Giampiero Boniperti (; 4 July 1928 – 18 June 2021) was an Italian

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

who played his entire 15-season career at

Juventus )''I Bianconeri'' (The White and Blacks)''Le Zebre'' (The Zebras)''La Signora Omicidi'' (The Killer Lady)''La Gheuba'' (: The Hunchback) , founded = as Sport-Club Juventus , ground = Juventus Stadium , capacity = 41,507 , owner = Agnelli ...

between 1946 and 1961, winning five

Serie A The Serie A (), also called Serie A TIM for national sponsorship with TIM, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and the winner is awarded the Scudetto and the Coppa ...

titles and two

Coppa Italia The ("Italy Cup") is an annual knockout cup competition in Italian football organized by the FIGC until the 2009–10 season and the Lega Serie A ever since. History The beginning of the tournament was turbulent, due to the complexity o ...

titles. He also played for the Italy national team at international level, and took part at the

1950 Events January * January 1 – The International Police Association (IPA) – the largest police organization in the world – is formed. * January 5 – 1950 Sverdlovsk plane crash, Sverdlovsk plane crash: ''Aeroflot'' Lisunov Li-2 cr ...

and

1954 FIFA World Cup The 1954 FIFA World Cup was the fifth edition of the FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football tournament for senior men's national teams of the nations affiliated to FIFA. It was held in Switzerland from 16 June to 4 July. Switzerl ...

finals, as well as the

1952 Summer Olympics The 1952 Summer Olympics ( fi, Kesäolympialaiset 1952; sv, Olympiska sommarspelen 1952), officially known as the Games of the XV Olympiad ( fi, XV olympiadin kisat; sv, Den XV olympiadens spel) and commonly known as Helsinki 1952 ( sv, Helsin ...

with Italy. After retirement from professional football, Boniperti was a CEO and chairman of Juventus and, later, a deputy to the

European Parliament The European Parliament (EP) is one of the legislative bodies of the European Union and one of its seven institutions. Together with the Council of the European Union (known as the Council and informally as the Council of Ministers), it adopts ...

. A forward, Boniperti is regarded by several pundits, including Mario Sconcerti, as one of Italy's and Juventus's greatest ever players, and is considered by some in the sport, such as Bruno Nicolè, to be Italy's greatest player of all time; with 182 goals in all competitions, Boniperti was the highest goalscorer in Juventus history for more than 40 years, until his record was bested by

Alessandro Del Piero Alessandro Del Piero (; born 9 November 1974) is an Italian former professional footballer who mainly played as a deep-lying forward, although he was capable of playing in several offensive positions. Since 2015, he has worked as a pundit fo ...

on 10 January 2006. Del Piero also broke his club record of 443 Serie A appearances on 14 February 2010, when he played his 444th Serie A game in a 3–2 win against

Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian census, the Province of G ...

; with 443 Serie A appearances for Juventus, Boniperti is currently third in the club's rankings, behind only Del Piero and

Gianluigi Buffon Gianluigi Buffon (; born 28 January 1978) is an Italian professional footballer who captains and plays as a goalkeeper for the club Parma. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest goalkeepers of all time. He is one of the few recorded ...

. Boniperti also held the record for most minutes played in Serie A by a Juventus player (39,680), until his record was surpassed by Buffon on 19 March 2017, in the 66th minute of a 1–0 away win over Sampdoria. Boniperti is the eleventh-highest goalscorer of all-time in

. In March 2004, he was named by

Pelé Edson Arantes do Nascimento (; born 23 October 1940), known as Pelé (), is a Brazilian former professional footballer who played as a forward. Widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time and labelled "the greatest" by FI ...

as one of the world's top 125 greatest living footballers.

Club career

Born in Barengo,

Piedmont it, Piemontese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...

, Boniperti signed for Juventus at age 16; he had already built himself a reputation prior to this at youth level, as he scored 11 goals in one match. He could score successfully with both feet and was known for his power and tactical awareness. He played his first match for ''the Old Lady'' in

on 2 March 1947 against A.C. Milan, which ended in a 2–1 defeat. His first goal for them in the league was three months later, against

Sampdoria Unione Calcio Sampdoria, commonly referred to as Sampdoria (), is an Italian professional football club based in Genoa. The club was formed in 1946 from the merger of two existing sports clubs whose roots can be traced back to the 1890s ...

