Unione Sportiva Lecce () is a professional Italian football club based in

Lecce Lecce (; ) is a city in southern Italy and capital of the province of Lecce. It is on the Salentine Peninsula, at the heel of the Italian Peninsula, and is over two thousand years old. Because of its rich Baroque architecture, Lecce is n ...

Apulia Apulia ( ), also known by its Italian language, Italian name Puglia (), is a Regions of Italy, region of Italy, located in the Southern Italy, southern peninsular section of the country, bordering the Adriatic Sea to the east, the Strait of Ot ...

. The club play in

Serie A The Serie A (), officially known as Serie A Enilive in Italy and Serie A Made in Italy abroad for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Italy and the highest tier of the Italian football league system. Establish ...

in the 2023–24 season, the top level of the Italian football pyramid. Lecce plays its home games at Stadio Via del Mare, which has a capacity of 31,533 spectators. The club was formed in 1927 upon an idea of 1908 and has spent a large part of their recent history bouncing between Italy's second division and Serie A, where the team debuted in the 1985–86 season. Its best Serie A finish is the ninth place obtained in the 1988–89 season. The club is 25th in the Serie A all-time table and is the second club from

with appearances in the first two tiers of Italian football, with 19 Serie A seasons and 29 Serie B seasons. Lecce won Serie B titles in

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

and

2010 The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...

, a

Coppa Italia Serie C Coppa Italia Serie C (), formerly named Coppa Italia Lega Pro, is a straight knock-out based competition involving teams from Serie C in Italian football first held in 1972. Format There are a total of six rounds in the competition. It begins i ...

in 1975 and an

Anglo-Italian Cup The Anglo-Italian Cup (, also known as the Anglo-Italian Inter-League Clubs Competition and from 1976 to 1986 as the Alitalia Challenge Cup, Talbot Challenge Cup or Gigi Peronace Memorial) was a European football competition. The competition was ...

Semiprofessionals in 1976. Lecce players and fans are nicknamed ''

salentini The Messapians were an Iapygian tribe who inhabited Salento in classical antiquity. Two other Iapygian tribes, the Peucetians and the Daunians, inhabited central and northern Apulia respectively. All three tribes spoke the Messapian language, ...

'' or simply ''giallorossi'' or ''lupi''.

History

Lecce was founded as Sporting Club Lecce on 15 March 1908, initially including

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

track-and-field Track and field (or athletics in British English) is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name used in North America is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a ...

and cycling sports. The first club president was Francesco Marangi. The first colours worn by Lecce during this time were black and white stripes, known in Italy as ''bianconeri''. In its formative years, Lecce played in mostly regional leagues and competitions. During the 1923–24 season, the club dissolved before returning on 16 September 1927 as Unione Sportiva Lecce. The club was still wearing black and white stripes (similar to

Juventus Juventus Football Club (; from , ), commonly known as Juventus or colloquially as Juve (), is an Italian professional Association football, football List of football clubs in Italy, club based in Turin, Piedmont, who compete in Serie A, the ...

' kit) at this point, and the first president under the name Unione Sportiva Lecce was Luigi López y Rojo.

League: Early years 1930s, 40s and 50s

Taranto Sport Taranto Football Club 1927, commonly referred to as Taranto, is a professional Italian football club, based in Taranto, Apulia. Originally founded in 1927 by the union of two pioneering clubs that created the first city squad, Taranto currently ...

played Lecce in a game for promotion to

Serie B The Serie B (), officially known as Serie BKT for sponsorship reasons, is the second-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie A. It has been operating for over ninety years since the 1929–30 season. It had b ...

from the local Southern Italian league; Lecce were victorious winning 3–2 after

extra time Overtime (OT) or extra time (ET) is an additional period of play to bring a game to a decision and avoid declaring the match a tie or draw where the scores are the same. In some sports, this extra period is played only if the game is required t ...

. They were entered into

for the 1929–30 season. The first game match played in the league was against

Novara Novara (; Novarese Lombard, Novarese: ) is the capital city of the province of Novara in the Piedmont (Italy), Piedmont region in northwest Italy, to the west of Milan. With 101,916 inhabitants (on 1 January 2021), it is the second most populous ...

on 6 October 1929, a 2–1 victory. Lecce would eventually finish 13th. However, for the second time in the club's history, it ceased activity at the end of the 1931–32 season. Four years later, Lecce returned and competed

Serie C The Serie C (), officially known as Serie C NOW for sponsorship purposes, is the third-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie B and Serie A. The Lega Italiana Calcio Professionistico (Lega Pro) is the governing ...

, finishing 11th in their return season. Around this time, the club was in turmoil: the following season they withdrew from Serie C after four days, and then during the 1938–39 season, they finished in third place but were moved down to 12th after it was revealed the club had violated the league's federal regulations. The club finished in first place during the 1943–44 season, but club football was then suspended due to

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. Nonetheless, when club football resumed, Lecce finished as champions of Serie C, gaining promotion back into Serie B. Two decent seasons followed (finishing fourth and third in respective seasons), with star player Silvestri scoring 20 goals in one season, before the club was relegated. Lecce stayed down in Serie C for six seasons during this period, though this was not a particularly successful time for the club. Striker Anselmo Bislenghi scored 83 goals for the club during this period, thus becoming a hero. The club slipped even lower to Serie IV, where they spent three years.

Seventeen seasons of Serie C: 1960s, 70s and 80s

From 1959 to 1975, Lecce played 17 seasons in Serie C. They came extremely close to promotion several times during that period, finishing in second place three consecutive seasons (1971–72 to 1973–74) before gaining promotion in the 1975–76 season. The same year as their promotion, Lecce tasted cup success, winning the

. In 1976, Lecce took part in the

, notching up a 4–0 victory against

Scarborough Scarborough or Scarboro may refer to: People * Scarborough (surname) * Earl of Scarbrough Places Australia * Scarborough, Western Australia, suburb of Perth * Scarborough, New South Wales, suburb of Wollongong * Scarborough, Queensland, sub ...

