Torino FC

Ask 1860 Munich, Manchester City and Espanyol and they'll all grudgingly agree – it's cold in the shadows.

It hurts even more than usual for Torino fans in 2004, when they were denied the chance to take their place alongside city rivals Juventus in Serie A. Having secured promotion through the play-offs, the club became a victim of the Italian football authorities' determination to clamp down on profligate clubs. Taking exception to Torino's 40 million Euro debt, the FA sent them back down to Serie B again.

Torino fans, who had clustered in the Curva Maratona for 15 years as part of a reluctant ground-share deal with Juventus at the Stadio delle Alpi, were understandably outraged. Their traditionally urban, working-class following took to the streets and threatened to disturb proceedings at 2006's Winter Olympics & Paralympics.

The mood didn't last, though, and Torino finally regained promotion via the play-offs in 2006, welcomed back to the top flight for a three-season spell.

Nevertheless, Torino fans need little encouragement to vent their grievances. While the Old Lady flounced about to the watching nation, La Granata (the Garnet Reds) were dominant only once in their history. Il Grande Torino, under 1930s World Cup-winning coach Vittorio Pozzo, were arguably the finest side in Italian football history.

Set to claim a fourth successive title in May 1949, the team were flying back from a testimonial in Lisbon when their plane struck the cathedral high on Superga Hill outside Turin, the crash wiping out the entire squad. Superga has haunted the club ever since, with Torino securing only one further scudetto (in 1976) since that fateful night.

The best side since then starred Gianluigi Lentini, whose tricky wing play took Torino to a UEFA Cup final and a third-place Serie A finish in 1992. That summer, the club sold him to Milan for a world-record fee. Fans rioted and boycotted home fixtures, and relegation to Serie B awaited.

THE STADIUM
Formerly the Stadio Comunale Vittorio Pozzo (and before that the, er, Stadio Benito Mussolini), the stadium housed both Juventus and Torino from 1933 until Italia 90 required the building of the Stadio Delle Alpi.

The Delle Alpi was a curiously sterile affair, out of town and unloved by all, ideal neither for football (because of the running track) or athletics (because of the lack of a warm-up track). So both Turin clubs moved back after the old place was in its turn refurbished for the 2006 Winter Olympics – hence the current name.

Club address Via del Carmine, 29 angolo Via Allioni - 10122, Turin
Telephone 0039 011-5221600
Website www.torinofc.it

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