Como 1907

Como 1907, commonly referred to as Como, is an Italian football club based in Como, Lombardy, Italy. The club currently plays in Serie B, the second tier of Italian football, following promotion from the 2020–21 Serie C season. The club was founded in 1907 and the team's colour is royal blue.[1]

Como
Full nameComo 1907 S.r.l.
Nickname(s)I Lariani (Those from Lake Como)
Gli Azzurri (The Blues)
I Biancoblù (The Blue and Whites)
I Voltiani (The Voltaics)
Founded1907
2005 (refounded)
2017 (refounded)
GroundStadio Giuseppe Sinigaglia
Capacity13,602
OwnerDjarum Group
PresidentDennis Wise
Head coachMoreno Longo
LeagueSerie B
2022–23Serie B, 13th of 20
WebsiteClub website

Como were in Serie A in 2002–03; this was followed by three consecutive relegations culminating in demotion to Serie C2 at the end of the 2004–05 following a playoff (2–1 on aggregate) with Novara Calcio. Financially overstretched they were declared bankrupt and excluded from participation in Italian professional football. They were immediately admitted to Serie D, the top level of non-professional football in Italy, where they spent three seasons before earning promotion back to Serie C2 in the 2007–08 season.[2] After a further bankruptcy in 2016, a new company re-founded the club in 2017 and was admitted to Serie D for the 2017–18 season.[3]

History

Como were first promoted to Serie A in 1949 and enjoyed a respectable four-year stay before relegation, the next 20 years were spent moving between Serie B and C but more often the former. A revival in the 1970s saw the club emerge as contenders for promotion to Serie A, this was achieved in 1975, but despite the best efforts of players such as Alessandro Scanziani they would last only a season. They would slump to C1 by 1978, but with a rebuilt team containing stars like Pietro Vierchowod would achieve successive promotions and a two-year stay in Serie A (1980–82).

Como managed another promotion to the top flight in 1984, with a five-year stint in Serie A proving the club's most successful period of recent times. The strikeforce of Dan Corneliusson and Stefano Borgonovo oversaw a 9th-place finish in 1986, which was repeated the following year with far fewer goals scored. The club's defence, led by hard man Pasquale Bruno, proved more than up to the task however. Relegation in 1989 precipitated a rapid decline, with Como spending most of the 1990s in Serie C1 with the exception of 1994–95. Former Chelsea and Tottenham goalkeeper Carlo Cudicini spent a year on loan at Como.

Bankruptcy and brief promotion to Serie B

The 21st century saw Como experience a brief revival. Promotion to Serie B in 2001 was marred by an appallingly violent incident in a game against Modena, resulting in captain Massimiliano Ferrigno being handed a three-year ban. They nonetheless managed promotion to Serie A in the 2002–03 season. However, the return to Serie A proved a major disappointment with the side in the bottom two all season, and a ban on games at the Sinigaglia after crowd violence. Successive relegations have caused financial difficulties; in December 2004 the club was declared bankrupted.[4] No investor was successful to take over the club (as the bid from Preziosi was denied[5]) thus the company "Calcio Como S.p.A." was liquidated. Thanks to FIGC regulation, a new entity Calcio Como S.r.l.[6] was allowed to admit into 2005–06 Serie D. The liquidator also found former chairman Enrico Preziosi had transferred some assets such as the contracts of the players to his new club Genoa, causing the financial failure of Como. They returned to the rebranded Serie C2, Lega Pro Seconda Divisione in 2008, after having won the Girone B of Serie D.[2] Como finally returned to Serie C1 (Lega Pro Prima Divisione) after promotion play-offs after defeating Rodengo Saiano with 1–1 aggregate and Alessandria with 4–1 aggregate. In 2015, Como finished fourth in the third-tier, now called Lega Pro. They qualified for the promotion play-offs and earned promotion to Serie B after beating Bassano Virtus in the two-legged final 2–0 on aggregate. They were relegated back down to Lega Pro the following season.

F.C. Como / Como 1907

New economic problems arose in the 2016–17 season, forcing the club to be declared out of business and put on auction. At the fourth auction, the assets of the club were acquired by Akosua Puni Essien, wife of the Ghanaian footballer Michael Essien and first foreign businesswoman in Italian football (via her company F.C. Como S.r.l.).[7]

However, Italian Football Federation (FIGC) rejected the application of F.C. Como as Como's successor in 2017–18 Serie C,[8] as the club did not fulfill all the criteria in the Article 52 of N.O.I.F.[9] At the start of season, another company Como 1907 S.r.l.[3] was admitted to 2017–18 Serie D instead, excising another sub-clause of the Article 52.[10][11]

After winning the Round B of Serie D, Como returned to professional football in 2019.

Since 2019, the club has been owned by Indonesian company Djarum Group led by Michael Hartono and Robert Budi Hartono and sponsored by Djarum subsidiary Mola since 2021. Former Chelsea and Millwall player Dennis Wise has been appointed as president.

