Italy is one of the homelands of world football. Although it was not born here, Italians have always had an immense passion for football, so much so that it soon became the most followed sport on our peninsula.
Italy wins EURO 2020
Italy triumphs at Wembley.
Italy returns to the roof of Europe after 53 years since the last time. A triumph built over the previous few years after the heavy debacle of excluding the 2018 World Cup. An incredible joy that invaded the streets of all Italian cities and brought our distant compatriots closer together, even the 6000 heroes of Wembley who challenged the English wall of 54 thousand spectators to the sound of chants and choirs.
The match started off badly for the Azzurri of coach Mancini who were down by Shaw's goal after two minutes. The English joy lasted only till the 70th minute: Bonucci put everything on an even keel with a goal on the rebound of the post. It was the beginning of the Azzurri victory, which would arrive with Donnarumma's miracles in the penalty shootout. It is the Azzurri apotheosis that erupts.
Italy's journey has been incredible and they have reached a goal that exceeded even the most optimistic forecasts. It cornered Austria and Belgium, knew how to suffer with Spain and finally spoiled the party for the English who had started celebrating too early. It is the triumph of every Italian who can celebrate after a year and a half of difficulties and restrictions; joy has invaded Italy, because today the sky is blue even over London.
It is a triumph that showed all the uniqueness of the Italians: they know how to be recognised and appreciated when it comes to football.
Italians lose wars as if they were football matches, and football matches as if they were wars
Probably an apocryphal quotation, but perhaps the gruff British Prime Minister of the second post-war period was not entirely wrong. We Italians live and suffer for football, so much so that, from the national team to the club team or the oratory or the football team on Thursdays, we feel a boundless passion almost like eternal love, a faith to be devoted to, a religion in short.
It is not blasphemy. Indeed, in Italy, one never betrays one's football faith for any reason in the world. It is an almost commendable behaviour: let's find out together the customs and celebrations of Italians in the world of football.
Football match traditions
Football matches are an inevitable ritual in the life of an Italian and are rooted in the history and customs of each Italian region. Among the most heartfelt and richest games of customs, there are certainly those of the Italian national team that brings with it roots and historical traditions.
One of the most common customs, when the national team plays, especially for big tournaments, is to get together with friends and relatives to follow the game by organizing a dinner, strictly based on pizza and beer. For the Italian fans, the sofa turns into a stadium grandstand with chants, cheers and spasmodic anxiety.Another custom is to decorate the balconies with Italian tricolour; from an early age, we are used to hanging the flag on our terraces and the older and more worn the flag carries with it the memories, perhaps of old triumphs. Even in the smallest villages, you can find flags on the balconies.
In addition to the house, Italians love to decorate and colour the squares of their cities, as well as the bars or places to meet too. One of the oldest traditions is to see the game in squares with maxi screens or in bars with TVs.
A possible victory often led the Italian fans to pour into the squares, cheering along the streets of all the cities among the pieces of history of the Italian peninsula with carousels that usually last all day and the following night.
The types of fans that you can meet in Italy
In Italy, as in other countries, there are different types of fans that you can meet especially during the big tournaments between national teams. But let's find out together which ones.
You can meet the coach fan. He lives on football, he is an expert in statistics and numbers that would horrify even the statistics professors of the most prestigious universities in the world. This type of fan is the one most hated by insiders and other fans because he is always ready to criticize the choices of his team. This typology is the most widespread in Italy in a population of saints, poets, navigators and 60 million coaches.
Another type is the bar fan. You usually find him in the bars of the city the day after the game ready to talk about the game in every aspect from the technical tactical ones to those merely teasing for the opponents.
Among the Italian fans, you can also meet the defeatist, the one who cannot enjoy a match. He lives the preparation of it in spasmodic anxiety and you cannot even ask him for a forecast because it will surely be an advantage for the opponent.
The ultras fan, on the other hand, is opposed to the defeatist and uncontrollably loves the team that cheers so much as to follow it to the end of the world.
