Napoli or Avellino?

Discussion in 'Italy: Southern Clubs' started by Melito Irpino, Feb 17, 2007.

  1. Melito Irpino

    Melito Irpino Member

    Feb 17, 2007
    Corona, CA
    Club:
    SSC Napoli
    Hi,

    I'm new to these threads. I'm a long time soccer fan from the US with Italian roots who always supports Italy in the world cup but never had followed the Serie A or B until this year. Most of the coverage is on the big clubs like Milan, Inter, Juve, etc. but being of southern origin I want to pick a southern team.

    My grandfather was from a small town in the Avellino province called Melito Irpino. Do you know if people in that area would typically root for the Provincial team Avellino or the larger Regional Team Napoli? Or even one of the larger Serie A teams?

    Is it cool to root for both Napoli and Avellino? I saw a Youtube video of a big riot when the two teams played so I can imagine that they are fierce rivals. I'm going to travel to Melito and meet some cousins for the first time so I wanted to get a heads up on the Calcio landscape.

    Thanks in advance for any thoughts you may have.
     
  2. dor02

    dor02 Member

    Aug 9, 2004
    Melbourne
    Club:
    UC Sampdoria
    Nat'l Team:
    Italy
    It's best to root for one of them if you plan to go to one of the derbies. You can't show your support both sides at the stadiums.
     
  3. forzareggina

    forzareggina Member

    Reggina
    United States
    Aug 24, 2004
    Columbus, Ohio, USA
    Club:
    Reggina Calcio
    I would say root for avellino... because i hate when people root for a team because they are good or a bigger club

    but then again.. napoli would be much easier to follow in terms of coverage
     
  4. Melito Irpino

    Melito Irpino Member

    Feb 17, 2007
    Corona, CA
    Club:
    SSC Napoli
    Thanks for your comments. I'd already found myself rooting for both so I'll continue to do so. It is almost impossible to follow either team so hopefully it will be easier next year if Napoli is in Serie A (might even get some games on Fox Soccer channel !) and Avellino is in Serie B. I'll go with my blood and root for the smaller Avellino as my Number 1 team.

    I mentioned that my grandfather is from Avellino, well my grandmother's family was from Corleone, Sicily so I also kind of pull for Palermo. But I just can't see myself walking down the street in one of those awful Pink jersies :D.
     
  5. napolivsavellino

    napolivsavellino New Member

    May 2, 2005
    Toronto, ON
    i cheer for both clubs...although AVELLINO is always #1 in my heart.....

    but i do have to say..i am very proud to wear the green and white...green is not a common team colour for soccer clubs in italy and when i wear the green....i feel proud to have lupo blood in my veins...
     
  6. FNU

    FNU BigSoccer Yellow Card

    Mar 6, 2007
    Monte Vesuvio
    Club:
    SSC Napoli
    Nat'l Team:
    Italy
    Avellino:eek::p
     
  7. JumpinJackFlash

    JumpinJackFlash New Member

    Mar 15, 2007
    Soviet Britannia
    Club:
    Juventus FC
    Nat'l Team:
    Kazakhstan
    Just go with the team which is in your gut... I'd find it hard to say "OK I'm going to become a fan of ____". It should be which team you naturally levitate towards IMO.
     
  8. sportfriend

    sportfriend Member

    Jun 24, 2006
    Canada
    ...says the Juve fan

    cheers to you for supporting your heritage, i wish more people were like us!
    you have the right so support both of those teams...I'm sort of in the same boat here, as i like both Reggina and Cosenza...who hate each other like no other
     
  9. JumpinJackFlash

    JumpinJackFlash New Member

    Mar 15, 2007
    Soviet Britannia
    Club:
    Juventus FC
    Nat'l Team:
    Kazakhstan
    What does supporting Juve have to do with anything?