Players

Current squad
As of 25 August 2023[12]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK Croatia CRO Adrian Šemper
3 DF Italy ITA Marco Sala
4 DF Italy ITA Matteo Solini
5 DF Italy ITA Marco Curto (on loan from Südtirol)
6 MF Italy ITA Alessio Iovine
7 MF Belgium BEL Moutir Chajia
8 MF Italy ITA Daniele Baselli
9 FW Italy ITA Alessandro Gabrielloni
10 FW Italy ITA Patrick Cutrone
11 MF Spain ESP Álex Blanco
12 GK Italy ITA Pierre Bolchini
14 MF Italy ITA Alessandro Bellemo
20 FW Republic of Ireland IRL Liam Kerrigan
21 MF Italy ITA Tommaso Arrigoni
No. Pos. Nation Player
22 GK Italy ITA Mauro Vigorito
23 DF Italy ITA Filippo Scaglia
26 DF Netherlands NED Cas Odenthal
27 FW Italy ITA Alberto Cerri
28 MF Denmark DEN Oliver Abildgaard
33 MF France FRA Lucas Da Cunha
44 DF Cyprus CYP Nicholas Ioannou
71 MF Italy ITA Paolo Faragò
80 DF Italy ITA Luca Vignali
84 DF Italy ITA Tommaso Cassandro
90 FW Italy ITA Simone Verdi
93 DF Italy ITA Federico Barba
94 MF Ivory Coast CIV Ben Lhassine Kone (on loan from Torino)
99 FW Austria AUT Marlon Mustapha

Out on loan
As of 20 July 2023

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
— GK Italy ITA Simone Ghidotti (at Avellino until 30 June 2024)
No. Pos. Nation Player
— MF Italy ITA Marco Tremolada (at Renate until 30 June 2024)

Notable former players

Internationals

The following is a list of Como players that were internationals whilst playing for the team:[13]

Trofeo Borgonovo

Since 2012–13 season, a yearly award is given at the end of the season in order to recognize the team's best player or staff member. The trophy is named after Stefano Borgonovo and is organized by the club's supporters.

Up to 2021–22 season, following were awarded:[14]

Honours

League

Cups

Divisional movements
SeriesYearsFirstLastBest resultPromotionsRelegations
A 131949–502002–036th (1950)Decrease 5 (1953, 1976, 1982, 1989, 2003)
B 351931–322021–22Winner (1949, 1980, 2002)Increase 5 (1949, 1975, 1980, 1984, 2002)Decrease 7 (1935, 1963, 1978, 1990, 1995, 2004, 2016)
C
+C2		 34
+1		1929–302020–21Winner (1931, 1968, 1979, 2021)
3rd (2009 C2)		Increase 8 (1931, 1946, 1968, 1979, 1994, 2001, 2015, 2021)
Increase 1 (2009 C2)		Decrease 3 (1936, 2005✟, 2017✟)
83 out of 90 years of professional football in Italy since 1929
D
+R		 5
+2		1936–372018–19Winner (2008, 2019)Increase 3 (1938, 2008, 2019)never

References
  1. Federazione Italiana Giuoco Calcio (2 October 2020). "Elenco delle società C.R. Lombardia" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 18 June 2021. Retrieved 11 October 2020.
  2. "Cosenza e Como, promozione in C2" (in Italian). Corriere dello Sport. 27 April 2008. Retrieved 27 April 2008.
  3. "Stagione Sportiva 2017/2018 Comunicato Ufficiale N°14 del 14/8/2017" [Sporting season 2017/2018 Official Statement N°14 of 14/8/2017] (PDF) (in Italian). Federazione Italiana Giuoco Calcio Lega Nazionale Dilettanti. Archived (PDF) from the original on 25 August 2017. Retrieved 25 August 2017.
  4. "Ecco come salverò il Como". La Gazzetta dello Sport (in Italian). 29 December 2004. Archived from the original on 12 August 2017. Retrieved 4 June 2014.
  5. "(Questioni relative al fallimento della società di calcio Como – n. 2-01566)". Camera dei deputati (in Italian). 30 June 2005. Archived from the original on 1 September 2011. Retrieved 20 June 2011.
  6. "Como" (in Italian). Lega Pro. Archived from the original on 29 July 2010. Retrieved 7 August 2010.
  7. "Il Como è di Lady Essien "Vi porteremo in serie B"". Archived from the original on 25 April 2017. Retrieved 16 April 2017.
  8. "LEGA PRO: L'ESITO DEL CONSIGLIO DIRETTIVO" (Press release) (in Italian). Lega Pro. 3 July 2017. Archived from the original on 30 July 2017. Retrieved 4 July 2017.
  9. "Comunicato Ufficiale N°191/A (2016–17)" [Press Release N°191/A (2016–17)] (PDF) (Press release) (in Italian). FIGC. 30 June 2017. Archived (PDF) from the original on 3 July 2017. Retrieved 4 July 2017.
  10. "Como 1907 ammesso in sovrannumero alla serie D intanto arriva il nuovo sponsor tecnico" (in Italian). Espansione TV. 2 August 2017. Archived from the original on 5 August 2017. Retrieved 10 August 2017.
  11. "Serie D 2017/2018: I gironi" (Press release) (in Italian). Serie D. 11 August 2017. Archived from the original on 23 June 2018. Retrieved 12 August 2017.
  12. "Prima Squadra" (in Italian). Como 1907. Retrieved 24 April 2023.
  13. "Como 1907, Como, football club". Archived from the original on 10 November 2021. Retrieved 10 November 2021.
  14. "Trofeo Borgonovo: La 10ª edizione è di Facchin". 13 May 2022. Archived from the original on 27 September 2022. Retrieved 19 June 2022.
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