Fortitudo Pallacanestro Bologna 103, commonly known as Fortitudo Bologna and currently known as Fortitudo Kiğılı Bologna for sponsorship reasons, is a
basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...
club based in
Bologna
Bologna (, , ; egl, label=Emilian language, Emilian, Bulåggna ; lat, Bononia) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in Northern Italy. It is the seventh most populous city in Italy with about 400,000 inhabitants and 1 ...
, Italy and currently plays in the
second division
In sport, the Second Division, also called Division 2 or Division II is usually the second highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Following the rise of Premier League style compet ...
.
History
Fortitudo has for much of its history played second fiddle in its own city to arch rivals
Virtus Bologna
Virtus Pallacanestro Bologna, known for sponsorship reasons as Virtus Segafredo Bologna, is an Italian professional basketball club based in Bologna, Emilia-Romagna.
The club was founded in 1929, which makes it the oldest club in Italy and one ...
, with whom it contest the fierce Bologna Derby. Fortitudo won its first major trophy in 1998, winning the
Italian Cup
Italian(s) may refer to:
* Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries
** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom
** Italian language, a Romance language
*** Regional Ita ...
.
Fortitudo made the Italian league finals ten consecutive years (1997–2006). After three straight finals losses, Fortitudo won the Serie A for the first time in 2000. Four consecutive finals losses were followed by Fortitudo's second league title in 2005, courtesy of a 3–1 win over Armani Jeans Milano in the finals series when
instant replay
Instant replay or action replay is a video reproduction of something that recently occurred which was both shot and broadcast live.
The video, having already been shown live, is replayed in order for viewers to see again and analyze what had j ...
upheld a Ruben Douglas
buzzer beater
In basketball and other such timed sports, a buzzer beater is a shot that is taken before the game clock of a quarter, a half (if the half is the second one, then, a game), or an overtime period expires but does not go in the basket until after t ...
in Game 4 of the championship series.
In recent years, Fortitudo had been a fixture in the European top-tier Euroleague. Fortitudo's first achievement in European competition was a
FIBA Korać Cup
The FIBA Korać Cup was an annual basketball club competition held by FIBA between the 1971–72 and 2001–02 seasons. It was the third-tier level club competition in European basketball, after the FIBA European Champions' Cup (later renamed th ...
final against Jugoplastika in 1977 in their maiden participation. It got to the
Euroleague Final
The EuroLeague Finals are the championship finals of the EuroLeague competition. The EuroLeague is the highest level tier, and most important professional club basketball competition in Europe.
Title holders
* ......1958 Rīgas ASK
* 195 ...
four in 1999 (losing in the semifinal against city rivals Kinder Bologna and in third place game against
Olympiacos
Olympiacós Sýndesmos Filáthlon Peiraiós ( el, Ολυμπιακός Σύνδεσμος Φιλάθλων Πειραιώς, Olympic Club of Fans of Piraeus) is a major multi-sport club based in Piraeus, Greece. Olympiacos is parent to a number ...
) and the semifinal of the Euroleague playoffs in 2001 (again eliminated by rivals Virtus); then the club lost in the
Euroleague final
The EuroLeague Finals are the championship finals of the EuroLeague competition. The EuroLeague is the highest level tier, and most important professional club basketball competition in Europe.
Title holders
* ......1958 Rīgas ASK
* 195 ...
in 2004 to
Maccabi Tel Aviv
Maccabi Tel Aviv ( he, מכבי תל אביב) is one of the largest sports clubs in Israel, and a part of the Maccabi association. Many sports clubs and teams in Tel Aviv are in association with Maccabi and compete in a variety of sports, such ...
by 44 points. The 2006–07 season saw them change coaches thrice as they finished thirteenth (out of eighteen), though they still qualified for the
2007–08 ULEB Cup
The 2007–08 ULEB Cup was the sixth season of the second-tier level European professional club basketball competition, the EuroCup, which is organized by Euroleague Basketball S.L. It was also the last season for the competition under the name ...
.
Due to economic irregularities, upon Fortitudo's relegation from the 2008–09 season, the team was not allowed to participate in the 2009–10 Serie A2, restarting from the Serie A dilettanti. After winning that league, Fortitudo was once again excluded from Serie A2 and the club's affiliation to the Italian Federation revoked. As such, Fortitudo was barred from playing in any league, save for youth development leagues.
The Rebirth and return to the top flight
On 18 June 2013, a group of local entrepreneurs, professionals and fans joined to give life to Fortitudo Pallacanestro Bologna 103, the spiritual successor (with the same fan base such as the Fossa dei Leoni fan group) of the original entity. Starting from the fourth division DNB, Fortitudo climbed to the second division Serie A2 where it played during the 2015–16 season.
After a successful campaign in 2018–19, the club qualified for promotion to
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 Cop ...
for the first time since its 2009 dissolution. They later qualified to the 2020–21 Basketball Champions League, but they finished last in their group. In the 2021–22 season, they finished in the 15th position to be relegated to Serie A2.
Italian Cup
Italian(s) may refer to:
* Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries
** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom
** Italian language, a Romance language
*** Regional Ita ...
Italian Supercup
The Supercoppa Italiana ( en, Italian Super Cup) is an annual football match contested by the winners of the Serie A and the Coppa Italia in the previous season. If the same team wins both the Serie A and Coppa Italia titles in the previous seaso ...
Italian LNP Cup
The Italian LNP Cup ( it, Coppa Italia LNP), known as Turkish Airlines Cup for sponsorship reasons, is an annual cup competition for Italian basketball teams organized by Italy's second league in the Italian basketball league system, the Serie A2 ...
1999
File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shoot ...
FIBA Korać Cup
The FIBA Korać Cup was an annual basketball club competition held by FIBA between the 1971–72 and 2001–02 seasons. It was the third-tier level club competition in European basketball, after the FIBA European Champions' Cup (later renamed th ...
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* -
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*
James Thomas James Thomas may refer to:
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* James Thomas (Governor of Maryland) (1785–1845), served as the 23rd ...
*
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Ca ...
* Beppe Lamberti (1966–1973)
* Dido Guerrieri (1973–1974)
* Alberto Bucci (1974)
* Aza Nikolić (1974–1976)
* John McMillen (1976–1980)
* Mauro Di Vincenzo (1980–1981)
* Dodo Rusconi (1981–1983)
*
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(1983)
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* Mauro Di Vincenzo (1988–1990)
* Stefano Pillastrini (1990-1992)
* Lino Bruni
* Marco Calamai
* Dario Bellandi
*
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*
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*
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(2006-2007)
* Massimiliano Oldoini / Dan Gay (2007)
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*
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