Back late ‘80’s I was already intrigued and sold on the Italian game. In the same summer that I saw my first game in Italy in June 1987, the southern city of Barletta was in a fiesta mood, too. Furie Rosse, red fury as the SSD Barletta are known, due to their red and white colour scheme, were headed for the first ever time to Serie B as runners-up to Catanzaro. In those days, the third tier was known as Serie C1, basically two leagues split north and south, with the top two promoted. There were no lengthy play-offs back then. Whereas potentially finishing as low as 11th can get you a crack at promotion these days!
Barletta enjoyed four seasons in Serie B, which was at the time, and remains to this day, the club’s loftiest four seasons in its history. Whether the pursuit of that joy, and the subsequent attempts to maintain that level eroded the finances is unsure, but a few seasons on, like so many others, bankruptcy visited the door of the Stadio Cosimo Puttilli. Twenty years later, it knocked again. However, for those of a certain generation, the advertisement for a child’s toy might have stuck; “weebles wobble, but they don’t fall down”! Lyrics to a Chumbawumba song might also be appropriate here! You have to acknowledge, if at the same time, rolling your eyes, the capacity for Italian teams to bounce back is enormous. It happens elsewhere, too, just at a slightly lesser volume. Unfortunately, this kind of scenario is getting worse at too many clubs now.
If you were asked to list some clubs from Puglia, the most common responses would be; Lecce, Bari and possibly Foggia for those who recall their galant Serie A days. Barletta is just south of Foggia, and might be a name on the list of the more ardent Calcio fans, along with Monopoli, Taranto and Casarano, especially if you have been reading your Football Weekends Italian tales with any relish.
With Foggia struggling financially big time, there remains an opportunity for someone else to push the glass ceiling and get into the wider arena of “known ” Puglia clubs. Barletta is certainly well known in the circles of Austria Vienna. The two clubs have a strong fan tie-up, with purple colours quite often appearing as a second or third shirt in any given season at Barletta by way of a nod to the bond.
With a population of 97,000, Barletta is more than capable of sustaining a club at Serie B level. Once the second bankruptcy issue was out of the way, the club enjoyed a return to Serie D, the fourth tier. One autumnal Sunday of 2022 I went to Bisceglie v Manfredonia instead, partly borne of my support for the home side in that fixture, but also due to the likely sell-out at Barletta, with Nocerina headed across from Campania. The stadium holds a magnificent 10,000, but such was the level of early season enthusiasm to see them back in D, that the game was close to, if not sold out. In one anecdote, it tells you the level of support Barletta can command if successful.
In October 2022, just as the world was coming out of the nightmare of Covid, especially in Italy, where it was very much a case of a land badly bitten more than once, twice shy. The whole nasty experience held Italy back more than most. The rush to have alternative things to do might explain a near sell-out for this Serie D fixture. It would be a relatively successful campaign, ultimately finishing 4th, five points behind the inseparable joint leaders Cavese and Brindisi.
Unfortunately, Barletta weren’t able to build on that success the following season, plummeting down the standings and ultimately heading back to the fifth tier and the Puglia Eccellenza. It would act as a re-set with the club dominating a fairly weak league, winning the title at a canter, as well as the Puglia Coppa Italia for Serie D. Lifting that cup saw them pitted against all the other regional cup winners, with the overall winner claiming not only the trophy but a promotion slot. That last aspect wasn’t the driving force for Barletta as they had already secured the title, but a rare treble was on the table. Only Casarano from Puglia have ever achieved it. However, with the final weeks after everything else had concluded, they came up short in the final versus Lombardian side Rovato Vertovese, who did need to reach the final to claim a promotion slot.
Now back in Serie D after just one season away, the portents of a growing confidence has returned in Barletta. Having seen the stadium many times from the window of a rail carriage, it was finally time to alight and discover Barletta and its team. One sign that life is good in Italian football is when a club shop re-appears. When days are dark, these outlets tend to be the first thing to be cut. Given the general lack of souvenirs available at a match these days, I am always game for a perusal, even if I already own two Barletta shirts, special centenary ones too from 2022. In the club’s Serie B days, they played in a white shirt with two red bands round the chest. A Stirling Albion fan of yesteryear will recall a similar kit, and while a different shade, edging into the realms of maroon, Northampton Town had a natty double hoop as well. Should such a Barletta kit ever re-appear, this is one style I would welcome into my collection. It would act as a way of recalling some of those early days of my calcio passion.
