If we mention a 1930 calcio match between Ambrosiana and Genova 1893, you may think we must be referring to some unknown, low-tier match-up. But no, what we are talking about is a battle worth a Scudetto, the game that decided the very first edition of the Serie A as we know it today, and the two sides involved were no less than Inter and Genoa “in disguise.”
Both clubs had had to change their name to comply with the Fascist regime rules that didn’t allow any “international” name or reference on Italian soil.
On June 15, 1930, the Nerazzurri and the Rossoblu squared off at the Campo Virgilio Fossati in Milan, which was Inter’s home turf back in the days. It ended in a 3-3 stalemate thanks to a sensational hat trick from 20-year-old Giuseppe Meazza, Inter’s legendary Balilla to whom the Stadio San Siro would be eventually dedicated.
The home draw allowed the then Ambrosiana to keep the Genoan side at a distance and celebrate the Scudetto the following week, when a 2-0 win over Juventus also put the Bianconeri out of contention. But the game at the Virgilio Fossati rather risked going down in history as a tragedy as, right before the beginning of the match, a portion of the “stadium” wooden stands suddenly collapsed.
The match organizers had incautiously allowed the ramshackle stands of the Campo Fossati to be filled much beyond their supposed capacity, maybe because nobody had the faintest idea about what the “official” capacity was meant to be.
In any case, nobody would have been there to make sure it was respected and it was thanks to the players themselves who helped extracting people from the debris and carrying them to the ambulances that the incident resulted in no casualties and recorded “only” a few dozen people wounded.
Ambrosiana wanted to postpone the game but Genova 1893 reportedly refused to do so and so the show went on, prompting Meazza’s heroics and resulting in a 3-3 draw that the Nerazzurri were happy to collect on their way to winning the first Serie A title (the third in their history).
The Italian football season of 1929-30 was indeed the first one played with a girone unico (“Single Group”) formula and technically named Serie A. Prior to that, the Italian football championship was named Divisione Nazionale and was contested via multiple regional groups that would promote a few clubs to a final Playoff Round.
The Fascist regime had long opposed the concept of a single group featuring the best teams in the country as that basically meant to cut off most of the smaller, poorer clubs from Central and Southern Italy. But they eventually had to buy the idea of a girone unico, which was already a best practice in the top continental leagues such as the Austrian and the Hungarian one.
There was one thing, however, on which Fascism would not compromise: Names. In the days of autarchy, it was strictly prohibited to have a name with even the slightest non-Italian reference. Thus, Inter – whose full name is (oh, the horror!) Internazionale – were forced to become Ambrosiana in homage to Saint Ambrose, the patron saint of the city.
Their cross-town rivals had to give up their English name Milan and be known by the Italian denomination of the city – Milano – and a similar fate awaited Genoa, who became Genova 1893 with a reference to their year of birth. Latin names were very welcome as they reminded of the glorious heritage of the Roman civilization and so Juventus – which means “youth” in Latin – were spared any name change.
When they received the Rossoblu side on June 15, Inter – pardon, Ambrosiana – were just a few points away from capturing the title. Second placed Genova, however, were no ordinary opponent. They had already won the Italian championship nine times and were by far the most successful club in the Belpaese back in the days.
Genova could boast a striker like formidable Virgilio Levratto, nicknamed Sfondareti (“net-ripper”) in view of his supposed ability to literally rip the back of the net with his powerful shots. A skill whose truthfulness obviously fades into legend, but one thing is for sure: Levratto was a terrific forward and, on that day, he seemed on fire.
After 28 minutes, he had already scored twice, adding to Ercole Bodini’s goal to give the visitors a triple lead only reduced by Giuseppe Meazza’s first goal for the Nerazzurri in the 22nd minute.
Meazza was just a 20-year-old boy but was already making a name for himself in the world of calcio. On that day, he seemed to have an additional motivation. The story goes that, while assisting a young boy who had remained wounded in the stands collapse before the game, the kid told him that he would have endured the pain if Meazza promised him he would score three goals.
Whether it’s true or not, the fact is – Giuseppe Meazza did score three goals, slotting the ball home again in the 30th and 53rd minute to draw level for Inter, push the Nerazzurri towards the Scudetto, and take a step closer to becoming the top scorer of the season. He would win the title by tallying 31 goals out of 33 appearances.
That was just the beginning. There was still so much more that the young Balilla was going to be up to, including winning two World Cups with the Azzurri and becoming Inter’s all-time top scorer with 244 goals – before having his name perpetually engraved in the history of Italian football as it was associated to the San Siro Stadium in Milan.
MATCH REPORT
June 15, 1930 – Serie A 1929-30 Round 32
AMBROSIANA-GENOVA 1893 3-3
SCORERS: 4′ Levratto (G), 14′ Bodini (G), 22′ Meazza (A), 28′ Levratto (G), 30′ Meazza (A), 53′ Meazza (A)
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AMBROSIANA (2-3-2-3): Degani; Allemandi, Gianfardoni; Castellazzi, Serantoni, Viani; Blasevich, Conti, Meazza, Rivolta, Visentin Coach: Weisz |
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GENOVA 1893 (2-3-2-3): Bacigalupo; Lombardo, Spigno; Albertoni, Bodini, Casanova, Gilardoni, Parodi; Banchero, Levratto, Puerari Coach: De Vecchi |
REFEREE: Mr. Carraro from Padova
NOTES: Red Card: Bacigalupo (G)