    I have supported them since childhood, before even understanding the concept of which team had the most illustrious history, etc it wasn't a pre-meditated decision to support the greatest team (Especially considering the English team I support is in the Conference League), quite simply watching Serie A and being drawn to the way Roberto Baggio played was the reason.

    And I aren't suddenly going to stop and change teams just because some people like you, think its not "cool" to support them. Nor should any fan of any team who has become a fan naturally like that and stuck with them throughout their life.

    What do you expect me to say LOL, "sorry Juve, after 17 years of supporting you I will now stop. A guy in the footballing epicenter of the world North America, who has probably supported Reggina all of two years doesn't like it... I think I'll suddenly become an SSC Giugliano fan". :rollseyes:
     
  10. TifosoRoma

    TifosoRoma Member

    Feb 17, 2007
    New Jersey
    Club:
    AS Roma
    Nat'l Team:
    Italy
    my mother is from castelforte latina, which is just south of rome, so when i first started watching soccer closely in around 2001 i started to become a roma fan.. possibly because they also won the scudetto that year and were amazing to watch play

    my father is from faicchio benevento, just east of Napoli, so i also started following Napoli. It's strange to find someone who supports both Napoli and Roma being that they are rivals.. but i take pride in being from regions with soccer powerhouses like roma and napoli!
     
  11. velleca

    velleca New Member

    Apr 26, 2007
    Rhode Island
    This may sound stupid but why exactly are Roma and Napoli rivals? is there any specific games, or year that caused their rvialry? The only thing I can find out it, is the "Derby del Sole", and it doesnt say much about it. I was just wondering as these are my two favorite teams also.
     
  12. indestructible

    indestructible Member+

    SSC Napoli
    Jan 14, 2007
    Mercato Professor
    Club:
    SSC Napoli
    Nat'l Team:
    Italy
    From what i understood, Napoli and Roma fans used to be friendly till the the 1980's. Roma fans have said when Napoli fans were visiting Rome, they were treated well by the city and Roma ultras. But when Roma fans traveled to Napoli they were assaulted and abused. To me it's all bullshit
     
  13. Melito Irpino

    Melito Irpino Member

    Feb 17, 2007
    Corona, CA
    Club:
    SSC Napoli
    Just got back from visiting my cousins in Provincia Avellino. They all root for Napoli and Avellino, but their main teams are AC Milan (dad and one cousin) and Inter (other cousin). They say that Napoli and Avellino are "too small". Not for long, I say.

    So I'll have to go against my cousins on this one and stick with both my adopted teams and now worry much about the Campania derby for now.

    I will admit that I rooted for AC Milan in the Champions League over Liverpool but no shame in that.
     
  14. NapoliNewJersey

    NapoliNewJersey New Member

    Aug 13, 2006
    New Jersey
    Club:
    SSC Napoli
    Nat'l Team:
    Italy

    That is bullshit .... Anytown south of Roma are considered African to the northern cities... When Napoli played in Roma they would hold up signs that said "Africans: Welcome to Italy."

    Of corse this did not start the rivalry but it proves that Romanistas treated the Napoli fans pretty ************. I'm sure when Roma's fans come to Napoli they get it even worse though.

    I'm sure the rivalry is beacuse Roma is the closest of the big clubs to Napoli and therefore became the only derby for Napoli is Serie A, in the past.

    Their derby is called "Derby Del Sol" .. the derby of the sun. Not sure why.

    Hope that helps.
     
  15. JumpinJackFlash

    JumpinJackFlash New Member

    Mar 15, 2007
    Soviet Britannia
    Club:
    Juventus FC
    Nat'l Team:
    Kazakhstan
    Hmm, I thought that generally Avellino and Napoli hated each other. I know from relatives there that Napoli and Salternitana hate each other with a passion (maybe more than Avellino) but most of the Americans who have Salerno roots seem to support Napoli instead.
     
