Former Palermo and Venezia President Maurizio Zamparini has died aged 80.
According to La Gazzetta dello Sport, Zamparini was admitted to hospital earlier last week due to peritonitis. He died at Ravenna’s Cotignola hospital last night.
Zamparini was a crucial figure in Italian football between the late 90s and the start of the new century.
Serie C2 club Pordenone was the first professional club he ran as a president from 1986. He then bought Venezia which managed to gain Serie A promotion in a decade. But it was at Palermo where Zamparini reached the peak.
He acquired the club in 2002 from Franco Sensi and some of the best players in Europe wore the Rosanero shirt during his tenure.
The likes of Andrea Barzagli, Luca Toni, Paulo Dybala, Franco Vazquez and Edinson Cavani, just to name a few, played in Sicily during Zamparini’s time at the club. Palermo even managed to qualify for Europe for three years in a row.
Zamparini was famous for his temper and sudden decisions, especially regarding coaches’ sacking.
He remained at the helm of the club for 15 years, from July 2002 to February 2019.
One of his five sons, Armando, died aged 23 this past October in London.
RIP.
He was always entertaining and my favourite moment was what he said about Kyle Lafferty:
“Lafferty is sold as a result of a precise request from my coach Beppe Iachini,” Maurizio Zamparini, the owner, told Radio 24 in 2014.
“He is an out-of-control womaniser, an Irishman without rules. He is someone who disappears for a week and goes on the hunt for women in Milan.
“He has two families with six children, he never trains, he’s completely off the rails. On the field he’s a great player, because he gave us everything he had and more.
“In terms of his behaviour, however, he is uncontrollable. My coach told me he cannot sort this player out, so he has to go.”
Rip
RIP
RIP ZAMPARINI
RIP Boss
Even as a Milan fan, I will always remember Zamparini’s comment when we were linked with a player from Palermo that we “don’t even have enough funds to buy brioche in the morning” made me laugh very much at the time and has brought back fond memories!
Rest in Peace
RIP, mr. Maurizio.