. In 1980, a scandal occurred which rocked

Italian football Football ( ) is the most popular sport in Italy. The Italy national football team have won the FIFA World Cup four times (1934, 1938, 1982, 2006), trailing only Brazil (with five), runners-up in two finals both against Brazil, (1970, 1994) and ...

, including Lecce under president Franco Jurlano. However, Jurlano was able to demonstrate his innocence and the scandal only lead to disqualification of player Claudius Merlo. Later, the club was struck by a tragedy in 1983: players Michele Lo Russo and Ciro Pezzella died in an automotive accident. To this day, Lo Russo remains the club record holder for most number of appearances, with 415.

Promotion to Serie A: mid-1980s and 90s

Under the management of

Eugenio Fascetti Eugenio Fascetti (born 23 October 1938) is an Italian professional football coach and a former player, who played as a midfielder. Fascetti managed S.S.C. Bari in Serie A for several seasons before being dismissed towards the end of the 2000– ...

, Lecce would achieve promotion to

for the first time in 1985. They finished bottom and were relegated after only one season, but defeated

Roma Roma or ROMA may refer to: People, characters, figures, names * Roma or Romani people, an ethnic group living mostly in Europe and the Americas. * Roma called Roy, ancient Egyptian High Priest of Amun * Roma (footballer, born 1979), born ''Paul ...

3–2 away in the penultimate game to deal a fatal blow to Roma's title hopes. Losing a promotion play-off 2–1 to

Cesena Cesena (; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy; and - with Forlì - is the capital of the Province of Forlì-Cesena. Served by Autostrada A14 (Italy), Autostrada A14, and located near the Apennine M ...

the following season, they would return to Serie A in 1988. Under

Carlo Mazzone Carlo "Carletto" Mazzone (19 March 1937 – 19 August 2023) was an Italian professional association football player and manager, who played as a centre-back. Career Born in Rome, Mazzone was nicknamed ''Sor Carletto'' because of his Roman ori ...

, Lecce finished a respectable ninth place in 1989. Stars of the side included striker Pedro Pasculli and midfielders

Antonio Conte Antonio Conte (; born 31 July 1969) is an Italian professional Association football, football manager and former player who is currently the head coach of Serie A club Napoli. He is widely regarded as one of the best football managers in the wo ...

and Paolo Benedetti. They lasted three seasons before relegation, and returned two years later. The 1993–94 season saw Lecce finish in last place with a pitiful 11 points, the lowest ever of any Serie A team, and a second relegation came the following year. Giampiero Ventura saw Lecce achieve two successive promotions from Serie C to Serie A before leaving for

Cagliari Cagliari (, , ; ; ; Latin: ''Caralis'') is an Comune, Italian municipality and the capital and largest city of the island of Sardinia, an Regions of Italy#Autonomous regions with special statute, autonomous region of Italy. It has about 146,62 ...

. Once more, it proved a struggle in Serie A despite the best efforts of striker Francesco Palmieri and a famous away win against

Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...

on 19 October 1997. In the summer of 1998, Pantaleo Corvino was appointed new sports director, gaining a reputation for scouting new talents in the years to come. The team was good enough to return to Serie A in 1999 and begin another three-year stint in the top-flight, with yet another return to Serie A in 2003.

Three years in Serie A (2003–2006)

In 2004, under

Delio Rossi Delio Rossi (born 26 January 1960) is an Italian football manager and former footballer who played as a midfielder. Playing career Rossi was born in Rimini. His playing career was not a bright one, as he reached his personal top from 1981 to 198 ...

, who had been managing the club since 2002, Lecce achieved an impressive result, reaching a high-point of tenth despite a poor first half of the season. Famous performances include two consecutive sensational victories, first against Italian giants Juventus 3–4 in

Torino Turin ( , ; ; , then ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. The city is main ...

(the first ever win at the Stadio Delle Alpi for Lecce) and then in the Stadio Via del Mare against

Internazionale Football Club Internazionale Milano, commonly referred to as Internazionale () or simply Inter, and colloquially known as Inter Milan in English-speaking countries, is an Italian professional football club based in Milan, Lombardy. Since 1 ...

, 2–1. In 2004–05, coach

Zdeněk Zeman Zdeněk Zeman (; born 12 May 1947) is a Czech-Italian football manager. Known for his exciting, offensive footballing tactics and use of the 4–3–3 formation, Zeman has managed numerous teams over the years, mostly in Italian football. He ...

oversaw a highly attack-minded team that scored plenty of goals. Lecce ended the year again finishing tenth, putting in the spotlight talents like

Valeri Bojinov Valeri Emilov Bojinov (, ; born 15 February 1986) is a retired Bulgarian professional footballer. Throughout his career, Bojinov has played for eighteen different clubs during his various spells in Italy, as well as in England, Portugal, Bulg ...

and

Mirko Vučinić Mirko Vučinić (, ; born 1 October 1983) is a Montenegrin former professional footballer who played as a forward. Quick, versatile, and physically strong, Vučinić was known for his creativity, technique, and intelligence as a footballer, as ...

. The team had the second-best attack with 66 goals (Juventus came first with 67) and the worst defence, with 73 goals conceded. This is a record, as for the first time the team with the worst defence managed to survive in the history of Serie A. The 2005–06 season was a continual struggle for Lecce. The club changed its manager two times (

Silvio Baldini Silvio Baldini (born 11 September 1958) is an Italian association football manager, currently in charge of club Pescara. Career Early years Born in Massa but hailing from nearby Carrara, Baldini started his coaching career in 1984 at the a ...

for Angelo Adamo Gregucci and in January 2006 youth team coach Roberto Rizzo, supported by goalkeeper coach Franco Paleari, for Baldini). The numerous managerial moves could not turn Lecce's fortune as they were relegated with a few games to spare and ended the season in 19th place. In June 2006, Giovanni Semeraro returned at the helm of the club after nine months. The club re-appointed Zdeněk Zeman as manager, just one year after he left the club. Lecce was unable to avoid relegation from Serie A, despite some initial hope due to the Serie A match-fixing scandal.

