of 16, reaching the quarterfinals,[48] where it would be eliminated by French champions Paris Saint-Germain.[49] The club also repeated its third-place finish in Serie A and achieved a second consecutive Champions League qualification, breaking several club records.[50] In the 2020–21 season, Atalanta reached the round of 16 in the Champions League for the second time, following an away victory over Ajax.[51]

• See also: Category:Atalanta B.C. players

A young Gaetano Scirea, one of the most famous footballers produced by the Atalanta youth system, during the 1972–73 season

The Atalanta youth system consists of four men's teams that participate in separate national leagues (Primavera, Allievi Nazionali A and B, and Giovanissimi Nazionali) and two that participate at a regional level (Giovanissimi Regionali A and B).[109]

The first person who was committed to set up the Atalanta youth teams was Giuseppe Ciatto. Every organisational aspect was dealt with and resolved by him, and he also took care to train the various teams. In 1949 Atalanta won the Campionato Ragazzi.

In the late 1950s former Atalanta player Luigi Tentorio (then Special Commissioner of the club) felt the need to start investing more systematically in youth: he decided to create a real youth sector, with its own independent structure from the first team. The youth sector was entrusted to Giuseppe Brolis, who created a partnership with various clubs in the Veneto and Friuli regions, building a network of scouts and young coaches.

A crucial step in the history of the Bergamo youth sector took place in the early 1990s when the president Antonio Percassi implemented a new investment policy, especially at the youth level. He managed to convince Fermo Favini to leave Como and entrusted him with the responsibility of the youth sector.

The Atalanta youth system not only continued to increase the production of players for the first team, but began to win several honours in the most important national leagues. From 1991 to 2014, the various youth teams have won 17 national titles.

Apart from successes at youth level, the Atalanta youth system is also one of the most highly regarded in Europe: according to a ranking by the study centre in Coverciano, Atalanta have the top youth system in Italy and the sixth in Europe, behind Real Madrid, Barcelona and three French teams. The parameters used were the amount of first division players produced by the club.[110] In the 2007–08 season, 22 players from Atalanta's youth played in Serie A, 32 in Serie B and 3 abroad.[110]

In 2014, a global study of the "CIES Football Observatory", placed the Atalanta youth system eighth place in the world, with 25 former youth players who play in the top 5 European leagues.[111]

Atalanta have had several presidents (chairmen) (Italian: presidenti, lit. 'presidents' or Italian: presidenti del consiglio di amministrazione, lit. 'chairmen of the board of directors') over the course of their history. Some of them have been the main shareholder of the club. The longest-serving chairman is Ivan Ruggeri, who was relieved of his duties after he suffered a stroke in January 2008, being replaced by his son Alessandro[112] who was named chairman of Atalanta in September 2008. Alessandro's father was unable to manage the team due to the consequences of the stroke.[113] In June 2010, after another relegation to Serie B, Alessandro Ruggeri sold his share of the club to Antonio Percassi, who became the new chairman of Atalanta.[36]

Atalanta have had many managers and head coaches throughout their history, below is a chronological list of them from when Serie A was changed into a league format, from 1929–30 onwards.

Name Nationality Years Cesare Lovati 1923–27 Imre Payer 1927–29 Enrico Tirabassi 1928–29 Luigi Cevenini 1929–30 József Viola 1930–33 Imre Payer 1933 Angelo Mattea 1933–35 Imre Payer 1935–36 Ottavio Barbieri 1936–38 Géza Kertész 1938–39 Ivo Fiorentini 1939–41 János Nehadoma 1941–46 Giuseppe Meazza 1946 Luis Monti 1946 Ivo Fiorentini 1946–49 Alberto Citterio Carlo Carcano 1949 Giovanni Varglien 1949–51 Denis Charles Neville[114] 1951–52 Carlo Ceresoli 1952 Luigi Ferrero 1952–54 Francesco Simonetti Luigi Tentorio 1954 Luigi Bonizzoni 1954–57

Name Nationality Years Carlo Rigotti 1957–58 Giuseppe Bonomi 1958 Karl Adamek 1958–59 Ferruccio Valcareggi 1959–62 Paolo Tabanelli 1962–63 Carlo Alberto Quario 1963–64 Carlo Ceresoli 1964 Héctor Puricelli 1965–66 Stefano Angeleri 1966–67 Paolo Tabanelli 1967–68 Stefano Angeleri 1968–69 Silvano Moro 1969 Carlo Ceresoli 1969 Corrado Viciani 1969–70 Renato Gei 1970 Giovan Battista Rota 1970 Giulio Corsini 1970–74 Heriberto Herrera Udrizar 1974–75 Angelo Piccioli 1975 Giancarlo Cadé 1975–76 Gianfranco Leoncini 1976 Giovan Battista Rota 1976–80 Bruno Bolchi 1980–81 Giulio Corsini 1981

Name Nationality Years Ottavio Bianchi 1981 – 30 June 1983 Nedo Sonetti 1 July 1983 – 30 June 1987 Emiliano Mondonico 1 July 1987 – 30 June 1990 Pierluigi Frosio 1990–91 Bruno Giorgi 1991–92 Marcello Lippi 1 July 1992 – 30 June 1993 Francesco Guidolin 1 July 1993 – 30 September 1993 Andrea Valdinoci Cesare Prandelli 1 November 1993 – 30 June 1994 Emiliano Mondonico 1 July 1994 – 30 June 1998 Bortolo Mutti 1 July 1998 – 30 June 1999 Giovanni Vavassori 1 July 1999 – 30 November 2002 Giancarlo Finardi 1 December 2002 – 30 June 2003 Andrea Mandorlini 1 July 2003–05 Delio Rossi 6 December 2004 – 30 June 2005 Stefano Colantuono 1 July 2005 – 30 June 2007 Luigi Delneri 1 July 2007 – 30 June 2009 Angelo Gregucci 1 July 2009 – 21 September 2009 Antonio Conte 21 September 2009 – 7 January 2010 Valter Bonacina (interim) 7 January 2010 – 10 January 2010 Bortolo Mutti 11 January 2010 – 10 June 2010 Stefano Colantuono 14 June 2010 – 4 March 2015 Edoardo Reja 4 March 2015 – 14 June 2016 Gian Piero Gasperini 14 June 2016 –

The biggest rivalry is with the neighbouring supporters of Brescia,[115] and there are strong rivalries also with supporters of Verona, Genoa, Fiorentina, Roma,[116] Lazio, Napoli, Milan, Internazionale, Torino; while there has been a long-standing friendship with Ternana, fans of the German Bundesliga club Eintracht Frankfurt and fans of the Austrian club Wacker Innsbruck.[117]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Atalanta B.C..

• Official website (in Italian)
• Official fans site (in Italian)
• Tutto Atalanta: Atalanta News & Gossip (in Italian)
• Russian fans site (in Russian)