Global Courant 2023-05-05 04:09:45
Napoli fans celebrated all night in Naples
The city of Naples was transformed into an epic street party.
Roads were filled with people singing, dancing and hugging each other, while children played soccer around them. People jumped into fountains in jubilation, while others waved huge Napoli flags on their scooters.
The reason? Napoli became champion of Italy on Thursday.
As soon as the final whistle blew in their match against Udinese, with Napoli’s 1-1 draw enough to clinch the Serie A title, hundreds of people packed into squares, singing with joy.
“We have one dream in our hearts. That Naples become champions again!” sounded through the city, because that dream has now come true.
Many Napoli fans followed the game on big screens in their own Stadio Diego Armando Maradona
“I cried. This is a historic moment,” says Edoardo Nappa.
The 13-year-old is part of a new generation too young to remember the glory days of Diego Maradona – the legendary non-conformist who gave city two Serie A titles while captaining Napoli.
“To be able to experience this, to experience this for the first time… it’s magical. It’s a historic moment for Naples.”
Not only the locals were partying; people from all over Italy and countries such as France, Spain and the UK traveled to Naples to enjoy the spectacle.
Naples lives and breathes football. The whole city is ready for the party: blue and white flags and garlands hang above the narrow streets. Life-sized cardboard cut-outs have popped up in the city centre. There are cakes, pastries, drinks, ice creams especially for the players.
“It feels like the world has stopped here,” said Amelia Bufi, a university student who traveled from Rome to celebrate the win.
“This party is going to last at least a month. It’s going to last all summer. It’s a great feeling: Neapolitans put love in everything they do, including football.”
Edoardo Nappa and family pictured alongside tribute to former Napoli player Diego Maradona
A celebration planned for three decades
This is a party that has been around for 33 years. The last time Napoli won the Serie A title was in 1990, when Maradona was captain.
The influence of the Argentines can still be felt in the city. His face is painted on bar windows, bumper stickers and billboards. A giant mural of him towers over a shrine dedicated to him. And above that is a sign that reads ‘Dios’ – the Spanish word for God.
Many have gathered around his shrine this week to lay flowers and light candles. Some have had tears in their eyes.
For Neapolitans, football is almost a religious experience.
“It even goes beyond religion,” says Bufi. “What we do here is like a ritual. We pray for Diego Maradona, like he’s a saint. It’s crazy and I love it.”
Maradona, who died in 2020, gave the Neapolitans a great sense of belonging.
“He was a man full of vices, but at the same time poetic and majestic at what he did best,” says European football expert Mina Rzouki.
“And that’s very much something that resonates with Neapolitans.”
Fireworks lit up the night sky in Naples as supporters celebrated their team’s long-awaited league title
Memories of glory days faded
After Maradona secured his second title for Napoli more than three decades ago, the team was unable to sustain its success. They had financial problems, went bankrupt and were relegated to Serie C – the lowest league of the professional divisions.
The turning point came in 2004: film producer Aurelio de Laurentiis bought the club.
“He has created a team that is great to watch,” said Rzouki.
“He knew he could count on the unconditional love of an entire city, on a fan base that is so devoted. So Napoli grew under him.”
And yet Napoli could not repeat the success of 1990 and win the title.
“The great pressure of playing in a city that lives football to an extent that is so unimaginable… it can be a lot. It can be suffocating to be in a city that is so committed to their success,” says Rzouki.
Revenge of the underdogs
This victory is about so much more than football. It is a symbol of the inequality between the wealthy north of Italy and the poorer south.
“Young Neapolitans are often forced to emigrate to northern Italy in search of a job and a better life,” said Franco Romano, journalist for Napoli Today.
“And so for them, winning the competition is a form of social revenge against the superpowers of the north.”
“Winning the league somewhere south of Rome is like winning 10 trophies in Milan or Turin,” says another fan, Enrico.
Neapolitans continue to endure hostile taunts from their northern rivals about crime, poverty, and even cholera outbreaks.
“If you were born in Naples, football is in your blood,” says Gaetano, dressed head-to-toe in a football kit. “Our blood is (Napoli) blue, it’s not red.”
One of thousands of Neapolitans who have moved to Milan to find work, he traveled to Naples with his entire family to experience this moment. He wants to share his passion for football with them.
“It’s something that comes from the heart. I’ve been waiting 33 years for this victory. I’m full of emotion, passion, faith… words can’t explain what I feel.”
A Consecration of Naples
When Naples won the league thanks to Maradona, the city had been devastated by a violent earthquake a few years earlier.
“The city was struggling. Poverty was everywhere,” says Massimo Romano.
“The victory with Maradona marked a rebirth for Naples after a time of extreme difficulties.”
But things are very different now.
“Naples still has many problems, but it has become a European city with many tourists, a city that is also known outside Italy,” adds Romano.
For a city so dedicated to its football team, this is a day that will be cherished for years to come.
“Today’s victory represents the commitment to a success that Naples has been experiencing for several years.”
There were happy tears in Naples after Napoli ended their long wait for a league title