Two-year stint in Serie B and promotion

The club had a mixed start to the 2006–07 season in Serie B, winning three home matches (including a win against early league leaders

Genoa Genoa ( ; ; ) is a city in and the capital of the Italian region of Liguria, and the sixth-largest city in Italy. As of 2025, 563,947 people live within the city's administrative limits. While its metropolitan city has 818,651 inhabitan ...

), though they suffered poor away form. After a large drop in form, recording 10 losses in 18 matches, Zeman was sacked as manager and replaced by

Giuseppe Papadopulo Giuseppe Papadopulo (; born 2 February 1948) is an Italian football manager and former player who played as a defender. He was last in charge as head coach of Torino. Early life and playing career Papadopulo was born in Casale Marittimo, Pisa ...

. On 10 March 2007, Lecce clinched a historical victory over

Frosinone Frosinone (; local dialect: ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Italian region of Lazio, administrative seat of the province of Frosinone. It is about southeast of Rome, close to the Rome-Naples A1 Motorway. The city is the main city of th ...

, beaten 5–0 at Stadio Via del Mare. Having gained 36 points in the second half of the season, Lecce ended the season in the middle of the table, in ninth place. In 2007, Lecce gained more points than any other team in Serie B. The 2007–08 season saw Lecce fight for a place in Serie A for the next season. Despite earning 83 points (12 more than sixth-placed

Pisa Pisa ( ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Tuscany, Central Italy, straddling the Arno just before it empties into the Ligurian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa. Although Pisa is known worldwide for the Leaning Tow ...

) and boasting the best defence in the tournament, the ''giallorossi'' were forced to face play-offs for promotion in the top flight. In the semi-final, they beat Pisa in both legs (1–0 away and 2–1 at home) to secure a place in the final against AlbinoLeffe. Then they won the first leg 1–0 away, before securing a 1–1 draw in the second leg at the Studio Via del Mare to gain promotion.

Between Serie A and Serie B

After persistent rumours, Papadopulo quit due to a difference of opinion with the general manager of the club and was replaced by Mario Beretta, who had a quite satisfactory start in the

2008–09 Serie A The 2008–09 Serie A (known as the Serie A TIM for sponsorship reasons) was the 107th season of top-tier Italian football, the 77th in a round-robin tournament. It began on 30 August 2008 and ended on 31 May 2009, with the announcement of the ...

season. He remained in charge for twenty-seven games, but, due to four defeats in the last five matches, with the team one point below the survival zone, he was sacked and

Luigi De Canio Luigi "Gigi" De Canio (born 26 September 1957) is an Italian association football, football manager and a former player who played as a Defender (association football)#Full-back, full-back. Career Player De Canio, a Defender (football)#Full-back ...

was appointed new manager. Seven points earned in ten matches were not enough to secure Lecce a spot in the next Serie A season. Relegation was official with one match to spare, after a 1–1 home draw against

Fiorentina ACF Fiorentina, commonly referred to as Fiorentina (), is an Italian professional Association football, football List of football clubs in Italy, club based in Florence, Tuscany. The original team was founded by a merger in August 1926, while ...

. Lecce had a mixed start in the

2009–10 Serie B The 2009–10 Serie B season is the seventy-eighth edition since its establishment in 1929. Serie B is the second-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie A. It is contested by 22 teams and organized by the Lega ...

campaign, but clinched first place in November 2009 and kept it for the rest of the season. In May, the team was on the verge of promotion, but wasted opportunities in their last two matches meant they had to wait until the last match to celebrate their eighth elevation to the top flight in the last 25 years. A goalless home draw with

Sassuolo Sassuolo (; ) is an Italian town, ''comune'', and industrial centre of the Province of Modena in Emilia-Romagna. Standing on the right bank of the river Secchia some southwest of Modena, the town is best known for being the centre of the Ita ...

proved enough to clinch the Serie B title with 75 points and win the Coppa Ali della Vittoria. Lecce ended a satisfactory

2010–11 Serie A The 2010–11 Serie A (known as the Serie A TIM for sponsorship reasons) was the 109th season of top-tier Italian football, the 79th in a round-robin tournament, and the 1st since its organization under a league committee separate from Serie B ...

season successfully avoiding relegation with one match to spare after beating arch-rival and already relegated

Bari Bari ( ; ; ; ) is the capital city of the Metropolitan City of Bari and of the Apulia Regions of Italy, region, on the Adriatic Sea in southern Italy. It is the first most important economic centre of mainland Southern Italy. It is a port and ...

2–0 away on 15 May 2011. In the last few matches, the team managed to win a tough battle against other underdogs and some glorious teams such as

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

that ended the season in despair. Manager

left the team in June. In the

2011–12 Serie A The 2011–12 Serie A (known as the Serie A TIM after its headline sponsors) was the 110th season of top-tier Italian football, the 80th in a round-robin tournament, and the second since its organization under a league committee separate from S ...

season, Lecce was relegated to Serie B. The start of the season was bad and new manager

Eusebio Di Francesco Eusebio Di Francesco (; born 8 September 1969) is an Italian manager and former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. He is the head coach of club Venezia. Club career Di Francesco started his career with Tuscan teams Empoli and ...

was sacked in December, after 9 losses in 13 matches.

Serse Cosmi Serse Cosmi (born 5 May 1958) is an Italian football coach, most recently in charge of Rijeka. Career Early career Cosmi was born in 1958 in Ponte San Giovanni, a Perugia ''frazione''. His father, a cycling fan, called him Serse after Fausto ...

was appointed new manager. Lecce refused to crumble as Cosmi's arrival instilled battling qualities into the relegation strugglers, who managed to gain a considerable number of points in the following months, but eventually failed to avoid relegation, due to four losses in the last five matches. Lecce managed to struggle until the final game.

