Few cities in the world can boast two truly international football teams. Milan is one of the lucky few, thanks to AC Milan and FC Internazionale Milano, also known as Inter Milan. Both teams play in the same stadium, Stadio Meazza, also known as San Siro, fondly called football’s La Scala. It makes Milano one of the most popular destinations for football enthusiasts all over the world as well as for the casual fan.
Which is your favourite team? In case you root for Inter Milan, here is a map with the most important places in the city connected to the team’s history.
Via Giuseppe Mengoni
On the evening of March 9th, 1908, the Internationale Football Club was founded at L’Orologio restaurant in via Mengoni (now closed) by a group of dissenters from the Milan Football and Cricket Club). The club’s colours were chosen by one of its founders, the Futurist painter Giorgio Muggiani:
"This magnificent night will bequeath its beautiful colours to our official badge: black and blue on a golden background inspired by the stars. It will be called Internazionale, because we are brothers of the world".
Also, tradition has it that the choice of the colour blue was made because, at the time, pencils were used which had blue and red at opposing ends: a further indication that they clearly wanted to stand out from their AC Milan rivals.
Ripa di Porta Ticinese 113
Inter’s first playing field - in gravel and bordered by fruit boxes - ran alongside the Naviglio Grande, which is why boats were always available to retrieve balls that ended up in the canal.
Foro Buonaparte 70
Inter’s legendary headquarters, where it remained until 1985. It was then moved to Piazza Duse and, afterwards, to via Durini, from 1997 to 2009.
Corso Vittorio Emanuele II 9
Former Inter headquarters, in close proximity to Duomo, from 2009 to June 2019. This was in the years of the legendary Triplete.
Viale della Liberazione 16/18
Current Inter headquarters, in the Porta Nuova area, among Milano’s new skyscrapers.
Porta Vittoria area
Giuseppe Meazza was born in the Porta Vittoria neighbourhood; a famous football player and then coach, the Meazza San Siro Stadium was named after him. At the age of 16, he entered Inter’s first team and made his debut at 17, scoring 3 goals in his first game.
An immense footballer, he played for Inter for many years and became a legend of Italian football. He won two World Championships with the Italian national team in 1934 and 1938.
Viale Giorgio Byron 2
From 1930 to 1947, and then occasionally until 1958, Inter played their home games at the Arena Civica. They had moved there after the stands of the old Goldoni Fossati stadium had collapsed, causing several injuries.
The last match played there by Inter was on December 10th, 1958: the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup (no longer existing) against Lyon, which Inter won 7-0.
Piazzale Angelo Moratti
The San Siro stadium, commissioned by then president of AC Piero Pirelli, was built in 1925 in the eponymous Milanese district, near the Hyppodrome.
The property remained under the ownership of AC Milan until 1935 when it was purchased by the Municipality of Milano and, in 1947, became the official grounds for Inter as well. Up until then, Inter had played their matches at the Municipal Arena.
The Nerazzurri won here their second European Cup against Benfica in the 1964/1965 season.
Galleria Passarella 2
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