1/2 Sampdoria supporters. (Photo: Marco Magielse)
Photographer Marco Magielse (55) from Geldrop drove through Italy for three weeks to visit the most beautiful football stadiums. He did this together with sports journalist Joris van de Wier from Tilburg. He captured the most special moments on film. A story about raw stadiums with a piss smell, the chaos on the roads in Naples and the love for Maradona. “When you enter, you take a step back in time,” Magielse noted.
Marco has long had the desire to photograph the gems among the stadiums in Italy. The country has had something magical for him since the 1982 World Cup. “After a bad start, Italy eventually became world champions, which made an impression. When Marco van Basten, Ruud Gullit and Frank Rijkaard started playing for the great AC Milan, I was completely sold.” Joris’s fascination with Italy started at the World Cup in 1990.
For the book ‘Curva – A tour past 19 iconic Italian stadiums’ Marco and Joris drove through De Laars for twenty days. “Many clubs in Italy are about to renovate their stadiums or opt for new construction. However, we love the old stadiums and that’s why we decided this was the time for an Italian adventure.”
“A poorly maintained stadium, that is our passion.”
Marco and Joris were welcome at almost all clubs they approached. “Of the big clubs, only Juventus was not on our list, because we are less interested in new construction. We did have the necessary accreditations for Bari, but we were refused there by unfriendly people. We have seen beautiful stadiums, such as that of Fiorentina. A strange stadium in the shape of a D, which referred to il Duce, or Mussolini. Despite its dubious origins, a wonderful stadium.”
The highlight was the visit to Avellino. “Everything was absolutely right there, it was a poorly maintained stadium with all the faded glory we were looking for. But the Vicenza stadium, for example, was also a positive surprise. There was so much beauty to see that I didn’t know where to look. There was even a tiny fruit and vegetable shop under the stands. And then the Sampdoria stadium: beautiful in architecture, intimate and with great standing stands behind both goals.”
“Chaos on the road for us as Brabant farmers.”
After Avellino, the people from Brabant had a special trip to Stadio Diego Armando Maradona. “We had car trouble for the first hour, after which we finally got the car going. In Naples, however, there was chaos on the road for two Brabant farmers. After a long search we finally found a parking spot, but it was far too small for my driving skills. With the help of an Italian, it worked. To stand there in that colossal concrete box of Napoli where our hero Maradona played was fantastic.”
Marco previously photographed for books about stadiums in Belgium, Great Britain and his great love NAC Breda. “You don’t make me happy with Manchester United, Manchester City or Arsenal. I want to go to those ‘shitty clubs’ with a wonderful atmosphere and great old-fashioned stadiums that still smell like piss. When you enter, you take a step back in time.”
Marco, together with his client Staantribune Media, has plenty of ideas for new books. “My wish is to go to South America one day. But there are also beautiful stadiums in Europe that are of interest to us. I get to do things I used to dream of.”
