Coordinates	52°05′36″N5°7′10″N
name	Naples
official name	Comune di Napoli
native name	Napoli
image shield	CoA Città di Napoli.svg
region	Campania
province	Naples (NA)
mayor	Luigi de Magistris
area total km2	117.27
population total	963357
population as of	30 September 2009
population metro	4434136 ("Seminario-aprile2001.PDF" (PDF). http://users.libero.it/domenico.smarrazzo/studio.PDF)
population demonym	Napoletani
elevation m	17
saint	Januarius
day	September 19
postal code	80100, 80121-80147
area code	081
website
footnotes	}}

Naples ( , , Neapolitan: ''Napule'') is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples. Naples is known internationally for its rich history, art, culture, architecture, music, and gastronomy, and has played an important political and cultural role on the Italian peninsula and beyond throughout its 2,800-year existence.

Founded in the 9th-8th century BC as a Greek colony, Naples is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world. Originally named Παρθενόπη (''Parthenope'') and later Νεάπολις (''Neápolis'' - English: ''New City''), it was among the foremost cities of ''Magna Graecia'', playing a key role in the merging of Greek culture into Roman society. Naples eventually became part of the Roman Republic as a major cultural center; the prominent Latin poet, Virgil, received part of his education in the city and later resided in its environs. As a microcosm of European history, the city has witnessed the rise and fall of numerous civilizations, each leaving traces in its art and architecture. Although many Greek and Roman ruins are in evidence in Naples and its surroundings, the most prominent forms of architecture now visible derive from the Medieval, Renaissance, and Baroque periods.

Naples' historic city centre is the largest in Europe, covering 1,700 hectares, and is listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. Over the course of its long history, Naples has been the capital of duchies, kingdoms, and one Empire, and has consistently been a major cultural center with a global sphere of influence, particularly during the Renaissance and Enlightenment eras. In the immediate vicinity of Naples are numerous sites of great cultural and historical significance, including the Palace of Caserta and the Roman ruins of Pompeii, and Herculaneum.

Between 1282 and 1816, Naples was the capital city of a kingdom that bore its name - the Kingdom of Naples. Then, in union with Sicily, it became the capital of the Two Sicilies until the unification of Italy in 1861. During the Neapolitan War of 1815, Naples strongly promoted Italian unification.

As of 2011, Naples has a population of around 1 million people within its administrative limits. According to different sources, its metropolitan area is either the second most populated metropolitan area in Italy after Milan (with 4,434,136 inhabitants according to Svimez Data or 4,996,084 according to Censis, the Italian census institute) or the third (with 3.1 million inhabitants according to OECD). In addition, Naples is Italy's most densely populated major city, with over 8,000 people per square kilometre.

Naples is the fourth-richest city in Italy, after Milan, Rome and Turin. It is the world's 91st richest city by purchasing power, with a GDP of $43 billion, surpassing the economies of Budapest and Zurich. The port of Naples is one of the most important in Europe, and has the world's second-highest level of passenger flow, after the port of Hong Kong. Although the city has experienced remarkable economic growth in recent decades, and unemployment levels in the city and surrounding Campania have decreased since 1999, Naples is still characterized by political and economic corruption and a thriving black market empire. Numerous major Italian companies, such as MSC Cruises, are headquartered in the city, while the Bagnoli district hosts a major NATO military base. The city also hosts the SRM Institution for Economic Research and the OPE Company and Study Center. Naples is a full member of the Eurocities network of European cities. The city was selected to become the headquarters of the European institution Acp/Ue and as a City of Literature by UNESCO's Creative Cities Network. The Villa Rosebery, one of three official residences of the President of Italy, can be found in the city's Posillipo district.

Naples was the most-bombed Italian city during World War II. Much of the city's 20th-century periphery was constructed under Benito Mussolini's fascist government, and during reconstruction efforts after World War II. In recent decades, Naples has constructed a large business district, the Centro Direzionale, and has developed an advanced infrastructure, including an Alta Velocità high-speed rail link to Rome, and an expanded subway network, which is planned to eventually cover half of the region. The city will host the International Astronautical Congress in 2012 and the Universal Forum of Cultures in 2013.