  16. PeteTheRetailer

    PeteTheRetailer New Member

    Jul 20, 2007
    Brooklyn

    That's the way I feel, after following for a few years.
    My grandfather is from Sant'Andrea di Conza, in the Avellino province.
    They have their own team (Real S.A.), but they're so small, they're impossible to follow.

    Next for me is Avellino (gotta love the Lupi logo!) and then Napoli, both of which should be easy to follow next season, even from the US!
    (and not in direct competition with each other!)
     
  17. EireYank

    EireYank New Member

    Mar 30, 2007
    orlando
    i support napoli.Never avellino.to the original poster who do you support when the us plays italy?
     
  18. joeginto

    joeginto Member

    Jul 16, 2006
    Chicago
    Club:
    SSC Napoli
    Nat'l Team:
    Italy
    i'll tell you what, my family in napoli were absolutely heartbroken when avellino beat napoli in the serie c1 playoff two years ago. if they didn't hate them enough then, they surely do know. from my perspective though, i really have a hard time not rooting for small teams. particularly a small team from the south. i'm so tired of the northern bias. here's hoping avellino build a club and at least get in the top half of the serie b table this year.
     
  19. Reazzurro90

    Reazzurro90 New Member

    Jun 10, 2006
    Connecticut, USA
    Root for a team because you fall in love with it, not simply because it's a bigger and wealthier club. That being said, if Napoli is that club you fall in love with, then support it.

    Me, since I was little, I was raised by my sister to be a juventino, despite my brother and father being Milanistas.

    When I in the future began to know about Calcio Catania and watched them play, I began to get curious and follow them. I'm absolutely crazy for that team, and I would support it to the death, even if it was ever relegated to Serie C2 (oh please, heaven forbid!). That being said, I would root for Juventus in the same circumstances, because I cannot let go of them either.
     
  20. ScunizzoNapoletano

    ScunizzoNapoletano New Member

    Aug 17, 2007
    Letino, Caserta
    I was raised as a Milanista by my father. We are die hard A.C fans, watch every game together, Milan entertains us to death. But with Napoli its something different, when Napoli wins or loses it hits close to home. When we lost the c1 playoff to Avellino 2 years ago it hurt, but thats when I became a real Napoli fan.
     
  21. JumpinJackFlash

    JumpinJackFlash New Member

    Mar 15, 2007
    Soviet Britannia
    Club:
    Juventus FC
    Nat'l Team:
    Kazakhstan
    Good post.

    Similar kinda situation for me, apart from replace Milan with Juve and the fact that I haven't ever stopped been a Juve fan. Its different when you're a kid, football is more romantic, nieve and less premidiated.. so you go with what you connect with the first time you experience it.

    Even if your family is Southern, as a 6/7 year old you don't really think about things like that nor understand the history of it all, so there are many people of Neapolitan/Sicilian/Calabrese, etc origin that are fans of clubs like Juve and Milan. As I get older and learn more... there are strong feelings for Napoli, as that is blood.

    It feels kinda weird wanting two clubs in the same country to do well, but abandoning the first club just because they're "not from the South" would be equally lame. I don't really understand the mentality of adults, going on the internet doing a google search of their place of origin, and then premeditately "choosing" that team, like the clubs were sweets on display in a shop or something... that isn't very romantic at all and do those people really feel it in their soul? I don't know.
     
  22. ScunizzoNapoletano

    ScunizzoNapoletano New Member

    Aug 17, 2007
    Letino, Caserta
    Thats exactly it man, blood is blood. I'd never drop Milan from my roster but im more passionate about Napoli. In general im more enthusiastic about southern teams, no matter where their from sicilia,calabria,bari,Napoli. Its always nice to see them do well and stick it to a northern team :p all joking aside iv been playing calcio since I could tie my shoes and its a dream of mine to go and play for any team in my region, if I could i would play for free, soccer is one of my only passions and joys in life.
     