. Juventus ended the

1946–47 Serie A The 1946–47 Serie A season was won by Torino. Teams Alessandria had been promoted from the 1945–46 Serie B-C Alta Italia and Napoli had been promoted from the 1945–46 Campionato Centro-Sud Serie A-B. Events Following the expansion of th ...

season as runners-up to local rivals Torino, Giampiero ended the season with five goals in six games to his name. Although he began as a centre forward, he could play also as an inside forward or on the right-wing. In his second season with Juventus, he was 20 years old and scored 27 goals during that season, finishing above

Valentino Mazzola Valentino Mazzola (; 26 January 1919 – 4 May 1949) was an Italian footballer who played as an attacking midfielder or forward. Considered one of the great number 10s in the history of football and, according to some, the best Italian footbal ...

as the league's topscorer. Boniperti's first league championship with Juventus was during the 1949–50 season. By his 24th birthday he had scored 100 goals for the club, adding a second ''scudetto'' title to his name in 1951–52. Although he was named the club's

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

in 1954, for much of the 1950s Juve and Boniperti struggled to put the club back to the top of the Italian championship. Juventus FC - 'Magical Trio' (Sívori, Charles, Boniperti)

Juventus FC - 'Magical Trio' (Sívori, Charles, Boniperti)

In 1957 Juventus signed two forwards:

John Charles William John Charles (27 December 1931 – 21 February 2004) was a Welsh footballer who played as a centre-forward or as a centre-back. Best known for his first stint at Leeds United and Juventus, he was rated by many as the greatest all-round ...

and Omar Sivori. With them, Boniperti would be a part of what was referred to as the ''Magical Trio''. During Boniperti's last four seasons at the club before his retirement, Juventus was successful in the Italian league, winning the Serie A three times (1957–58, 1959–60 and 1960–61), and the

twice (1958–59 and 1959–60). At the time of his retirement, Boniperti was Juventus' all-time top goalscorer with 182 in all competitions, this record stood for over 40 years before

beat it on 10 January 2006. As of 2010, Boniperti was the second top goalscorer of all-time at Juventus and was seventh on the list of all-time top appearances for the club. With 443 appearances in

for Juventus, he held the club record for most appearances in the competition, until long-serving player and former Juventus captain

beat it on 14 February 2010.

International career

Giampiero Boniperti, Lajos Czeizler 1954

After playing 14 games in the

league, Boniperti was called up to play for the

Italy national football team The Italy national football team ( it, Nazionale di calcio dell'Italia) has represented Italy in international Association football, football since its first match in 1910. The national team is controlled by the Italian Football Federation (FIG ...

, making his international debut on 9 November 1947, in a game against

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populou ...

; the match ended in a 5–1 loss to the Austrian side. He got even with Austria a couple of years later, when in May 1949 he scored his first international goal for Italy, with a 3–1 victory. Boniperti managed to achieve 38 caps (24 of which he played as

) and scored 8 goals for Italy. Boniperti played for Italy in the

and

finals (captaining the team in the latter edition of the tournament), as well as in the

Style of play

1951–52 Juventus FC - Giampiero Boniperti in training

A talented, creative, and prolific forward, with good technique, Boniperti is regarded by several pundits as one of the greatest and most successful Italian players of all time, and is considered by some in the sport, including Alessandro Del Piero, as one of Juventus's greatest players ever. A forward, he began his career as a striker, making a name for himself due to his eye for goal, and later emerging to prominence as a goalscorer for much of his career; in this role, he was usually supported by teammates such as

John John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second ...

and Karl Aage Hansen, and Karl Aage Præst. As a

centre-forward Forwards (also known as attackers) are outfield positions in an association football team who play the furthest up the pitch and are therefore most responsible for scoring goals as well as assisting them. As with any attacking player, the role ...

, he was known for his ability in the air and for having the capacity to score with both feet, as well as his head. A team player, in the later part of his career, he moved into a deeper position, functioning as a

second striker Forwards (also known as attackers) are outfield positions in an association football team who play the furthest up the pitch and are therefore most responsible for scoring goals as well as assisting them. As with any attacking player, the role ...

inside forward Forwards (also known as attackers) are outfield positions in an association football team who play the furthest up the pitch and are therefore most responsible for scoring goals as well as assisting them. As with any attacking player, the role ...

