Ars et Labor Ferrara Calcio

From foundation to World War II

The club was founded in March 1907 as Circolo Ars et Labor (Latin for Art and Work Club) by the Salesian priest Pietro Acerbis. In the early stages, it was mainly a cultural and religious association, then in 1913 it became a multi-sports company, taking the name of Società Polisportiva Ars et Labor (a mixture of Italian and Latin meaning Sports Club Society of Art and Work). The team began its professional activity under the aegis of the Italian Football Federation (Federazione Italiana Giuoco Calcio) in 1919, competing in the second-tier tournament. SPAL played in the top flight league from 1920 to 1925, reaching the qualification playoff for the National Finals in 1921–22. From 1925 until the Second World War, they played in Serie B and Serie C: in this period, the club's all-time top striker Mario Romani scored 130 goals in 189 games during two different periods with the white-blues (1925–32 and 1937–38). Between 1939 and 1943 the club temporarily changed its name to Associazione Calcio Ferrara, wearing the black and white colours of the city. After the suspension of the championships due to war, in 1945 the club returned to the name SPAL and to the light blue and white kits.

The golden period in Serie A

In 1946 Paolo Mazza became chairman of the club. After five consecutive seasons in Serie B, SPAL won promotion to Serie A after finishing the championship first in 1950–51. The white-blues subsequently stayed in the top…

SPAL have had several presidents (chairmen) (Italian: presidenti, lit. 'presidents' or Italian: presidenti del consiglio di amministrazione, lit. 'chairmen of the board of directors') over the course of their history. Some of them have been the main shareholder of the club. The longest-serving is Paolo Mazza.

SPAL have had many managers and head coaches throughout their history, below is a chronological list of them.

Below is a list of titles and cups won by SPAL throughout their history.

Domestic

League titles

Serie B Winners (2): 1950–51, 2016–17 Serie C / Serie C1 / Lega Pro Winners (5): 1937–38, 1972–73, 1977–78, 1991–92, 2015–16 Runners-up (5): 1941–42, 1942–43, 1969–70, 1970–71, 1995–96 Serie C2 Winners (1): 1997–98 Runners-up (1): 1990–91

Cups

Coppa Italia Runners-up (1): 1961–62 Coppa Italia Serie C Winners (1): 1998–99 Runners-up (1): 1988–89 Supercoppa di Serie C / Lega Pro Winners (1): 2016

European

Cup of Italian-Swiss Friendship Winners (1): 1968

Youth

Campionato Primavera Serie B Winners (1): 1964–65 Campionato De Martino Serie A Winners (1): 1967–68 Campionato Nazionale Under-18 Winners (2): 2021–22, 2022–23