Sunday afternoon, I drive slowly on the motorway towards the Amalfi coast, but my final destination is not the sea, but rather the national final of the Eccellenza Costa D’Amalfi – Bisceglie playoffs.
From Vietri sul mare I head towards Maiori, and between one bend and another I enjoy from the window the spectacular panorama of the coast, recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1997, and renowned throughout the world for its natural beauty .
Here and there some banners appear referring to the football event so eagerly awaited by local fans and I wonder if tourists notice, because there is palpable frenzy in the air.
I reach the “San Martino” stadium in Maiori early and I have confirmation that there is anticipation and hunger for victory in the air. The rhythms that precede a match are marked by the positioning of the press, by the dribbling of the players on the pitch who warm up, the greetings of the public who arrive and meet, and the ultras who begin to position their equipment.
This long-awaited match unfortunately has a bitter start, as the Bisceglie fans are prohibited from traveling. A real shame considering the importance of what’s at stake, but actually, looking at it with my own eyes, the stadium, however characteristic and particular, considering its position under the natural rock, has a limited capacity and complicated logistics. The fact is that during the week the Apulian club had asked to change the stadium to allow its fans to participate: the match was initially open to guests with a limited number of tickets. Unfortunately, however, the request was not accepted and the trip was banned shortly. A round of applause to the fifty ultras who, despite everything, arrived at the stadium at kick-off, even if they weren’t let in. However, a good number of fans are present in the sector to support their team in the absence of the ultras. Praise be to good will but without the ultras it’s not the same.
Men, women and children, the curve fills up, and some families of tourists also arrive to take their places, made up of fathers with children who, who knows whether unaware or not, will live a dream come true.
“What a beautiful life it is… I want to live it with you.” The Amalfi Coast fans are well-energised, the clapping begins already during the team’s training on the pitch. At the kick-off the Curva is completely filled with fans and the show becomes serious: a choreography of banners representing them, enveloping everything, the home colors are the protagonists with flags and blue smoke bombs, while the pitch becomes saturated with fumes colored smoke bombs set off from the opposite side.
The match is fierce and the fans are also tireless. Non-stop chants and clapping accompany the initial suffering of the home team’s players on the pitch, who end the first half one point down. It is not yet the time for holidays and the seaside, here we are fighting for the title and the fans are present, in an excellent manner.
Regular time ends with the home team achieving a draw in the meantime. Same result as the first leg. Extra time becomes necessary, in which Costa d’Amalfi finds the goal from a free kick that breaks the balance: it’s Serie D, for the first time in history, and it’s a dream come true. Tears of the opposing players consoled sportingly also by the winners. A flood of hearts pours into the streets of the center to celebrate this historic day. The Amalfi Coast is no longer just a tourist paradise for third parties, but also a tangible and real joy experienced as a protagonist by its own community.
Imma Borrelli
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