, as an

attacking midfielder A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...

, as a winger, or even as a

central midfielder A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...

, as a

defensive midfielder A midfielder is an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As #Cent ...

, or as a midfield

playmaker In association football, a playmaker is a player who controls the flow of the team's play, and is often involved in offensively and defensively playing passing moves which lead to goals, through their vision, technique, ball control, creativit ...

. Due to his ball control, technical ability, vision, tactical intelligence, and passing range, he excelled as an assist provider during the final few years of his career, creatively supporting his more offensive team mates

and Omar Sívori. In addition to his footballing ability, he was also known for his leadership.

After retirement

Juventus executive

A short while after his retirement, the

Agnelli family The Agnelli family () is an Italian multi-industry business dynasty founded by Giovanni Agnelli, one of the original founders of the Fiat motor company which became Italy's largest automobile manufacturer. They are also primarily known for other ...

offered Boniperti an executive position as a director in the club's management team; in 1971, he was appointed the chairman of the board of directors ( it, presidente del consiglio di amministrazione), a position he held for many years, and still had a role at the club as one of the honorary chairmen ( it, Presidenti Onorari, served along with Franzo Grande Stevens). He often found the pressure of watching rather than playing quite unbearable, and was known to drive around Turin at half time and just listen to the match on the radio. When players asked for pay rises, Boniperti would point to photographs of recent defeats on the wall and turn them away in shame. The pressure of remaining Italy's top team was intense for him, even behind the scenes.

Politics

From 1994 until 1999, Boniperti was elected as a deputy in the

with the centre-right wing party

Forza Italia Forza ItaliaThe name is not usually translated into English: ''forza'' is the second-person singular imperative of ''forzare'', in this case translating to "to compel" or "to press", and so means something like "Forward, Italy", "Come on, Ital ...

Personal life

Boniperti's grandson

Filippo Filippo is an Italian male given name, which is the equivalent of the English name Philip, from the Greek ''Philippos'', meaning "amante dei cavalli".''Behind the Name''"Given Name Philip" Retrieved on 23 January 2016. The female variant is Fi ...

has followed in his grandfather's footsteps in pursuing a career in football, and played for

and the Italy U19 team as a midfielder. He is currently a free agent. Boniperti died in Turin on 18 June 2021 due to heart failure, aged 92. The Italy national team wore black armbands in tribute to him in their match on 20 June against

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

in the

UEFA Euro 2020 The 2020 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2020 (stylised as UEFA EURO 2020) or simply Euro 2020, was the 16th UEFA European Championship, the quadrennial international men's football championship of Euro ...

Career statistics

Club

International

:''Scores and results list Italy's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Boniperti goal''.

Honours

Juventus *

: 1949–50, 1951–52, 1957–58, 1959–60, 1960–61 *

: 1958–59, 1959–60 Individual * Serie A top scorer: 1947–48 (27 goals) *

FIFA 100 The FIFA 100 is a list of Brazilian footballer Pelé's choice of the "greatest living footballers". Unveiled on 4 March 2004 at a gala ceremony in London, England, the FIFA 100 marked part of the celebrations of the 100th anniversary of the fou ...

: 2004 *

Italian Football Hall of Fame The Italian Football Hall of Fame ( it, Hall of Fame del calcio italiano) is the hall of fame for association football players that have had a significant impact on Italian football. It is housed at the '' Museo del Calcio'' in Coverciano, Italy ...

: 2012 *CONI Award for Outstanding Sporting Career: 2013

Notes

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Boniperti, Giampiero 1928 births 2021 deaths Sportspeople from the Province of Novara FIFA 100 Italian footballers Italy international footballers Juventus F.C. players Serie A players 1950 FIFA World Cup players 1954 FIFA World Cup players Forza Italia politicians MEPs for Italy 1994–1999 Olympic footballers of Italy Footballers at the 1952 Summer Olympics Association football forwards Italy B international footballers Juventus F.C. chairmen and investors Italian sports executives and administrators Italian sportsperson-politicians Footballers from Piedmont