Taranto Sport

A.S. Taranto

The first team ever founded in the city of Taranto was the Mario Rapisardi, established in 1904. However, in 1904 another team, U.S. Pro Italia, was founded. That year, the two teams attempted unsuccessfully to merge with each other. In 1911, after the founding of Audace Foot Ball Club by a group of local students, a rivalry between the two teams started, lasting until 1927, when the two teams merged to form A.S. Taranto. The new team first promoted to Serie B in 1935, played only one year in that category. In 1947, after merging with U.S. Arsenale Taranto, another team in the city, the club assumed the name of U.S. Arsenaltaranto, which lasted until 1955, when the old one was restored. In 1965, the new venue was inaugurated, after a hundred days of construction. A number of years played in Serie B and Serie C saw the highest peak ever reached by Taranto in 1977–1978, when the team, led by striker Erasmo Iacovone, was seriously fighting for a surprising promotion. However, on 6 February 1978, Iacovone was killed in a car accident. After his death, Taranto's venue was named after him. Taranto left Serie B in 1980/1981 and reached it again three years later. In 1985 the club was declared bankrupt by magistrates, and was taken over before the end of that season. Because of all that, it was forced to change its name to a different one, Taranto Football Club SpA. However, after more economic woes, the team was disbanded in 1993.

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