Third division years

On 10 August 2012, Lecce was provisionally relegated by the Disciplinary Commission set up for the '' Scommessopoli'' scandal investigations

2012–13 Lega Pro Prima Divisione The 2012–13 Lega Pro Prima Divisione season was the thirty-fifth football league season of Italian Lega Pro Prima Divisione since its establishment in 1978, and the fifth since the renaming from Serie C to Lega Pro. It was divided into two phas ...

because of their involvement. Furthermore, the former president of Lecce, Semeraro, was suspended from all football activities for five years. On 22 August 2012, Lecce's relegation was confirmed by the Federal Court of Justice. In the first season back into the third tier, Lecce ended in second place behind outsiders

Trapani Trapani ( ; ; ) is a city and municipality (''comune'') with 54,887 inhabitants, on the west coast of Sicily, in Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Trapani. Founded by Elymians, the city is still an important fishing port and the mai ...

and was surprisingly defeated in the promotion playoffs finals by another outsider club,

Carpi Carpi may refer to: Places * Carpi, Emilia-Romagna, a large town in the province of Modena, central Italy ** Roman Catholic Diocese of Carpi * Carpi (Africa), a city and former diocese of Roman Africa, now a Roman Catholic titular see People ...

. The following season ended in similar fashion, with Lecce failing to win the league once again and then losing the playoffs finals, this time to

, despite a number of high-level signings such as former

Palermo Palermo ( ; ; , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital (political), capital of both the autonomous area, autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan province. The ...

star, and well-known Lecce supporter,

Fabrizio Miccoli Fabrizio Miccoli (; born on 27 June 1979) is an Italian former professional association football, footballer who played as a Forward (association football), forward. He scored 103 goals in 259 matches in Serie A across nine seasons, representing ...

. In 2014–15 Lecce ended the season in sixth place and did not enter the playoffs. Following the departure of the Tesoro family, the club was taken over by a consortium of entrepreneurs led by Saverio Sticchi Damiani. The club ended the 2015–16 season in third place, two points behind the second-placed team, and qualified for the playoffs round. After defeating Bassano 3–0 at home, in the semi-finals Lecce lost to

Foggia Foggia (, ; ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) of Apulia, in Southern Italy, capital of the province of Foggia. In 2013, its population was 153,143. Foggia is the main city of a plain called Tavoliere delle Puglie, Tavoliere, also know ...

in both the home and the away match. In the following season, Lecce finished in second place. The elimination came in the play-off quarterfinals against

Alessandria Alessandria (; ) is a city and commune in Piedmont, Italy, and the capital of the Province of Alessandria. It is also the largest municipality of the region. The city is sited on the alluvial plain between the Tanaro and the Bormida rivers, ...

on penalties after two draws in two matches.

Back to the top

In September 2017,

Fabio Liverani Fabio Liverani (; born 29 April 1976) is an Italian football manager and former midfielder. He is the head coach of club Ternana. He made 288 Serie A appearances across 12 seasons, representing Perugia, Lazio, Fiorentina and Palermo. He was the ...

was named new coach of Lecce, with whom he achieved two direct promotions from Serie C to Serie A, thus bringing the Salento club back to the Italian top-tier league after seven years. Lecce then fought against

for survival and made it to the last day of the 2019–20 season before being relegated with a home loss to Parma. The ''salentini'' missed out promotion to Serie A in the 2020–21 season, losing to

Venezia Venice ( ; ; , formerly ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 islands that are separated by expanses of open water and by canals; portions of the city are li ...

in the play-off semifinals after a 4th-place finish, but then, with coach

Marco Baroni Marco Baroni (born 11 September 1963) is an Italian football manager and former player who played as a defender. He is currently the head coach of club Torino. Playing career Baroni started his career with Fiorentina, and reached his football ...

, won the

2021–22 Serie B The 2021–22 Serie B (known as the Serie BKT for sponsorship reasons) was the 90th season of the Serie B since its establishment in 1929. Changes The following teams have changed division since the 2020–21 season: To Serie B Relegated fr ...

championship, thus celebrating their tenth elevation to the top flight and being awarded the Coppa Nexus. Lecce striker

Massimo Coda Massimo Coda (born 10 November 1988) is an Italian professional footballer who plays as a striker for club Sampdoria. Career Coda started his career at Cavese. Aged 16, he signed for Swiss Italian club Bellinzona. He then on loan to Cisco ...

was top scorer of the Serie B for two sonsecutive seasons (2020–21 and 2021–22). The ''giallorossi'' side then gained survival in the next Serie A campaign with a game to spare, with Baroni and Lecce parting ways at the end of the 2022–23 season.

Colours, badge, nicknames, and symbols

The team plays in red and yellow stripes, the heraldic colours of city. Lecce players and fans are referred to as ''

'' or ''giallorossi''. The official anthem of Lecce is ''Giallorossi per Sempre'' composed by Gioy Rielli. The symbol of Lecce is a female

wolf The wolf (''Canis lupus''; : wolves), also known as the grey wolf or gray wolf, is a Canis, canine native to Eurasia and North America. More than thirty subspecies of Canis lupus, subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' have been recognized, includin ...

under a holm oak tree which is typical to

and is also the symbol of the city of

Stadium

Lecce's home games are played in the 31,533-seater Stadio Via del mare.

Club rivalries

The main rivalry is with the other most successful football team from Apulia,

S.S.C. Bari Società Sportiva Calcio Bari, commonly referred to as SSC Bari and simply Bari, is an Football in Italy, Italian football club based in Bari, Apulia. Bari currently plays in the . The team finished the 2021–22 season in first place in Serie ...

. The match against them is called ''Derby di Puglia''. The first ''Derby di Puglia'' was played on 8 December 1929 in

, with the home team winning 1–0. After that occasion, the derby di Puglia was played many times in

and

Coppa Italia Coppa Italia () is the annual domestic cup of Italian football. The knockout competition was organized by the DDS and the Lega Calcio until the 2009–10 season and by Lega Serie A ever since. Juventus is the competition's most successf ...

