Venice – the city of love – is one of the most beautiful in the world, renowned for its combination of romance and culture. But aside from its sheer splendour it hides another gem, it being home to one of the most exciting and characteristic football teams in the world: newly promoted Serie A side Venezia FC.
Venezia FC may well have cropped up on your radar over the last week thanks to the release of not one, but two of the best kit designs in recent memory. The bespoke jerseys arrived as the first releases of the club’s new partnership with Kappa, and it didn’t just stop at the two shirts, with a full collection punctuating the club’s standout style. But Venezia’s appeal stretches way beyond just being one of the best dressed outfits out there; this is a team with a rollercoaster history that only now seems to be finding its groove, offering something completely fresh to the conventional. Yep, Venezia FC is set to be your new favourite club, and here’s why.
Located in a city famous for its renaissance influence, Venezia FC is a club that itself is enjoying its own renaissance, returning to prominence as the product of an ambitious rebirth in 2016, rising from the ashes of bankruptcy to become one of the coolest cult teams in the game.
Despite this recent resurgence, like other cult teams such as Red Star Paris, this is a club with a long history. Originally formed in 1907 as Associazione Calcio Venezia, they enjoyed their most successful period in the early 1940s, winning the Coppa Italia in 1940/41 and then finishing third in Serie A the following year; the club’s highest league finish to date.
However, following on from this high, Venice’s primary side would spend less than ten seasons in the top-flight over the next 80 years, and so they fell out of the wider spotlight. They were renamed as Associazione Calcio Venezia 1907 in 1990, filed for bankruptcy in 2002, 2009 and 2015, changed their name a further two times to firstly to Società Sportiva Calcio Venezia and then Football Club Unione Venezia, all while languishing in the third and fourth divisions. This was not a club fitting of one of the grandest cities in the world.
Then it was bought by a consortium of investors in 2015, and the decision was made to dissolve the club and start from scratch, rather than try and revive the ashes of previous failed attempts. The next year would see the final name change – and Venezia FC was born. What followed was a period of success under the leadership of current president Duncan Niederauer, that saw the club continually climb, all the way to the glory of Serie A via the playoffs. And that in itself was a story to enchant.
As if to epitomise the very independent nature of this club, they won promotion to Serie A in the only way that they know how: with guts and a whole heap of bravado in what was one hell of a show. A man down following a red card, another sent off from the touchline, a goal down on the night, which left the tie finely balanced at 1-1, and then the ultimate showstopper when Riccardo Bocalon dinked the ball passed the despairing keeper in the 94th minute. Virtually the last kick of the game. Cue rapturous scenes and an outpouring of emotion 19 years in the making. You couldn’t write this stuff.
As part of the club’s reinvention in 2016, the decision was made to ally its identity more closely with the city's reputation for classical art and architecture. The partnership with Nike coincided with Nowhere FC being enlisted as creative directors, and it saw the club kits arriving with a renewed emphasis on the club's iconic green and orange colour scheme, imbued with subtle touches of gold that complemented one of the most visually striking combinations in the game, and they instantly began to gain attention.
That association with Nowhere FC and Fly Nowhere marked the club out as one that would be willing to explore bespoke street-style inspired takes on their image. This move has been timed perfectly, coinciding with an era when the worlds of fashion and football are more intertwined than ever, and alongside the giants such as PSG and their trailblazing approach, the Italian side offer up a niche alternative; something slightly off centre, and away from the beaten track.
Having built a reputation around some of the best bespoke kits in the game over the last few years, eyebrows were raised when it was announced that the Italian side were ending their relationship with Nike and commencing a new partnership with Kappa. Could the Italian brand deliver on the same level, both creatively and commercially? Well on the creative front, the connection with Fly Nowhere was still an ace up the sleeve. Famed for blurring the lines where football meets fashion, while wonderfully stepping all over the toes of the conventional game, the artist-owned production and publishing house were only too willing to offer up what has already been lauded as some of the best kit designs of the season, ensuring the side are perfectly dressed for their return to Serie A.
And that leads us on to another endearing facet of this incredible club. Stadio Pierluigi Penzo – the stadium they call home – will once again host some of the biggest teams from Europe. It is the smallest in Serie A, with a capacity of just 7,500. Located on the far south-eastern tip of the main island group the stadium is criminally hidden from the millions of visitors to Venice each year – you'd be forgiven for even knowing the island has a stadium, let alone what is now a top tier side, and therein lies its undeniable charm.
The ground couldn't be any further away from the only train station in Venice and as with anywhere in this unique city, the stadium is only accessible via boat or on foot. That means we have the enticing prospect of the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Romelu Lukaku and all the other stars of Serie A rocking up to games in a boat. Bring it on.
The stadium itself is a remarkable piece of sporting architecture. Originally constructed from wood a year before the First World War began, and surrounded by water on three of its four sides, it stands as a perfect embodiment of Venice. Just a ten minute boat journey and walk through wooded parks from the Piazza San Marco centre, Stadio Pierluigi Penzo is real Venice and acts as a hub for the locals.
Venice FC is a club in one of the cultural hubs of Europe, where football has never previously been a priority, and where even its stadium is hidden from plain sight. Now, thanks to an adventurous spirit both in terms of their creative kit design and the way they play on the pitch, combined with one of the most unique locations and game day experiences in world football, the club are gaining the attention they deserve. Just how they get on in Serie A remains to be seen, but everyone loves an underdog story, and they don’t get much better than this. This is a team that has been through name changes, bankruptcy and relegation, coming out on the other side looking better than ever. How could you not fall in love with this club?
Shop the Venezia 21/22 collection at prodirectsoccer.com
