Novara FC
| File:Novara FC crest.svg | |||
| Full name | Novara Football Club | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nicknames | Gli Azzurri (The Blues/The Light Blues) I Gaudenziani (The Gaudentians) | ||
| Founded | 1908 | ||
| Ground | Stadio Silvio Piola, Novara, Italy | ||
| Capacity | 17,875 | ||
| Chairman | Famiglia Boveri | ||
| Manager | Andrea Zanchetta | ||
| League | Serie C Group A | ||
| 2024–25 | Serie C Group A, 11th of 20 | ||
| Website | www | ||
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Novara Football Club, commonly referred to as Novara, is an Italian football club based in Novara, Piedmont.[1]
The club was founded in 2021 by the City of Novara to replace old Novara Calcio that lost its professional status.
History
[edit | edit source]In December 1908 the F.A.S. (Football Association Studenti) was created by eight students of Liceo Carlo Alberto, aged between 15 and 16 years; among them an engineer, Gianni Canestrini, and a lawyer, Piero Zorini. In Novara in those days, there were other small clubs like Voluntas, Pro Scalon, Ginnastica e Scherma, Forza & Speranza, Collegio Gallarini and many other student bodies. The best players from these teams came together to form Novara Calcio, and made their debut in the Italian league on 3 November 1912.
The first match was played against a team already then established as Torino, who won 2–1.
In the years between World War I and World War II, Novara challenged with Pro Vercelli, Alessandria and Casale to make the so-called "quadrilatero piemontese" (Piedmont Quadrilateral). Novara played a Coppa Italia final against Inter Milan in 1939.[2] Novara's highest finish came in 1952 when they finished in eighth place in Serie A.
During these years of staying in the top flight, Novara had Silvio Piola to thank. His many goals (which at the end of his career was over 300), made a huge contribution to the cause of Novara. Following his death in 1996, the stadium at which Novara play was dedicated in his name.
In 1956 came relegation to Serie B, and another five years afterwards, they slipped down to Serie C due to a fraudulent complaint by a Sambenedettese player.
A few successful seasons in Serie B followed, but then Novara stumbled again in 1977 with relegation to Serie C and worse in 1981 to Serie C2. In the 1995–96 season, Novara were back in Serie C1, but this joy was short-lived as the following year, the biancoazzurri again had to deal with relegation.
Years were spent in the shadows of Italian football until more recently when the league was won in the 2002–03 season.
From Serie C1 to Serie A
[edit | edit source]Consolidation in Serie C1 followed, later becoming Lega Pro Prima Divisione, until the historic promotion of the 2009–10 season where the club returned to Serie B after 33 years.[3]
On 12 June 2011, Novara remarkably secured its promotion to Serie A after a 55-year absence from the league, by defeating Padova in the play-off final.[4] Both consecutive promotions were achieved under the tenure of head coach Attilio Tesser, who was confirmed as Novara boss also for the following 2011–12 top flight campaign.
On 20 September 2011, the first home game in Serie A for 55 years, Novara recorded an historic 3–1 victory over Inter.[5]
This remarkable feat, however, was not representative of their season as Novara managed to win only one more game until the end of January, when it won again against Inter in San Siro. The manager Attilio Tesser was replaced by veteran coach Emiliano Mondonico and re-hired one month later in a desperate and ultimately vain attempt by the owners to save the club from relegation. The club was immediately relegated again to Serie B after one season. Novara finished 5th in 2012–13 season but were eliminated by Empoli in the promotion play-offs. The following season was terrible for Novara as the club finished 19th in Serie B and lost in a play-out against Varese, losing 4–2 on aggregate. Thus, Novara were relegated to Lega Pro. Novara were crowned as champions of Group A of Lega Pro in 2014–15 and immediately returned to Serie B. In their first season back in Serie B they finished in a playoff spot but they lost to eventual winners Pescara in the semifinal. The following season saw them finish outside the playoffs in 9th, 4 points from a playoff spot. The following season saw Novara get relegated back to Lega Pro following a 20th-place finish in the 2017–18 Serie B.
During the summer of 2021, Novara lost its professional status[6][7] and a phoenix club was founded in Serie D according to article 52 of FIGC's regulations NOIF.[8] They were promoted back to Serie C in May 2022, after finishing top of their group in Serie D.[9]
Current squad
[edit | edit source]- As of 5 September 2025[10]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
Other players under contract
[edit | edit source]Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Out on loan
[edit | edit source]Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Notable players
[edit | edit source]The following is a provisional list of players that played internationally or for European top clubs, sorted by nationality.