  23. colagrosso3

    colagrosso3 New Member

    Jun 16, 2007
    Montreal
    My family are mostly Roma and lazio supporters even though most are sicilian, but luckily my cuzzin raised me since birth to be a palermo fan, we are the biggest palermo fans in canada and i adore the style of play and the sicilian pride, i remember watching the palermo promotion game from serie b to a, that day was one of the best of my lives, we drove around with our flags and vintage kappa palermo jersy and went crazyy, everyone was looking at us in amazement and wonder of what we were doing:p no one new about palermo back then in montreal, now till the rest of my life i will love them with a passion that is unbelivable, if its becomeing bankrupt to relegation (heaven forbid) they will allways be La squadra del mio cuore What i say to many people is dont follow these big clubs like juve, inter, milan and roma just because there big and ritch like so many people do today but follow your heart to decide, this is something were u cant decide to switch one day so follow your heart and stick with it, the feeling is increadable.. even if its the smallest club like avellino or a bigger club like napoli follow your heart

    by the way liking avellino and napoli is like liking palermo and catania:D:p

    Now thats a big no no

    soccer has always been a passion of mine even though im not as skilled as id wish to be, im pretty young so hopefully there will be some kinda talent sperth lol

    i play defenseman and my family and many friend are in aww of how serious i am on the pitch and sitting in front of the t.v watching the games

    im planing on moveing to italy in the near future to try to sign up to some southern team youth camp
     
  24. NAPOLIUSA

    NAPOLIUSA Member

    Jun 10, 2007
    Trenton,New Jersey
    Club:
    SSC Napoli
    Nat'l Team:
    Italy
    To cheer for a northern team when your roots are from the South is a sin. No matter when you started to like them. As a kid I fell for the likes of Baggio too. End result of that is that I like Baggio, not juve. If a youngster of Southern origin chooses to follow a northern team, he should be told early on what his "big" team's fans think of him. That they call us Africans, animals, and names like "terroni" to name a few. (I experienced these prejudices first hand so perhaps I have a biast opinion on the matter) If your family is from Avellino you should be loyal to that.
     
    forza 4zA repped this.
  25. JumpinJackFlash

    JumpinJackFlash New Member

    Mar 15, 2007
    Soviet Britannia
    Club:
    Juventus FC
    Nat'l Team:
    Kazakhstan
    See with Juve specifically, I just don't see that. I mean take the Agnelli family for example, in the South for a lot of people getting employment can be near impossible... but with Fiat, the Agnelli family welcomed Southerners into jobs. Obviously I'm not nieve enough to think that they were Mother Teresa like figures... they wanted to become rich and powerful, but atleast they gave Southerners who worked for them something to take home to support their families instead of the nothing they'd be getting otherwise.

    Most of the fans of the club in Turin are those Southerners who work for Fiat and have moved up there... the club even gets mocked by a lot of Torino fans for that fact. So I can't imagine the fans calling Southerners racist names when that is where most of them are from too. (Acording to Maradona's book, Juve fans didn't)

    Is Ciro Ferrara sinning for strongly being attached to both Juve and Napoli? Is Fabio Cannavaro?.. both men speak of their deep love for both. Technically, it is located in the North, but it doesn't bear the name of a city, and with fans who originate from the South, along with the club helping to nurture great young Neapolitan players like Palladino, Nocerino and Criscito who will be the future of Italian football, it isn't so difficult for me to love the club.

    Its understandable how fans of every other club in Italy would hate them with a passion. Its an extreme love or extreme hate thing for sure. But IMO.. Juventus along with the Italian national team, Roberto Baggio and Ferrari is a fine example of Italy as a concept actually being something the rest of the world can look at and be green with envy. Its highly unlikely that the Regno delle Due Sicilie will ever exist again, so if North and South continue to pull in oposite directions and segregate each other further, then nothing is ever going to be solved. Just look at Genoa and Napoli last season, both sets of fans one Northern club, one Southern celebrated together without any of the b****t regional racism; that is how it should be.
     
    forza 4zA repped this.

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