, and especially in

. The first derby played in Serie A was played on 27 October 1985 in Bari, and was won by the home team. The last one was also played in Bari on 15 May 2011 and saw Lecce prevailing by 2-0 and securing their stay in Serie A (however that match was later object of an investigation for match-fixing). Among the most important wins in the derby for Lecce there is a Serie B match ended 4–0 in Bari on 22 December 2007. On the other end, Lecce has a famous and long-standing friendship with the fans of

Players

Current squad

Other players under contract

Out on loan

Lecce Primavera

Notable players

Juan Barbas Juan Alberto Barbas (born 23 August 1959) is an Argentine former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. He played for a number of clubs in Argentina, Spain, Italy, and Switzerland before turning his hand to management in 2009 with ...

–

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

international,

1982 FIFA World Cup The 1982 FIFA World Cup was the 12th FIFA World Cup, a quadrennial Association football, football tournament for men's senior national teams, and was played in Spain from 13 June to 11 July 1982. The tournament was won by Italy national footbal ...

FIFA U-20 World Cup The FIFA U-20 World Cup is the biennial football world championship tournament for FIFA members' men's national teams with players under the age of 20. The competition has been staged every two years since the inaugural tournament in 1977 when i ...

winner. *

– ''

Scudetto The ''scudetto'' (; Italian for 'little shield') is a decoration having the colors of the flag of Italy which is sewn onto the jersey of the Italian sports clubs that won the highest level championship of their respective sport in the previous ...

''-winning manager of

and English

Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...

-winning manager of Chelsea as well as former Juventus and Italy national team player; product of Lecce's youth system and Lecce native best known for his 13-year career playing for the ''bianconeri'' side *

Graziano Pellè Graziano Pellè (; born 15 July 1985) is an Italian former professional footballer who played as a striker. Pellè began his career at local Serie A club Lecce, and was loaned to three lower-division sides before moving to the Dutch club AZ ...

– Italy international, product of Lecce's youth system and San Cesario di Lecce native, he is from Monteroni di Lecce. He made his Serie A debut with Lecce in 2004 * Javier Chevantón –

Uruguay Uruguay, officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay, is a country in South America. It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast, while bordering the Río de la Plata to the south and the A ...

international, all-time top-scorer for Lecce *

Juan Cuadrado Juan Guillermo Cuadrado Bello (born 26 May 1988) is a Colombian professional Association football, footballer who plays for club Atalanta BC, Atalanta and the Colombia national football team, Colombia national team. He usually plays on the righ ...

–

Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuel ...

international * Guillermo Giacomazzi –

international *

– former Italy international and childhood supporter of the club. He was born in Nardò and is from San Donato di Lecce, a town close to Lecce *

Luis Muriel Luis Fernando Muriel Fruto (born 16 April 1991) is a Colombian professional footballer who plays as a forward for Major League Soccer club Orlando City. Having started his professional career with Colombian side Deportivo Cali, Muriel joined ...

–

international *

Massimo Oddo Massimo Oddo (; born 14 June 1976) is an Italian professional football manager and a former player who is the current head coach of Milan Futuro, AC Milan's reserve team. As a player, he played as a right-back. Oddo played for several Italian ...

– part of the squad which won the

2006 FIFA World Cup The 2006 FIFA World Cup was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international Association football, football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which had won the right to FIFA World Cup hosts ...

, spent a season on loan at Lecce towards the end of his career * Dimitris Papadopoulos –

Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

international and member of the

UEFA Euro 2004 The 2004 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as Euro 2004, was the 12th edition of the UEFA European Championship, a quadrennial association football, football competition contested by the List of men's national associatio ...

-winning squad *

Pedro Pablo Pasculli Pedro Pablo Pasculli (born 17 May 1960) is an Argentine former Association football, footballer who played as a Forward (association football), forward and is currently technical secretary at Bangor City in the Cymru North. He spent most of his ...

–

international,

1986 FIFA World Cup The 1986 FIFA World Cup was the 13th FIFA World Cup, a quadrennial Association football, football tournament for men's senior national teams. It was played in Mexico from 31 May to 29 June 1986. The tournament was the second to feature a 24-tea ...

Winner *

Nenad Tomović Nenad Tomović (; born 30 August 1987) is a Serbian professional association football, footballer who plays as a defender (association football), defender for FK Čukarički, Čukarički. A former Serbian Olympian and Serbia national under-21 fo ...

–

Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem = () , image_map = , map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...

international *

–

Montenegro , image_flag = Flag of Montenegro.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Montenegro.svg , coa_size = 80 , national_motto = , national_anthem = () , image_map = Europe-Mont ...

international, began his career in

with Lecce * Gheorghe Popescu –

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

international *

–

Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...

international *

Sebastjan Cimirotič Sebastjan Cimirotič (born 14 September 1974) is a retired Slovenian football player who played as a forward. He earned a total of 33 caps for the Slovenia national football team and was a participant at the 2002 FIFA World Cup, scoring the nati ...

–

Slovenia Slovenia, officially the Republic of Slovenia, is a country in Central Europe. It borders Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the south and southeast, and a short (46.6 km) coastline within the Adriati ...

international * Kastriot Dermaku –

Albania Albania ( ; or ), officially the Republic of Albania (), is a country in Southeast Europe. It is located in the Balkans, on the Adriatic Sea, Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea, and shares land borders with Montenegro to ...

international, *

Ylber Ramadani Ylber Latif Ramadani (born 12 April 1996) is a professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for Serie A side Lecce. Born in Germany, he represents the Albania national team. Personal life Ramadani was born in Starnberg, Germany ...

–

international, *

Samuel Umtiti Samuel Yves Um Titi (; born 14 November 1993), known as Samuel Umtiti, is a French professional Association football, footballer who plays as a centre back for Ligue 1 club Lille OSC, Lille. Umtiti began his professional career with Olympique L ...

–

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

international,

2018 FIFA World Cup The 2018 FIFA World Cup was the 21st FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for national association football, football teams organized by FIFA. It took place in Russia from 14 June to 15 July 2018, after the country was awarded t ...

