Given that we celebrate the origins of football and how the rules and the game have spread around the world, a visit to Genoa CFC, arguably Italy’s first football club, made good sense. A bit of googling revealed, however, that the Piazza d’Armi (where the club first played) no longer exists and is now occupied by railway sidings.
So, what to do? Give up on Genoa and head to France? Following up on our experience at Andelecht, where we also had no response to our email but received red carpert treatment, we decided to go to Genoa and see what would happen.
Stadio Luigi FerrarisBefore we knew it, we arrived at the former World Cup stadium shared by Genoa and Sampdoria. An amazing theatre surrounded on all sides by thriving city. Dribbling The Ball around the stadium we saw a sign saying “Centro Socio Educativo S. G. Battista” and a group of kids playing basketball right in the shadow of the stadium.
Basketball in the shadow of the Stadio Luigi FerrarisA game of football seemed like a good idea. The Ball was introduced and football was played. Boys girls, young, old… street football at its finest. A sunny winters day, a red goal painted on an old brick wall, the Stadio Luigi Ferraris as a stunning backdrop… this is what The Ball is all about…
The team from “La Comunita” – Chri, Sabry, Adrian, Danny, Luca and LelleFrom street to stadium, a celebration of the beautiful game.