Given I could see the Puttilli stadium from the train, it will come as no surprise that it is a relatively straight forward walk to get there, albeit it is on the other side of the train tracks. But going directly to any ground is to take away the intrigue of discovering a new town. Puglia is blessed with some astonishing points of beauty, and I know its popularity is growing.
The top three must-see destinations will differ from the three most known football clubs, although Lecce would give it a go trying to break into the Polignano a Mare, Arobella, and Ostuni circle. Personally, I would list Monopoli, Trani, and Brindisi amongst my own favourites. Barletta is a working town with a limited notion of being a visitor attraction. However, real life Italy, away from the mass tourist world, especially in the south, is a warm and welcoming experience. Barletta will not let you down. The old historical centre en route to the sea is a delight. That marble paving, a classic of Puglia, is alive and well here. Castello Svevo, a fine fortification for holding off any marauders back in the day, sits overlooking the Adriatic. The port is a real working port, but alongside it is a length of golden sands to appeal to the sun worshipper pre – or post-match. It’s described as a ‘luxury’ beach, but it’s a regular beach, and the advertising fluff is looking to mis-guide here.
Barletta was the venue for an almighty old battle back in 216 BC, when the Romans and the Carthaginians went toe to toe, with Hannibal being declared the victor. Its legacy is an important archaeological site. In 1503, the “joust of Barletta” would become an early pointer to the National pride of a unified Italy centuries later. An 1833 re-telling of the story in what would become a classic novel in Italian literature, “Ettore Fieramosca o la disfida di Barletta” by Massimo D’Azeglio, seeped into the growing psyche of desire for a united land. It literally was a joust, where 13 Italian knights defeated 13 French knights, who were being kept captive. I suspect more than home advantage won the day! This event isn’t just celebrated in literary circles, but a jousting knight is the centrepiece of the Barletta club badge.
The most famous son of the city in modern times is Pietro Mennea. He was a sprinter back in the day. He broke the world record for 200m in 1979, and less than a year later, he was crowned the Olympic champion in Moscow. His memory lives, with various murals, a plaque in town, as well as a flag that the Ultras fly at the games. He died in 2013.
A late afternoon kick-off in the middle of the week is always a strange choice, but Serie D is like that. While the Barletta fans are back on board with the 2025/26 song sheet of the club, many present would require a kindly boss to take time off for a 5pm start. The home Curva and main stand, known as the Tribuna, were absolutely full come game time.
Francavilla were across from neighbouring Basilicata for this clash. The name Francavilla is almost the Italian equivalent of Newport or Newcastle, with a variety of places having it in their name. Girone H of the fourth tier has two Francavilla’s, this one from Francavilla-in-Sinni, and the other being a fine town in mid-territory between Brindisi and Taranto in Puglia, where Francavilla Fontana can be found. Near Pescara, their is also Francavilla a Mare, but if they have a team, it must be way down the pyramid.
The Barletta stadium, with its sizable capacity, is another of those Mussolini running track multi-sport gigs, but the seating has been buffed up, and it looks resplendent ready for any further tales of pyramid climbing the club might look to achieve. Especially after such a successful promotion last season, hopes remain high. Sometimes, the vapers of that winning feeling can be hard to dampen.
The opening games of the season has been tough, and Barletta were still without a victory when I pitched up for this match. I had seen them play online in two of their opening matches, and its fair to say they had been unlucky. The way they set about Francavilla in this one, Barletta were looking to make sure luck wasn’t required. Yet, despite numerous corners and making the goalkeeper work for his keep, they all trotted off level at 0-0.
The game didn’t divert from a similar pattern after the break. Barletta just kept coming in waves. Francavilla are a well organised side though, and they worked hard to thwart the home endeavours. Barletta had so many corners that the defending became almost blasé. When the Basilicata boys finally carved out one themselves well into the second half, I was thinking, wouldn’t it be ironic. However, they couldn’t find the net either.
The crowd, who were vociferous from the off, with a real intimidating ferocity at times, increasingly became frustrated and angst ridden. Francavilla held firm, and the match ended as it started, goalless. Luck had deserted Barletta once more, but you also need to create glaring openings or have a proven goalscorer who can take a half chance. In this game, those qualities were missing, and Barletta might have totally dominated possession and corners, etc, but you need an end product.
It had been an unexpected treat of day. I really enjoyed Barletta as a city, and the Putilli stadium, as well as the biancorossi fans, are both worthy of checking out if you are in the vicinity.
Football Adventures with James Rendall 