Inside the club – History of Bologna FC

History was made 116 years ago in a brewery in the center of Bologna: the journey of rossoblù began when “those crazies running after a ball” started to play football in the new city club. It was October 3rd, 1909 when Bologna Football Club was founded by Emilio Arstein in the Ronzani brewery. Let’s find out the incredible history of this club.

Bologna FC: the origins

A bunch of kids played football near Piazza d’Armi in Prati di Caprara every day: among those kids there was also Antonio Bernabeu, Santiago’s brother. At the beginning, the team was part of the tourist club of the city, but in 1910 it left the club and became independent. Bologna FC came to the attention of the whole country after a friendly match against Inter. It was May, 1910 when they faced the Italian champions: rossoblù lost the game, but the audience was enthusiastic and Bologna gained the opportunity to enter a national championship for the first time.

Colors and logo

Red and blue have always been the official colors of the club and they come from the Schönberg College, in Switzerland. Arrigo Gradi, one of the founder of Bologna FC, studied at the college and took inspiration from the red and blue uniform of the students. That’s why the team and the supporter are called rossoblù (red and blue in Italian). Moreover, in this season the official t-shirt has a special circle on the chest with the Italian tricolor because the club won the Italian Cup after 51 years.

The circle on the new kit (© 1000Cuorirossoblù and Bologna FC 1909)

The logo of the club has changed over the years, but never radically. The wording “BFC” stands for “Bologna Football Club” and 1909 is the year of birth: the style of letters and numbers follows the Art Nouveau movement. On the right there’s a red and blue cross that evokes the city flag.

Bologna FC logo (© 1000Cuorirossoblù)

The club also has a hymn: when Bologna FC plays at home and the players enter the field, you will ear it: it’s called ‘Le Tue Ali Bologna‘ and it’s performed by some local singers. At the end of the game you will also ear an historical song performed by Lucio Dalla, a famous singer who supported Bologna FC. The song is called ‘L’anno che verrà‘ and it became the soundtrack of the club.

The stadium: Renato Dall’Ara

Opened in 1927 as Littoriale, it was the first real Italian stadium that served ad a model for those who followed. It was October 31, 1926 when Benito Mussolini celebrated the grand opening by entering the stadium on his horse in front of the local authorities. Littoriale hosted the first match ever on May 29, 1927 and it was Italy against Spain. In 1983 the stadium was renamed Renato Dall’Ara in memory of the President that led Bologna FC for 30 years. The structure is very characteristic: there’s a tower called Torre di Maratona and the stadium is directly connected to the arcades of San Luca, a sanctuary located on the top of a hill.

Stadium Renato Dall’Ara (© 1000Cuorirossoblù e artribune.com)

It has a capacity of 36.532 people and the Bologna FC fan sector is called Curva Bulgarelli. On the opposite side there’s the guest sector, situated in Curva San Luca, which has a capacity of 2.500 people.

Bologna FC players train at Niccolò Galli Technical Center, named by a player who died in 2001 in an accident while returning home from training. The area includes: 6 full-size fields, 3 small-sided fields and a tennis clay court. Near the center there’s also Isokinetic, a sports and orthopedic rehabilitation center.

Bologna Fc fans

Bologna FC supporters are part of various organized groups and the first big one, founded in 1974, still exists today: it’s called Forever Ultras and it’s the biggest one. There are also other groups: Vecchia Guardia (Old Guard), Freak Boys, Settore Ostile (Hostile Sector) and many others.

Curva Bulgarelli (© Damiano Fiorentini / 1000Cuorirossoblù)

The greatest choreography they have ever created was the one for the Italian Cup final against Milan. The starting XI of the last historic victory, thousands of red and blue flags and a banner: “Ora come allora… così si gioca solo in paradiso” which means “Now as then.. you play like this only in paradise“.

The club and the coach

The President of Bologna Football Club is Joey Saputo, a Canadian entrepreneur that leads the club since 2014. In less that 10 years, he took Bologna from the second division to the first and gained the Champions League in the 2024/25 season.

The coach is Vincenzo Italiano, also called Wincenzo by the fans after the Italian Cup final. This is his second year in Bologna, but the city already loves him for the passion he puts into his work. In his first year, he set a new record: 62 points, only Fulvio Bernardini in 1961/62 did better than him with rossoblù. On top of that, he won di Italian Cup and brought Bologna to the European stage.

Vincenzo Italiano with the Italian Cup (© Damiano Fiorentini x 1000Cuorirossoblù)

In addition, Vincenzo was also a football player. He played as a midfielder in Verona, Padova, Chievo and other clubs, and scored 45 gol in his career. His coaching career officially started with a club called Vigontina San Paolo and before arriving in Bologna, he gained 3 finals with Fiorentina, another Italian club that plays Serie A, but never won.

History makers: old famous player of Bologna FC

The first name that comes to mind is Angelo Schiavio. He is the best scorer of all time: 16 seasons, 364 matches and 250 goals. An incredible player who made history of Bologna FC from 1922 to 1938. He also played in the National team: 21 matches, 15 goals and a World Cup.

Another star was Harald Nielsen, the youngest Danish ever to join the National team at the age of 17. He was called Dondolo: 6 seasons, 182 matches and 104 goals with Bologna FC. He won the scoring chart twice and wrote some of the best chapters of history of the club.

Last, but not least, we have Roberto Baggio. He made history not only of Bologna FC, but also of other Italian clubs like Juventus and Fiorentina. A season was enough for him to put on a show: 22 goals in 30 matches. A golden ball, 2 times Italian champion and an Italian Cup: Baggio is an icon all over the world.

Palmares

Bologna FC became a star in the 20s under the leadership of Hermann Felsner. The club won his first championship title in the 1924/25 season, then other 6, the last one in the 1963/64 season. In addition, rossoblù won three Italian Cup, the last one last season in the final against Milan.

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