Stadio Giuseppe Moccagatta 2010 Stadio Giuseppe Moccagatta Images

Football club infobox |

clubname = Alessandria | image = | fullname = Unione Sportiva Alessandria
Calcio 1912 srl | nickname = ''I Grigi'' (The Greys),
''L'Orso'' (The Bear) | founded = 1912 | ground = Stadio Giuseppe Moccagatta,
Alessandria, Italy | capacity = 3,896 | chairman = Giorgio Veltroni | manager = Maurizio Sarri | league = Lega Pro Prima Divisione|Lega Pro
Prima Divisione - A | season = 2008–09 | position = Lega Pro Seconda Divisione, 2nd | pattern_la1=|pattern_b1=|pattern_ra1=| leftarm1=A9A9A9|body1=A9A9A9|rightarm1=A9A9A9|shorts1=000000|socks1=000000| pattern_la2=|pattern_b2=|pattern_ra2=| leftarm2=FF0000|body2=FF0000|rightarm2=FF0000|shorts2=A9A9A9|socks2=FF0000|
Unione Sportiva Alessandria Calcio 1912 is an Italian football club based in Alessandria, Piedmont and was founded in February 1912. The team's nickname is "Grigi" (Grays), because of their grey kit. The club's most successful period came when they spent 13 seasons in Serie A between 1929 and 1960, their best finish being sixth in 1930 and in 1932. The team plays its home games at the Stadium Giuseppe Moccagatta in Spalto Rovereto, Alessandria.

History

In 1896, the first sports team in Alessandria, named ''Unione Pro Sport'', was established. Unione Pro Sport was followed by two other teams, ''Forza e Concordia'' and ''Forza e Coraggio''. Whereas Unione Pro Sport and Forza e Concordia withdrew from competitions after 1900, Forza e Coraggio opened its football section, called Foot Ball Club Alessandria in 1912. The original jersey was white and light blue, which was successively replaced by a grey one with white edges. The team was first admitted to Serie A in 1929, following a third place in the Girone A of ''National Division'' (one-time Serie B). Alessandria played eight consecutive seasons to Serie A, with a sixth place as its best result, being relegated to Serie B in 1937. The team returned to play Serie A after World War II, in 1946, for two consecutive seasons, and again from 1957 to 1960. In 1958, Gianni Rivera, probably the most famous player to have ever played for Alessandria, made his Serie A debut against Inter Milan. Since then, Alessandria played Serie B until [Serie B 1966–67|1967 and then Serie C, except a one-year Serie B return in 1974-75. More recently the club, after having experienced in 2002-2003 its first ever relegation ever to Serie D, went bankrupt. A new club, named U.S. Alessandria Calcio 1912 and direct heir of the old Alessandria, was admitted to "Eccellenza", a regional amateur league, which it readily won on 2003–2004. Then the club joined Serie D, and won the Girone A in the 2007–2008 season, thus returning back to professional football. It finished second inthe Girone A in the Lega Pro Seconda Divisione and qualified for promotion play-offs in 2008-2009. It defeated Olbia in the semi-final, but was defeated by Como 4-1 on aggregate. However, it was promoted to Girone A in the Lega Pro Prima Divisione after forced relegations of Pisa and Venezia to Serie D and one of Treviso to Eccellenza. Alessandria finished Girone A of Lega Pro prima Divisione in eighth in 2009-10 season.

Stadium

The "Stadio Giuseppe Moccagatta" was built in 1929 and it can hold 3896 spectators. It is a multi-use stadium, however it is primarily used for football matches. The stadium is owned by the Municipality of Alessandria. It has a grass pitch whose dimensions are 105 by 68.4 meters.

Players

Current squad

updated|30 July 2010|

Notable former players

:''See also .''

Notable Former Managers

Federico Allasio
Giulio Cappelli
Carlo Carcano
Bert Flatley
Luciano Foschi
Lajos Kovács
Ferenc Molnár
Corrado Orrico
Roberto Pruzzo
Pietro Rava
Giuseppe Sabadini

References

External links

Official Site
Unione Sportiva Alessandria 1912 - Short Historical Overview 1896-1961 prepared by Enrico Acerbi for RSSSF
Associazione Orgoglio Grigio ‘Grey Pride Association’: a supporters site
Alessandria page @ Serie-D.com