Written by Matteo Ciaramella
The Scudetto is a truly iconic feature in Italian football, appreciated by fans all over the world. Part of a century-old tradition, this is a typical example of the living cultural differences that still persist in the football world, making football history so rich and exciting to learn about.
To get us started, Scudetto is an Italian word, meaning “little shield”, and that is exactly what it is. Every year, when a team is inevitably crowned champion of Italy, an Italian flag in the form of a little shield is sewn onto their jerseys for the following season, representing their status as “defending champions”. And while you might find similar variations in Portugal and Turkey, this practice originated in Italy, and will be eternally associated with Italian football.
The Scudetto can trace its origins back to the Croatian city of Rijeka, which was at the center of Europe-wide debates and discussions in the post WWI period, as Italy and Yugoslavia heavily contested this strategic port location. In September 1919 however, famed Italian poet, playwright, and army officer Gabriele D’Annunzio captured the city with his brigade, with no backing from the Italian government. Being on his own, he thus set up the Italian Regency of Carnaro. It is in this exact context that a friendly football game between a selection of D’Annunzio’s soldiers and a local team took place on February 7th, 1920. In order to emphasize his devotion to Italy, D’Annunzio proposed that his team play with Italian flags in the shape of a triangle stitched onto their jerseys. And thus, the Scudetto was born.
The move was quite daring, for Italy was a monarchy at the time, ruled by the House of Savoy. Using and celebrating the Italian flag as we know it today, was seen as a challenge to the House. An anti-monarchic and republican, yet brilliant idea that would carve its place in Italian history forever.
4 years later, the Italian Football Federation (FIGC), approved the proposal of using the Scudetto symbol as a means to delineate and honor the defending champions of the Italian League, though they made sure that the Savoy coat of arms was present in the flag, unlike D’Annunzio’s version. So, following their 9th championship in the 1923-1924 season, Genoa CFC became the first club to be blessed with the honor of having a Scudetto on their jerseys.
With Fascism rising to the top and Musollini climbing the ranks, however, the Scudetto was banned in the 1930-1931 season. During this era, the defending champions had their jerseys decorated with the House of Savoy coat of arms and a fasces, while starting in the 1936-1937 season, the original Scudetto was worn to proclaim the defending Coppa Italia winners. Until 1943, this was the combination, and following a four-year break caused by the global conflict and the abolition of the Italian monarchy, the Scudetto made its comeback in 1947, during Italy’s first football game as a Republic. It was in this friendly against Switzerland that the Italian footballers wore the Scudetto as a logo on their jersey. Unlike the previous official versions, however, this little shield was a simple Italian Tricolore flag with no Savoy coat of arms – D’Annunzio’s vision was finally in full effect. The Serie A re-installed the tradition soon thereafter and the rest, as they say, is history.
An anti-monarchic stroke of genius, used in an amateur friendly game in Croatia. Recognizable all over the world, the Scudetto is a true exponent of Italian culture. And to think that the idea of it was conceived in the oddest of settings and most curious circumstances only adds authenticity and intrigue to a compelling origin story.
References
https://www.gqitalia.it/sport/article/scudetto-italia-maglie-calcio-storia-curiosita
https://www.atalantini.online/blog/il-milan-vince-lo-scudetto/
https://www.gardapost.it/2020/07/27/lo-scudetto-tricolore-fu-unidea-di-dannunzio/
https://www.focus.it/cultura/storia/inventore-scudetto-d-annunzio