Umberto Caligaris

Umberto Caligaris (it; 26 July 1901 – 19 October 1940) was an Italian international footballer who played, normally at left-back, for A.S. Casale and Juventus, before ending his career with Brescia. With Juventus, he won an Italian record of five consecutive Serie A League titles between 1930 and 1935. He also managed to have a successful career with the Italy national team, notably winning a bronze medal at the 1928 Summer Olympic Games; he was also a member of the Italian side that won the 1934 FIFA World Cup. His 59 caps for Italy stood as a record for many years. Following his retirement he worked as a manager, coaching his former clubs Brescia and Juventus. A highly successful left-back, Caligaris is regarded as one of the best Italian defenders of his generation. A strong, hard-tackling, and tenacious player, he was known for his pace, work-rate, stamina, and his ability in the air, which he combined with an excellent technique.

Umberto Caligaris

Caligaris with Juventus in the 1930s
Personal information
Date of birth	(1901-06-26)26 June 1901
Place of birth	Casale Monferrato, Italy
Date of death	19 October 1940(1940-10-19) (aged 39)
Place of death	Torino, Italy
Height	1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)
Position(s)	Left-back
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1919–1928	Casale	182	(18)
1928–1935	Juventus	178	(0)
1935–1937	Brescia	40	(0)
Total		400	(18)
National team
1922–1934	Italy	59	(0)
Teams managed
1935–1937	Brescia
1939–1940	Juventus
Honours Italy Summer Olympics 1928 Amsterdam Central European International Cup 1927–30 Central European International Cup Central European International Cup 1931–32 Central European International Cup FIFA World Cup 1934 Italy Central European International Cup 1933–35 Central European International Cup
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Club career

The legendary Bianconeri's defensive line in the Interwar period: right-back Rosetta, goalkeeper Combi and left-back Caligaris

Caligaris was born in Casale Monferrato and spent the first nine years of his career with AS Casale, a team from his hometown and former champions of the Italian First Division (the predecessor of Serie A). He made his debut for the club on 12 October 1919 in a match against local rivals Valenzana Calcio. In the end, Caligaris made 128 official appearances for Casale, which still puts him in 6th place in most appearances for the club.

After winning a bronze medal with Italy at the 1928 Olympics, and playing in all competitions, he made the switch to Juventus. He made his Serie A debut on 6 October 1929 in a 3–2 home win over Napoli. Soon the defensive line, with Caligaris at left back, and Rosetta at right back, became a very strong bastion with which Juventus achieved many successes. Between 1930 and 1935, five Scudetti's were won in a row, and after the last championship, Caligaris went to Brescia to fill a position as player-coach.

In Brescia, Caligaris learned again what it was like to lose, as in its first season the team was relegated to Serie B by finishing last. After playing a season in Serie B, Caligaris decided to end his football career and also step down as a coach.

International career

While playing for Casale, Caligaris made his debut for the Italian national team on 15 January 1922 in a friendly match against Austria. In his early days with the national team, he fought with Italian legend Renzo De Vecchi for a starting place in the team.

He played for Italy at the 1924 Summer Olympics, and also won the European Cup with the country in the 1927–30 season. After De Vecchi retired, Caligaris became the undisputed left-back of the Italian team. At the 1928 Summer Olympics in Amsterdam, the Italian team with Caligaris was too strong for Egypt in the consolation final and won the bronze medal.

Between 1931 and 1934, Caligaris was the captain of the Italian team, and in total he played 59 times for La Squadra Azzurra. At the time, he became the record holder with the most international caps, which was only broken in 1971 by Giacinto Facchetti.

Although he was part of the squad for the 1934 World Cup in his home country, Caligaris did not play during the tournament and watched from the bench as his teammates managed to win Italy's first-ever World Cup.

Coaching career

After his successful period at Juventus, Caligaris was recruited by Brescia. As a 34-year-old, he acted as player-coach in the season that Brescia was relegated from Serie A. In Serie B, he only managed to achieve a 1st place with the club the following year, after which he left.

In 1939 he started again as a coach at his old club Juventus, a position he held until his death in 1940.

Death

On October 19, 1940, Caligaris, the team's coach at the time, was called up to a match with the Juventus All Stars for a charity match. After a few minutes, he had to leave the field because he didn't feel well. After being taken to hospital in Turin, he suffered an aneurysm and died on the spot at the age of 39.

Honours

Club

Juventus

• Serie A: 1930–31, 1931–32, 1932–33, 1933–34, 1934–35

International

Italy

• FIFA World Cup: 1934
• Central European International Cup: 1927–30, 1933–35; Runner-up: 1931–32
• Summer Olympics: Bronze Medal 1928

Other websites

• Umberto Caligaris – International Appearances from RSSSF
  • And the corresponding entries for Rosetta and De Vecchi
• The article on Umberto Caligaris from the Italian Wikipedia.
• DatabaseOlympics.com profile