Italian association football club
Football club
Atletico Catania |
| Full name | Unione Sportiva Dilettantistica
Atletico Catania |
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| Nickname(s) | rossoblù |
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| Founded | 1967 |
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| Ground | Valentino Mazzola |
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| Capacity | 2,000 |
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| Chairman |  Arturo Barbagallo |
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| Manager | Antonio Richichi |
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| League | Eccellenza Sicily/B |
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| 2018–19 | Eccellenza Sicily/B, 6th |
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Unione Sportiva Dilettantistica Atletico Catania is an
Serie C2 professional level, almost gaining promotion to
Serie B on two occasions during the 1990s. The club is currently part of the regionally organized amateur
Eccellenza league, following two disbandments that led Atletico Catania down to the bottom ranks of national football.
History
The club was founded in 1967 as Sport Club Mascalucia, then renamed and relocated in 1986 by the Catanese entrepreneur Salvatore Tabita. They won their local title and were thus promoted to
Atletico Leonzio and moved to
Lentini. The team was then acquired by Franco Proto, and won promotion into
Serie C1 in 1993.
In 1994 Proto, trying to satisfy the absence of a football club in the city of
FIGC; Calcio Catania were however later entered into the Sicilian
Eccellenza due to a court decision.
The club changed their name from Atletico Leonzio to Atletico Catania, doing a controversial move, specially in the eyes of the club's fans from Lentini. They played for seven seasons in Serie C, coming close to promotion to Serie B twice, reaching the playoffs in both 1996–97 and 1997–98, but missing out both times.
Recent times
The 2000s have been far more difficult for the club. They were relegated down to the
Sicilian Eccellenza in 2001 because of financial difficulties. In 2002 Proto sold the club to Paolo Pinazzo and Gianfranco Vullo. Atletico Catania went on sliding further down, and was again cancelled in 2005, when a group of supporters led by Santino Crisafi founded a new club with the current denomination and registered it to
Terza Categoria, the lowest division in Italian football, for the 2005–06 season. That year Atletico Catania reached a fourth place, not enough for gaining promotion. However, little before the beginning of season 2006–07, Atletico Catania won the title of the
Sant'Agata li Battiati making them applicable to play in the
Prima Categoria. The new club ended its 2006–07 campaign in eighth place. The club was renamed as
U.S.D. Atletico Catania for the 2007–08 season, that saw the
atletisti winning the Round F of
Prima Categoria league, being thus promoted to Promozione for the 2008–09 season. They completed their first Promozione season in eighth place, playing their home games in the neighbouring town of
Aci Bonaccorsi. They have moved back to Catania for the 2009–10 season, playing at the
Campo Comunale "Zia Lisa". They promoted to
Eccellenza Sicily in 2010–11 season but relegated back to Promozione at next season after finishing 14th.
Atletico Catania returned to Eccellenza in 2015, as they were admitted to fill a vacancy in the league. After an immediate relegation, they successively were promoted once again to Eccellenza in 2017 as Promozione winners.
Notable former managers
Sources
External links
Arturo Barbagallo