Winner *

Franco Causio Franco Causio (; born 1 February 1949) is an Italian former professional footballer who won the 1982 FIFA World Cup and came through the ranks of his hometown club Lecce before making his name at Juventus for many years in the 1970s and 1980s. Re ...

–

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

international,

Winner *

Christian Maggio Christian Maggio (; born 11 February 1982) is an Italian former footballer who played as a right-back, as a wing-back, or as a right winger. A dynamic and hard-working offensive full-back, prior to joining Napoli in 2008, Maggio played for Ita ...

–

international, spent a season on loan at Lecce towards the end of his career *

Francesco Moriero Francesco "Checco" Moriero (; born 31 March 1969) is an Italian association football, football former player and current Manager (association football), manager, who played as a midfielder, usually as a Midfielder#Winger, winger on the right flan ...

–

international, began his career in

with Lecce *

Pietro Paolo Virdis Antonio Pietro Paolo Virdis (born 26 June 1957) is an Italian football manager and former player, who played as a forward. Throughout his career, he played for Nuorese, before playing in Serie A with Cagliari Calcio, Juventus, Udinese Calcio, ...

–

international, ended his career in Lecce *

Giuseppe Giannini Giuseppe Giannini (; born 20 August 1964) is an Italian former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. He spent the majority of his 15-year playing career with A.S. Roma, and was regarded by supporters as a club symbol, before his ...

–

international, ended his career in Lecce

Coaching staff

Coaching history

Lecce have had many head coaches throughout the history of the club, and in some seasons more than one coach was in charge. Here is a chronological list of them from 1927 onwards.

Coaching records

;All-time Top 10 coach appearances ;Most Serie A appearances

Honours

**Champions (2): 2009–10, 2021–22 *

**Champions (4): 1945–46, 1975–76, 1995–96, 2017–18 *

**Champions (1): 1975–76 * Anglo-Italian Semiprofessional Cup **Champions (1): 1976–77

Youth team

Campionato Nazionale Primavera The Campionato Nazionale Primavera – Trofeo Giacinto Facchetti, was an Italian football youth competition. It is organised by the Lega Serie A and the participating teams that take part in Serie A and Serie B: the first edition was held in the 1 ...

**Champions (3): 2002–03, 2003–04, 2022-23 *

Coppa Italia Primavera The Coppa Italia Primavera (Italian for Spring Italian Cup) is an Italian football competition played by youth teams from Campionato Primavera. All players are under 20 of age. The first edition was held in the 1972–73 season. Due to sponsorshi ...

**Champions (2): 2001–02, 2004–05 *

Supercoppa Primavera The Supercoppa Primavera is an Italian youth teams football match played by the winners of the Campionato Primavera championship and the winners of the Coppa Italia Primavera at the beginning of the season. The competition has been held since 20 ...

**Champions (2): 2004, 2005

Seasons

Player records

In bold players still playing for Lecce ;All-time Top 10 Lecce Goalscorers ;Most appearances ;Most Serie A goals ;Most Serie A appearances ;Players capped for

Italy national football team The Italy national football team () has represented Italy in men's international Association football, football since its first match in 1910. The national team is controlled by the Italian Football Federation (FIGC), the governing body for fo ...

Marco Cassetti Marco Cassetti (; born 29 May 1977) is an Italian former footballer who played as a defender. Born in Brescia, he has previously played in Serie A for Verona, Lecce and Roma and in England with Watford. Cassetti won five caps for Italy at ful ...

(3 call-ups, 2 caps) – 2005 * Vincenzo Sicignano (1 call-up) – 2005 *

Andrea Esposito Andrea Esposito (born 17 May 1986) is an Italian former footballer who played as a defender. Club career As a young boy, Esposito started his career in the local Lecce Primavera youth squad before being sent to Sambenedettese on loan for the ...

(1 call-up) – 2009 *

Wladimiro Falcone Wladimiro Falcone (born 12 April 1995) is an Italian professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Serie A club Lecce. Club career Sampdoria Born in Rome, Falcone played for local Roman clubs Lodigiani and Vigor Perconti, before joini ...

(1 call-up)– 2023 ;Players capped for

Italy national under-21 football team The Italy national under-21 football team is the national under-21 Association football, football team of Italy and is controlled by the Italian Football Federation. The team competes in the UEFA European Under-21 Championship, held every two ...

* Lorenzo Colombo (8 caps, 3 goals) *

Giulio Donati Giulio Donati (born 5 February 1990) is an Italian professional footballer who plays as a right-back. Club career Inter Milan Primavera and first team Born in Pietrasanta, the Province of Lucca, Donati started his career at hometown club Lucc ...

(8 caps) *

Cesare Bovo Cesare Bovo (born 14 January 1983) is an Italian retired professional Association football, footballer who played as a Defender (association football)#Centre-back, centre back. He is currently in charge of the Under-17 team of Palermo FC, Palerm ...

(7 caps, 1 goal) (UEFA European under-21 Championship winner) *

Andrea Bertolacci Andrea Bertolacci (; born 11 January 1991) is an Italian professional association football, footballer who plays as a midfielder. Bertolacci began his career at A.S. Roma, Roma, and was signed by A.C. Milan, AC Milan in 2015. Following loans to ...

(7 caps, 1 goal) *

Luigi Garzya Luigi Garzya (born 7 July 1969) is a retired Italian professional footballer. During his career, he has played as a defender for A.S. Roma, A.S. Bari and Torino F.C. Torino Football Club (), colloquially referred to as Toro, is an Itali ...

(7 caps) * Pierluigi Orlandini (6 caps) *

Marco Amelia Marco Amelia (; born 2 April 1982) is an Italian former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper, and current coach in charge of Serie D amateurs Nuova Sondrio. A Roma youth product, Amelia spent most of his professional club career ...

(5 caps) * Giampiero Maini (5 caps) *

(5 caps) * Jonathan Bachini (3 caps) * Guido Marilungo (3 caps, 1 goal) * Jonathan Bachini (3 caps) *

Alberto Di Chiara Alberto Di Chiara (; born 29 March 1964) is an Italian former professional footballer, who played for Roma, Reggiana, Lecce, Fiorentina, Parma and Perugia, as well as for the Italy national side, as a winger and full back. He is the younger ...