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- Argentina Emanuel Gigliotti
- Denmark Daniel Jensen
- Denmark Johannes Pløger
- Italy Savino Bellini
- Italy Gino Cappello
- Italy Andrea Caracciolo
- Italy Riccardo Carapellese
- Italy Emidio Cavigioli
- Italy Giancarlo Cella
- Italy Luigi Cevenini
- Italy Antonello Cuccureddu
- Italy Atilio Demaría
- Italy Michele Di Gregorio
- Italy Pietro Ferraris
- Italy Claudio Garella
- Italy Giuseppe Grabbi
- Italy Simone Inzaghi
- Italy Giovanni Lodetti
- Italy Giustiniano Marucco
- Italy Giuseppe Mascara
- Italy Francesco Mattuteia
- Italy Mario Meneghetti
- Italy Federico Munerati
- Italy Pietro Pasinati
- Italy Bruno Pesaola
- Italy Silvio Piola
- Italy Pietro Rava
- Italy Mario Renosto
- Italy Ettore Reynaudi
- Italy Francesco Rosetta
- Italy Severino Rosso
- Italy Nicola Ventola
- Italy Renato Zaccarelli
- Japan Takayuki Morimoto
- Portugal Bruno Fernandes
- Romania George Pușcaș
- Sweden Kjell Rosén
- Switzerland Haris Seferović
- Uruguay Nicolás Fonseca
- Uruguay Jorge Andrés Martínez
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Managers
[edit | edit source]- Hungary Ferenc Molnár (1931–32)
- Hungary Árpád Weisz (1934–35)
- Argentina Evaristo Barrera (1956–58)
- Italy Carlo Parola (1969–74)
- Italy Bruno Bolchi (1978–79)
- Italy Angelo Domenghini (1989–90)
- Italy Luigi Delneri (1992–94)
- Italy Franco Colomba (1994–95)
- Italy Alberto Marchetti (1999)
- Italy Giuliano Zoratti (1999–00)
- Italy Luciano Foschi (2002–04)
- Italy Antonio Cabrini (2005–06)
- Italy Attilio Tesser (2009–12), Emiliano Mondonico (2012), Attilio Tesser (2012)
- Italy Alfredo Aglietti (2012–13)
- Italy Alessandro Calori (2013–14)
- Italy Alfredo Aglietti (2014)
- Italy Marco Baroni (2015–16)
- Italy Roberto Boscaglia (2016–17)
- Italy Eugenio Corini (2017–18)
- Italy Domenico Di Carlo (2017–18)
- Italy William Viali (2018–19)
- Italy Giuseppe Sannino (2018–19)
- Italy William Viali (2018–19)
- Italy Simone Banchieri (2019–20)
- Italy Simone Banchieri (2020–21)
- Italy Michele Marcolini (2020–21)
- Italy Simone Banchieri (2020–21)
- Italy Marco Marchionni (2021–22)
- Italy Franco Semioli (2022–23)
- Italy Giacomo Gattuso (2023–24)
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Honours
[edit | edit source]League
[edit | edit source]Cups
[edit | edit source]- Supercoppa di Serie C
- Winners: 2010, 2015
Divisional movements
[edit | edit source]| Series | Years | Last | Promotions | Relegations |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | 13 | 2011–12 | - | Decrease 5 (1929, 1937, 1941, 1956, 2012) |
| B | 34 | 2015–16 | Increase 5 (1927, 1936, 1938, 1948, 2011) | Decrease 5 (1962, 1968, 1977, 2014, 2018) |
| C +C2 |
21 +21 |
2020–21 | Increase 4 (1965, 1970, 2010, 2015) Increase 2 (1996 C2, 2003 C2) |
Decrease 3 (1981 C1, 1997 C1, 2021✟) |
| 89 out of 90 years of professional football in Italy since 1929 | ||||
| D | 1 | 2021–22 | - | - |
References
[edit | edit source]- ^ C'è la firma dal notaio: è nato il Novara football club. 2021-08-20
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- ^ FIGC 2021/15
- ^ FIGC 2021/61
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External links
[edit | edit source]- Official website (in Italian)
