Club Profile - Lazio
Società Sportiva Lazio (S.S. Lazio), commonly known as Lazio, is a professional football club based in Rome, Italy. The club was formed in 1900 and play their football at Stadio Olimpico in Rome, which they share with their bitter rivals, A.S. Roma. The
stadium seats over 72,000 fans and is the second largest in Italy after San Siro while one of the largest in Europe as well.
In 1927, when Roma was created after a merger between three Roman clubs, Lazio was the only club that resisted the move. Lazio's decision made them unpopular with the fans of the newly formed Roma as Lazio fans considered themselves loyal only to their own
club. The rivalry has since intensified and the fixture between Roma and Lazio, also called
Derby della Capitale is one of the most eagerly awaited and hotly contested matches of the Italian Serie A season every year.
In 1980s, Lazio had some of their darkest days as the club was involved in controversy throughout. It were relegated from Serie A for the first time when there was a scandal involving betting on their own matches. Relegation affected the team badly and they
stayed in Serie B for no less than 3 seasons. Their return to top flight was short-lived, as they were relegated once more - the following season - after securing only 15 points in that season.
It did not get any better for Lazio, who were implicated once again in a scandal; this time also related to betting, and were given a 9 point deduction. Their relegation to Serie C seemed inevitable, but miraculously, managed to avoid it after winning two
play-off games. This proved to be something of a turning point for the club as they were promoted to Serie A the following season and managed to stay there this time.
Lazio won their second and last Serie A title in 2000, as well as the Coppa Italia, in a historic double for the club. Their side at the time was one of the finest in Italy, and perhaps even in Europe, with players like Alessandro Nesta, Marcelo Salas, Pavel
Nedvěd, and Siniša Mihajlović in the squad while the Swede Sven-Goran Eriksson as manager.
Yet another scandal, and it wasn't their last, hit the club in 2004, when the owner, who was financing all of the club's transfer dealings, was forced to leave Lazio due to financial concerns over his businesses. The club had to sell fan-favourite and arguably
their best asset, Alessandro Nesta, in order to meet the needs of the squad at large. The exodus of star names meant that the club once more struggled into mediocrity.
After the 2006 refereeing scandal, Lazio, despite the point deduction, finished 3rd and qualified for the Champions League. Last season, the club performed poorly though and finished 12th in the league while their rivals, Roma, nearly clinched the title,
only losing out on the last day to Jose Mourinho's Inter Milan.
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