(2 caps) *

(2 caps) * Andrea Rispoli (2 caps) * Alessio Scarchilli (2 caps) *

(1 cap) *

Massimo Margiotta Massimo Margiotta (born 27 July 1977) is an Italian-Venezuelan former professional footballer who played as a forward, currently working as youth system chief of Hellas Verona. Club career Udinese Vicenza Margiotta was signed by Vicenza in a ...

(1 cap) * Giacomo Cipriani (1 cap) *

Matteo Ferrari Matteo Ferrari (; born 5 December 1979) is an Italian former footballer who played as a defender He played top-flight football for several Italian clubs in Serie A, Everton of the Premier League, and for the Montreal Impact in Major League ...

(1 cap) *

Erminio Rullo Erminio Rullo (born 19 February 1984) is an Italian former footballer who played as a centre back. Club career Lecce Born in Naples, Campania, Rullo started his career with Apulia side Lecce. He archived a record by winning three consecutive ...

(1 cap) *

Antonino Gallo Antonino Gallo (born 5 January 2000) is an Italian professional footballer who plays as a left-back for club Lecce. Club career Gallo was raised in the youth system of Palermo and started playing for their Under-19 squad in the 2016–17 season ...

(1 cap) ;Players capped for Italy national under-23 football team * Simone Altobelli (3 caps) ;Players capped for Italy military football team * Pietro De Santis (3 caps) ;Other national football teams ''List of foreign football players who had at least one cap in their national team while playing for Lecce'' * Kastriot Dermaku * Ledian Memushaj *

* Kialonda Gaspar *

Djamel Mesbah Djamel Eddine Mesbah (; born 9 October 1984) is an Algerian professional manager and a former Association football, footballer who is currently the assistant manager of the Algeria national under-23 football team, Algeria U23. An Algerian intern ...

* Ahmed Touba * Pedro Pasculli *

Mazinho Iomar do Nascimento (born 8 April 1966), known as Mazinho, is a Brazilian football manager and former player. Mazinho played primarily as a defensive midfielder and a full-back in his professional playing career. As a manager, he had a short ...

Jaime Valdés Jaime Andrés Valdés Zapata ( born 11 January 1981) is a Chilean former association football, footballer who played as a midfielder. Valdés was member of his Chile national under-20 football team, national under-20 national team in the 2001 F ...

Patrick Dorgu Patrick Chinazaekpere Dorgu (born 26 October 2004) is a Danish professional association football, football player who plays as a Wing-back (association football), wing-back for Premier League club Manchester United F.C., Manchester United and t ...

Saša Bjelanović Saša Bjelanović (; born 11 June 1979) is a Croatian former professional footballer who played as a forward. He has held an Italian passport since 2007, as his grandmother was from Trieste, Venezia Giulia; this made him eligible to acquire Ita ...

Marin Pongračić Marin Pongračić (; born 11 September 1997) is a Croatian footballer who plays as a defender for club Fiorentina and the Croatia national team. Pongračić is principally a centre-back but can also play at right-back or as a defensive midfie ...

Davor Vugrinec Davor Vugrinec (born 24 March 1975) is a Croatian former professional footballer. He primarily played as a striker, but also operated as an attacking midfielder or a second striker. He is all-time top scorer of the Croatian First Football League ...

* Giannelli Imbula *

Alexei Eremenko Alexei Eremenko (born Aleksei Alekseyevich Yeryomenko; ; born 24 March 1983) is a former professional footballer. He is from a footballing family, with his father, Aleksei Yeryomenko, and brothers Roman Eremenko and Sergei Eremenko also playi ...

Kwame Ayew Kwame Ayew (born 28 December 1973) is a Ghanaian former professional footballer who played as a striker. During nearly 20 years he played professionally in six countries, mainly in Portugal where he appeared for four teams in the 90s, amassing ...

Mark Edusei Mark Edusei (born 29 September 1976 in Kumasi) is a former Ghanaian football midfielder. Throughout his career Edusei moved around a lot, playing for clubs based in six countries. Career Early career Catania From the 2006–2007 season he play ...

István Vincze István Vincze (born 22 January 1967) is a Hungarian football manager and former football player. He made his debut for the Hungary national team in 1986, and got 44 caps and 8 goals until 1996. He played domestically for Tatabányai Bány ...

* Lassana Coulibaly *

Souleymane Diamouténé Souleymane Adama Diamouténé (born 30 January 1983) is a Malian former professional footballer who played as a defender. Club career Diamouténé was born in Sikasso. He spent his professional career in Italy, moving in the country after bein ...

Nikola Krstović Nikola Krstović ( cnr-Cyrl, Никола Крстовић; born 5 April 2000) is a Montenegrin professional footballer who plays as a forward for Serie A club Lecce and the Montenegro national team. Club career FK Zeta On 23 April 2016, Krstov ...

* Boban Nikolov *

Vitorino Antunes Vitorino Gabriel Pacheco Antunes (; born 1 April 1987) is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays as a left-back for F.C. Paços de Ferreira. He spent most of his career abroad, winning several items of silverware with Dynamo Kyiv in ...

Romario Benzar Romario Sandu Benzar (born 26 March 1992) is a Romanian professional footballer who plays as a right back for Liga I club Botoșani. Club career Viitorul Constanța Benzar started playing football in the Gheorghe Hagi Academy and made his deb ...

* Gheorghe Popescu *

* Rodney Strasser *

Martin Petráš Martin Petráš (born 2 November 1979 in Bojnice) is a Slovak former football central defender. He made 38 appearances for the Slovakia national football team. Biography A youth product of HFK Prievidza, Petráš moved to Scottish club Heart ...

* Žan Majer *

Dejan Govedarica Dejan Govedarica (, ; born 2 October 1969) is a Serbian retired footballer who played as a midfielder. Club career Govedarica played three seasons for Proleter Zrenjanin between 1989 and 1992, before switching to Vojvodina. He then spent three ...

