HISTORY OF PARMA CALCIO

PARMA IN SERIE A

It’s been a rollercoaster ride for Parma since the creation in 1913. Yet with every twist and turn, the Giallblu Boys have never stopped in their quest to establish themselves as one of the top clubs in Italy.
Know throughout Italy as the Crociati, because of the old white t-shirt with the black cross on the chest. That was way back in 1913, when Parma was not even called Parma and rejoiced in the name of Verdi Football Club. It was only at the end of that year that the name was changed to Parma Football Club and the club as we know it today began to take shape.
Parma with the  "Maglia Crociata"
Not that even the most ardent Parma fan could lay claim to an illustrious history. After winning a series of local leagues, it was 16 years after forming, in 1929, when Parma where promoted to the newly formed Serie B. There was, however, no immediate push for promotion to the top flight. In fact Parma managed only tree seasons in Serie B before being relegated to Serie C. And with the exception of a brie post-war period, there Parma remained until 1953/54 season, when the Gialloblu finally returned to the second division. With star player Ivo Cocconi putting in a record 308 appearances during this period, Parma finished a best-ever ninth in the 1954/55 season.If the club’s long-suffering fans believed that this could be the start of bigger and better things, then they were sadly mistaken. In 1965, a disastrous campaign once again saw the club relegated to the Serie C, after finishing bottom of the table. And by the end of the decade the club was in chaos, languishing in Serie D and changing it’s name with alarming regularity. In, 1967, the club finally settled on Associazione Calcio Parma and a merger with A.C. Parmense in 1969 set the foundations for the outfit which now exists.
Spending the majority of the ’70 in de Serie C, it was only towards the end of the decade that Parma at last began to establish some kind of foothold in the upper echelons of the Italian game. Much of the credit rests with coach Cesare Maldini, later manager of the Italian national side. It was Maldini who took Parma back into Serie B in 1979 after beating Triestina in a play-off with 2 goals from Carlo Ancelotti, who himself would later go on to manage the club.                                                                                                         Carlo Ancelotti in the Parma jersey

And although Parma lasted just 1 season in the second division, they were promoted again as champions in 1984, only to be relegated. Returning to Serie B in 1986, Parma were now under the stewardship of manager Arrigo Sacchi, another star coach in the making. Sacchi steadied the ship and established Parma in Serie B until the lure of Milan proved too much. Yet again, though, Parma somehow managed to come up with a managerial ace, handing the reigns to Nevio Scala. And it was under Scala that Parma finally made all Gialloblu fans’ dreams come true when on, may 27 1990, his side beat THE RIVALS Reggiana 2-0, to clinch promotion to the top flight and dates in Milano, Torino and Roma.

Parma’s delight at making it into the big league was tempered by the fact that club president Ernesto Ceresini who had died that February, would never get to see his beloved side perform in Serie A. But with the passing of Cersini came the greater involvement of local dairy produce giants Parmalat and the Tanzi family. They pumped millions into the club in what became know as Parma’s “Golden Age”. Parma made their Serie A debut on 9 September 1990, when they lost at home to Juventus. But the season proved a triumph for Scala’s team; they finished a remarkable sixth in the league and qualified for the Uefa Cup. Success appeared to agree with Parma and there followed a rush of trophies, first, the Coppa Italia was delivered with a 2-0 win over Juventus in 1992, then the Cup Winners Cup the following season when Antwerp were beaten 3-1 at Wembley.

1994 saw Parma lift the European Super Cup after beating cosmopolitan Milan 2-0 in extra time and the team just missed out on the Cup winners Cup again, going down by a single goal against Arsenal in Copenhagen. Indeed, such was the astonishing rise of Parma that their home stadium, Tardini, was rewarded with a national game when Italia took up Finland on May 27, 1994. The home nation came out on top 2-0.
But Parma still were not done, in 1995 Parma finished second together with Lazio, failing to win the scudetto after Juventus and also the Coppa Italia was lost in the finale against Juventus. Maybe the club’s finest victory ever came that year, the Uefa Cup was won against rivals Juventus, with a magical Dino Baggio. Flushed with such incredible success, the Tanza family focused the club’s sights firmly on winning the scudetto and after finishing sixth in 1996. Nevio Scala left a club that was perhaps getting over-excited about what they might achieve next. In came former player Carlo Ancelotti, who again took the side to second in the league (when Rubentus stool the Scudetto) and sixth in 1998.

After Ancelotti, the club opted for Alberto Malesani, who in 1999 delivered the Uefa Cup with a 3-0 win over Marseille, the Italian Super Cup from the hands of Milan, and put Parma in the Champions League. Still, the following season proved a disappointment as the team finished the league in fourth position. Then coachs came in and went out: Malesani, Renzo Ulivieri, Arrigo sacchi (forced to resign due to ill health), and 1978 Argentina captain and World Cup winner Daniel Passarella (he lost all his 5 games in a row). In the season 2001-2002 things looked bad, Parma was even in danger regulating to the Serie B. It was coach Pietro Carmignani who saved Parma and even delivered the Coppa Italia to the “Ducali”. Winning the finale against Juventus over two legs.
From 2002 a new strategy was made: Parma wanted to win with young and less expensive players. All players with high salaries were sold to other clubs and Parma made a new start. Cesare Prandelli guided his side to the fifth spot in Serie A. Everything looked fine until the Parmalat crack in December 2003. At one stage it even looked as if Parma simply would not survive. But with reunited forces Parma did not only survive, but even ended fifth in Serie A. This gives Parma the right to play in Europa for the 14-th consecutive season, a record for an Italian squad. Thanks to Baraldi, the technical staff and off course the Parma supporters, Parma survived a near dead. The season 2004-05 is the year 0 for Parma and will be decisive for the future of Parma FC.

The year zero was a difficult season in the Serie A, but in the UEFA Cup the semi-finals were researched against CSKA Mosca. Coach Baldini was sacked in December and Carmignani took over to save Parma, like he already did some years before. The mission was only accomplished in extremis, Bologna and Parma had to decide in 2 games who could to stay up in Serie A. Despite a 0-1 defeat at Tardini, Parma succeeded to beat our rivals Bologna over 2 games. At Dall'Ara Parma, supported by 8000 supporters, beat the home team 0-2 with goals of Giuseppe Cardone and Alberto Gilardino.