Will Sassuolo ever return to Sassuolo? A question that perhaps Italian football has asked itself very rarely. Maybe never. Tremendously atrophied in its traditional perpetuation, almost always prone to choices and changes that lead to a clear distortion. Yet there is someone who continues to ask this question undaunted, for about fifteen years now. We are obviously talking about the most ardent fans of the black and green club, who with the ultras in the lead since this summer have wanted to bring to the fore a situation that for various reasons has made little noise in recent years. And that little (actually a lot, but deliberately toned down in many parts) had the garnet colors of Reggiana as a background, with its fans who for the numerous and well-known reasons have long felt defrauded by the association led by Mapei. Which is why Sassuolo, let’s face it, hasn’t made many friends around in recent years; seen as an imposter club and with a small following, it failed to generate a debate that would lead to an analysis of the other side of the coin, trampled on and constantly left in a corner: the most loyal fans. Those who were there at Ricci, in the years of amateurism and Serie C, and which are still there today. After fifteen years of exile between Modena and, above all, Reggio Emilia. Despite the sixty kilometers to be covered once every two weeks, without an alternative means of transport to their own cars and almost “unwelcome” by a club that should instead take care of it and establish a dialogue to bring the team back to its city, going beyond the mere entrepreneurial. Words in the wind or from utopian dreamers? Maybe, but for someone to hear them, someone else needs to shout them and someone else needs to write them.
So from the end of the championship, the boys who today manage the organized supporters of Sassuolo – i So from Murice Geme – have decided to put on various initiatives, including a round table and a collection of signatures at a public place in Sassuolo to effectively invite the population to discuss what is now in all respects a critical issue, unique in its kind if you think that the neroverde club is one of the few (the only?) clubs in the world to own a stadium which, however, does not insist on the municipality it belongs to. A unicum that well describes the difficulty in creating aggregation and reinforcing the link with the city fabric. The stadium is the heart of any club, because it is the home of its supporters and the place where feelings, pathos, environment and belonging are conveyed. All terribly impossible in another city (moreover, as is well known, by now adverse to any initiative by the neroverdi).
But beyond that, there are incontrovertible data that should suggest a change of course to the managers: despite ten years in the top division, salvations almost always conquered quietly, various talents churned out, a participation in theEuropa League and a football project well underway, season ticket holders have experienced a sharp decline. From 7,795 in 2013/14, they went to 6,500 last season. And the reasons are to be found both in the disconnect between the city and its club – for obvious logistical reasons – and in a totally cold and insensitive policy towards the supporter greenblacks. What often emerges from the outside is a common message in the world of modern football – we don’t hide behind a finger – but here even more amplified: profits, profits, profits. Everything else matters little! This is the reason why (we shouldn’t forget this even when we rightly support the protests of the Reggio supporters) other victims of this situation are the sportsmen from Sassuolo.
Without wanting to replace those who have been playing football – excellently, it must be said – for years, one wonders, for example, why over time there has been a commitment to build structures such as the Mapei Center (large area equipped with various facilities, including four football fields, inaugurated in 2019 to house different sectors of Sassuolo Calcio, as well as warehouses and a press room) and never finding a suitable space in which to erect a new facility, if anything the Ricci had not been deemed suitable for a restructuring suitable for the category (yet in view of the leap to Serie B a first draft of the project had been made)? Between Reggio Emilia stadium, Mapei Center and miscellaneous works, money spent, time and effort expended would have been more than enough to bring the club back to its people.
During the round table, the boys in the group underlined that there is no intention of breaking with the Squinzi family, towards whom there is obviously a sense of gratitude for the progress made in the last three decades. However, the total lack of a sense of belonging and of the environment pushes many fans to reflect and wonder if Reggio Emilia should really be the last known domicile for Sassuolo for life. There are now some generations who have never seen the black and greens play at home and it is no coincidence that on the occasion of some spring finals played at the Ricci, the old plant has filled up. Both of normal and ultras fans. If, as was said in the recent past by some questionable politician from Reggio, “Sassuolo is an economic opportunity for us”, why not think about when it really would be for its natural location? How important it would be to have football back in the city and allow the latter to shake off under its aggregative and emotional thrust. In addition to having an obvious increase in the paying public and re-establishing relations with the land of origin.
A stadium in Sassuolo – the boys underlined – would also be feasible without hindering the road system or everyday life too much. As happens in other cities, for example, visiting supporters could be channeled towards the stands by parking in the suburbs and taking advantage of two motorway exits (Campogalliano and Modena Nord). While as regards the actual stadium, the architect Jaime Manca of Villahermosa was consulted, who took care of the Benito Stirpe of Frosinone and in the past of the stadium of Cagliari. The latter underlined how today to build a plant with about 12,000 seats costs around 24 million (for the Mapei Center 19 were spent) and allows, among other things, also an important environmental impact in one of the areas that is currently among the most polluted in Italy (solar panels and canceled journeys to Reggio are only two of the added values).
On the site In the name of Sassuolo we read: “For the project, an advisor and design company specialized in sports facilities called “Bear Stadiums” was identified which collaborates with a South Tyrolean company called “Rubner holzbau” which deals with laminated wood constructions and which, recently, welcomed Brescia Calcio’s project for the construction of a completely eco-friendly and zero-impact stadium in the city of the same name. The so-called “Bear Stadiums” are built according to UEFA and FIFA standards for quality stadiums: perfect visibility and minimum distance from the pitch, all seats covered, pitch lighting suitable for HD filming”. Always through this site it is possible sign the petitionwhich was not limited only to this evening, but will also continue in the coming months.
If we were in other parts of Europe this topic would probably have a much different resonance. And be careful, we are not saying that distortions do not occur elsewhere. The history of Red Bull in Salzburg and Leipzig are striking examples. But the signs of closeness and restart that the respective fans had in those extreme difficult situations are also clear. Situations that – fortunately – still do not concern Sassuolo, where a management attentive to the wallet would be enough – there is – but also to the most visceral and authentic aspect of the ball. Which is still what, paradoxically, allows you to invoice. Therefore this initiative must be an opportunity from which to start and restart. And without a doubt he deserves the support of the Italian fans. And, why not, even some distinguished voices of this sport. We, who follow football and photograph it from the side of its protagonists (the fans) can only espouse the cause and hope – perhaps one day not too far away – to see a crowd of black and green fans get up on Sunday morning to go and see your team on foot, in your city. It would just be the most natural thing in this world!
Simone Meloni
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