Sergei Aleinikov Sergei Yevgenyevich Aleinikov (; , ''Syarhey Alyeynikaw''; born 7 November 1961) is a Belarusian and Soviet former professional footballer, and currently a coach. He primarily played as a defensive midfielder and was known for his stamina, int ...

David Sesa David Sesa (born 10 July 1973) is a Swiss football manager and former player. He is the manager of Rapperswil-Jona. A midfielder or forward, he made 36 appearances for the Switzerland national team. He is the current manager of Bellinzona in th ...

* Hamza Rafia * Karim Saidi * Yevhen Shakhov * Javier Chevantón * Guillermo Giacomazzi * Gabriel Cichero * Lameck Banda

World Cup players

The following players have been selected by their country in the

World Cup A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the name is ...

Finals, while playing for Lecce. *

(

1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. ** Spain and Portugal en ...

) (World Cup winner) *

(

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for Lunar water, frozen water, in soil i ...

) *

(

2002 The effects of the September 11 attacks of the previous year had a significant impact on the affairs of 2002. The war on terror was a major political focus. Without settled international law, several nations engaged in anti-terror operation ...

) *

(

) * Karim Saidi (

2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...

) (on loan) *

(

)

UEFA European Championship players

The following players have been selected by their country in the

European Championship A European Championship is the top level international sports competition between European athletes or sports teams representing their respective countries or professional sports clubs. In the plural, the European Championships also refers t ...

Finals, while playing for Lecce. *

(

1992 1992 was designated as International Space Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 – Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt replaces Javier Pérez de Cuéllar of Peru as United Nations Secretary-General. * January 6 ** The Republ ...

) *

(

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...

) * Boban Nikolov (

2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...

) * Medon Berisha (

2024 The year saw the list of ongoing armed conflicts, continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Myanmar civil war (2021–present), Myanmar civil war, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudane ...

) *

(

) *

(

)

Copa América players

The following players have been selected by their country in the

Copa América The CONMEBOL Copa América (; known until 1975 as the South American Football Championship), often simply called the Copa America, is the top men's quadrennial association football, football tournament contested among list of men's national ass ...

Finals, while playing for Lecce. * Pedro Pasculli (

1987 Events January * January 1 – Bolivia reintroduces the Boliviano currency. * January 2 – Chadian–Libyan conflict – Battle of Fada: The Military of Chad, Chadian army destroys a Libyan armoured brigade. * January 3 – Afghan leader ...

) *

(

1991 It was the final year of the Cold War, which had begun in 1947. During the year, the Soviet Union Dissolution of the Soviet Union, collapsed, leaving Post-soviet states, fifteen sovereign republics and the Commonwealth of Independent State ...

)

African Cup of Nations players

The following players have been selected by their country in the

African Cup of Nations The Africa Cup of Nations, commonly abbreviated as AFCON and officially known as the TotalEnergies Africa Cup of Nations for sponsorship reasons, is the main biennial international men's association football competition in Africa. It is s ...

Finals, while playing for Lecce. *

(

1994 The year 1994 was designated as the " International Year of the Family" and the "International Year of Sport and the Olympic Ideal" by the United Nations. In the Line Islands and Phoenix Islands of Kiribati, 1994 had only 364 days, omitti ...

) *

(

2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...

) * Ahmed Touba (

2023 Catastrophic natural disasters in 2023 included the Lists of 21st-century earthquakes, 5th-deadliest earthquake of the 21st century 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes, striking Turkey and Syria, leaving up to 62,000 people dead; Cyclone Freddy ...

) * Hamza Rafia (

) * Lameck Banda (

)

Other tournaments

As of 2024, no Lecce player has ever been selected to play in the

AFC Asian Cup The AFC Asian Cup is the primary association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), determining the continental champion of Asia. It is the second-oldest c ...

CONCACAF Gold Cup The CONCACAF Gold Cup () is an association football competition organized by CONCACAF as its top continental tournament for men's senior national teams from North America, Central America and the Caribbean. The tournament is held every two ...

or the

OFC Nations Cup The OFC Men's Nations Cup, known as the OFC Nations Cup before the 2024 OFC Men's Nations Cup, 2024 edition, is the primary association football competition contested by the senior list of men's national association football teams, men's natio ...

Stadium information

*Name – Stadio Via del Mare *City –

*Capacity – 31,533 *Inauguration – 1966 *Pitch Size – 105 x 70 metres

In fiction

Lecce is mentioned in many famous Italian movies and TV series. Among these there are the movies ''

Al bar dello sport ''Al bar dello sport'' (''At the Bar Sport'') is a 1983 Italian comedy film directed by Francesco Massaro. Plot Misadventures of Lino, a penniless Apulian immigrant in Turin, after he won 1.3 billion lire at Totocalcio. Cast * Lino Banfi: ...

'', '' Benvenuti al Nord'' and '' Really SSSupercool: Chapter Two'' and the TV series ''

I Cesaroni ''I Cesaroni'' ("''The Cesaronis''") is an Italian television series, produced by Publispei for RTI, aired on Canale 5 from 2006 to 2014. It is based on the format of the Spanish series '' Los Serrano''. Plot Season 1 Professor Lucia Li ...

''. US Lecce is also mentioned in many songs, while in the game '' Captain Tsubasa 5: Hasha no Shōgō Campione'', the main character

Tsubasa Oozora , also known as Oliver Atom in multiple Dubbing (filmmaking), dubs, is a fictional character and the main protagonist of the manga series ''Captain Tsubasa'' written by Yōichi Takahashi. Tsubasa is a prodigious association football player who dr ...

played for this team.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lecce Football clubs in Apulia Association football clubs established in 1908 Serie A clubs Serie B clubs Serie C clubs Serie D clubs 1908 establishments in Italy 1927 establishments in Italy 1934 establishments in Italy Phoenix clubs (association football) Coppa Italia Serie C winning clubs