Established in September of 1893 as the football branch of Genoa Cricket and Athletic Club, Genoa is Italy’s oldest currently active football club. It was initially organised to represent England abroad, and as such it wore white to match England’s traditional national team uniform.  Initially, it was a private club for British expats, and as a result Italians were not permitted to join. In 1897, the footballing section of the club reached dominance thanks entirely to James Richardson Spensely, who founded the football club and allowed Italians to participate in it.

 

Spensely was a doctor, manager, correspondent, scout leader, medic and, of course, footballer who is regarded as one of the fathers of Italian football. He arrived in Genoa in 1896 to help cure English sailors on coal ships, but ended up joining the Genoa Cricket and Athletic Club and starting up the football team, becoming the clubs first manager. Apart from a couple of clubs operating in Turin, there was no football in Italy at the time. Spensley was a player-manager and he took to the pitch initially as a defender, before becoming a goalkeeper from 1898 until 1906. Spensley was responsible for initiating the first ever Italian Football Championship in 1898, which Genoa won.

 

With Spensley at the helm, Genoa went on to win the Italian league another six times, firstly that year with 3-1 defeat of Internazionale Torino. Genoa proved their dominance the following year by thumping rivals Sampierdarenese 7-0, a margin which would not be topped until 1910. In 1901, the clubs strip was altered to the famous red and navy halves which they continue to wear to this day, earning it the nickname “rossoblu”.  They won the league again in 1902, but from 1903 onwards, Juventus emerged as a serious contender to Genoas throne. Still, the rossoblu managed to defeat them to two league titles in a row. They also became the first Italian team to play internationally, travelling to France where they beat FVC Nice 3-0. One more title came in 1904 before they lost their foothold on Italian football; other clubs such as Juventus, Milan and Pro Vercelli stepped up.

Achievements: Italian Football Championship – Champions x6 Runners up x2

Star player: James Spensley, DoB: 17 May 1867, London, England
As a young man, Spensley travelled far and wide, and on his travels he developed keen interests in things such as oriental religion, various languages especially Greek and Sanskrit, boxing and, of course, football. He was jack of all trades, a doctor, scout leader and correspondent for the Daily Mail newspaper. Along with Genoa FC, Spensley is the man who started the Italian Football Championship, which is now the Serie A, one of the top leagues in the world. Spensley was mates with Robert Baden-Powell, the founder of the scout movement. Along with a man named Mario Mazza, Spensely founded the first scouting movement in Italy. He was a medic Lieutenant in the Royal Army Medical Corps during World War I, and was injured in battle when compassion compelled him to treat an enemy. He died from his injuries soon after.