Giovanni Ferrari was an Italian footballer who played from 1907 to 1982, known for his exceptional skills as a midfielder and forward.
Ferrari is regarded as one of the best players of his generation, having won Serie A 8 times and two consecutive FIFA World Cup titles with Italy.
He began his career with US Alessandria Calcio 1912 and later played for top clubs like Juventus and Inter Milan, winning multiple championships.
Biography
Early Life
Giovanni Ferrari was born on December 6, 1907, in Alessandria, Italy. He grew up in a region that would later see him become one of its most celebrated footballers. His passion for the sport ignited early, leading him to join local club Alessandria in 1923, where he began his professional career.
Career
Ferrari's career spanned several prestigious clubs in Italy, marking him as a significant figure in the football world. He played for US Alessandria Calcio 1912 from 1923 to 1925 and again from 1926 to 1930, before making a notable move to Juventus FC in 1930. During his first spell at Juventus, he donned the iconic number 10 shirt and contributed to the club's dominance by winning five consecutive Serie A titles, a period known as "Il Quinquennio d'Oro della Juventus." After five successful years, he transferred to Inter Milan, where he continued to excel until 1940. He later played for Bologna F.C. and returned to Juventus for a final season as a player-manager, securing his tenth major national trophy.
On the international stage, Ferrari was a key player for the Italy national team from 1930 to 1938, earning 44 caps and scoring 14 goals. He was instrumental in Italy's victories in the 1934 and 1938 FIFA World Cups, becoming one of only three players to win two World Cups alongside legends Giuseppe Meazza and Eraldo Monzeglio. After retiring from playing, he transitioned into coaching, leading the national team from 1960 to 1961.
Legacy
Giovanni Ferrari passed away in Milan in 1982 at the age of 74. His contributions to football were recognized posthumously when he was inducted into the Italian Football Hall of Fame in 2011. With a career that included eight Serie A titles and two World Cups, Ferrari remains a celebrated figure in Italian football history, remembered for his skill as an attacking midfielder and his leadership on and off the pitch.
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Gallery
Career & Clubs
Ferrari began his footballing career with local club Alessandria in the prima divisione nazionale in 1923. He was at the start of the newly established Serie A in the season 1929-30, aside from a brief loan to Napoli during the 1925–26 season, where he scored 16 goals in 15 matches. He was given credit over a seven-year period (1923–1930) with Alessandria and Napoli in total to play in 137 matches and score 78 goals. The following year, Ferrari changed over to Juventus and was handed the number 10 shirt. Over that five-year period (1930–1935), which was his first spell at Juventus, he played in 160 games and scored 66 goals, in addition to providing many assists. Although the official number of assists he provided went unrecorded. Ferrari would next move to Inter, where he would play for five-years (1935-1940), and then subsequently to Bologna for the 1940–41 season, before return for second spell to Juventus in the 1941–42 season, this time as a player-manager in what turned out to be the final season of his playing career, winning his 10th major national trophy. After the Second World War, when Italian club football resumed in the season 1945-46, he became a full-time manager for Brescia. 1930-1935: Il Quinquennio d'Oro della Juventus Juventus had won 2 Italian Championships earlier in history, before it was named Serie A, but under his guidance, the club won 5 consecutive Serie A Titles, Il Quinquennio d'Oro, by then a record of 1st 5 successive titles ever in Italy,…
Ferrari's first taste of success with the Italy national team was as part of the silver medal-winning 1931–32 Central European International Cup squad. He then went on to win two consecutive World Cups (in 1934 & 1938), as well as the 1933–35 Central European International Cup. All 4 tournaments alongside teammates Giuseppe Meazza and Eraldo Monzeglio. All three won four international titles together with Italy. In total, he managed 44 appearances and 14 goals with the national side between 1930 and 1938. He later was the head coach of Italy from 1960 to 1961, and was part of the technical commission, being co-manager with Paolo Mazza, leading Italy in the 1962 FIFA World Cup, where Italy lost a match to the hosting nation Chile in the Battle of Santiago, a match noted for its violent play.
1931–32 Central European International Cup
Ferrari was a regular starter in his advanced playmaker/attacking midfielder role from the start of the 1931–32 Central European International Cup, and also scored a goal in the away match against Czechoslovakia. The campaign ended with Italy finishing as runners-up behind the Austrian Wunderteam led by Matthias Sindelar; this was Ferrari's first international medal with Italy (Silver).
1934 FIFA World Cup
At the 1934 World Cup, Ferrari finished as the top assist provider of the tournament with four assists. In addition to his playmaking role, he scored twp goals, both of them in the knockout stage, in his first World Cup. The…
- Club
- Juventus FC (1930–1935)
- Club
- Inter Milan (1935–1940)
- Club
- US Alessandria Calcio 1912 (1923–1925)
- Club
- Bologna F.C. 1909 (1940–1941)
- Club
- US Alessandria Calcio 1912 (1926–1930)
- Club
- Juventus FC (1941–1942)
- Club
- Italy men's national association football team (1930–1938)
- Club
- Foot-Ball Club Internazionale-Naples (1925–1926)
- National team
- Italy
Personal
Ferrari was born in Alessandria on 6 December 1907 and died in Milan in 1982, aged 74.
Legacy
Club
Juventus Serie A: 1930–31, 1931–32, 1932–33, 1933–34, 1934–35 Coppa Italia: 1941–42 Internazionale Serie A: 1937–38, 1939–40 Coppa Italia: 1938–39 Bologna Serie A: 1940–41
International
Italy FIFA World Cup: 1934, 1938 Central European International Cup: 1933–35; Runner-up: 1931–32
Individual
Italian Football Hall of Fame: 2011 (Posthumous)
Clubs
Played together with
Aaron RamseyJuventus FC · 2019–2022
Abdoulay KonkoJuventus FC · 2004–2007
Achille PicciniItaly men's national association football team · 1936–1936
Achraf HakimiInter Milan · 2020–2021
Aco StojkovInter Milan · 2001–2005
Adam MasinaBologna F.C. 1909 · 2013
Adaílton Martins BolzanBologna F.C. 1909 · 2007–2010
Adem LjajićInter Milan · 2015
Adolfo BaloncieriItaly men's national association football team · 1920–1930- Adolfo BaloncieriUS Alessandria Calcio 1912 · 1919–1925
- Adolfo BaloncieriUS Alessandria Calcio 1912 · 1943–1944
Adrian MutuInter Milan · 1999–2000
Archive
Passport
Identifiers & aliases
Giovanni Ferrari was an Italian footballer who played as an attacking midfielder/inside forward on the left. He is regarded as one of the best players of his generation, having won Serie A 8 times, as well as two consecutive FIFA World Cup titles with the Italy national football team. Along with Giuseppe Meazza and Eraldo Monzeglio, he is one of only three Italian players to have won two World Cups.
Opinions of fans — not verified facts.
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