Culinarily, the city is synonymous with pizza, which originated in the city. Neapolitan music has furthermore been highly influential, credited with the invention of the romantic guitar and the mandolin, as well as notable contributions to opera and folk standards. Popular characters and historical figures who have come to symbolise the city include Januarius, the patron saint of Naples, the comic figure Pulcinella, and the Sirens from the Greek epic poem the ''Odyssey''.

History

Greek birth, Roman acquisition

Founded in the 6th century BC, somewhat late in the scheme of Magna Graecia, Naples is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world. Originally named Παρθενόπη ''Parthenope'' and later Νεάπολις ''Neápolis'' (Greek for "New City"), it was among the foremost cities of ''Magna Graecia'', playing a key role in the transmission of Greek culture to Roman society. Naples eventually became part of the Roman Republic as a major cultural center; the premiere Latin poet, Virgil, received part of his education there and later resided in its environs.

The new city grew thanks to the influence of the powerful Greek city-state of Siracusa and at some point the new and old cities on the Gulf of Naples merged into one. The city became an ally of the Roman Republic against Carthage; the strong walls surrounding Neapolis stopped the invading forces of the Carthaginian general Hannibal from entering. During the Samnite Wars, the city, now a bustling centre of trade, was captured by the Samnites; however, the Romans soon captured the city from them and made it a Roman colony.

The city was greatly respected by the Romans as a paragon of Hellenistic culture: the people maintained their Greek language and customs; elegant villas, aqueducts, public baths, an odeon, a theatre and the Temple of Dioscures were built, and many powerful emperors chose to holiday in the city, including Claudius and Tiberius.

It was during this period that Christianity came to Naples; apostles St. Peter and St. Paul are said to have preached in the city. Also, St. Januarius, who would become Naples' patron saint, was martyred there. The last emperor of the Western Roman Empire, Romulus Augustulus, was exiled to Naples by the Germanic king Odoacer in the 5th century AD.

Duchy of Naples

Following the decline of the Western Roman Empire, Naples was captured by the Ostrogoths, a Germanic people, and incorporated into the Ostrogothic Kingdom. However, Belisarius of the Byzantine Empire recaptured Naples in 536, after entering the city via the aqueduct.

As the Gothic Wars of the mid-6th century wore on, Totila briefly took the city for the Ostrogoths in 543, before, finally, the Battle of Mons Lactarius on the slopes of Vesuvius left the Byzantines in control of the area. Naples was expected to keep in contact with the Exarchate of Ravenna, which was the centre of Byzantine power on the Italian peninsula.

After the exarchate fell, a Duchy of Naples was created. Although Naples' Greco-Roman culture endured, it eventually switched allegiance from Constantinople to Rome under Duke Stephen II, putting it under papal suzerainty by 763.

The years between 818 and 832 were tumultuous in regard to Naples' relations with the Byzantine Emperor, with numerous local pretenders feuding for possession of the ducal throne. Theoctistus was appointed without imperial approval; this was later revoked and Theodore II took his place. However, the disgruntled general populace chased him from the city, and instead elected Stephen III, a man who minted coins with his own initials, rather than those of the Byzantine Emperor. Naples gained complete independence by 840.

The duchy was under the direct control of the Lombards for a brief period, after the capture by Pandulf IV of the Principality of Capua, a long-term rival of Naples; however, this regime lasted only three years before the Greco-Roman-influenced dukes were reinstated. By the 11th century, Naples had begun to hire Norman merecenaries, the Christian descendants of the Vikings, to battle their rivals; Duke Sergius IV hired Rainulf Drengot to wage war on Capua for him.

By 1137, the Normans had attained great influence in Italy, controlling previously independent principalities and duchies such as Capua, Benevento, Salerno, Amalfi, Sorrento and Gaeta; it was in this year that Naples, the last independent duchy in the southern part of the peninsula, came under Norman control. The last ruling duke of the duchy, Sergius VII, was forced to surrender to Roger II, who had proclaimed himself King of Sicily seven years earlier; Naples thus joined the Kingdom of Sicily, where Palermo was the capital.

The Kingdom

Norman to Angevin

After a period of Norman rule, the Kingdom of Sicily went to the Hohenstaufens, a German royal house. The University of Naples Federico II, the oldest state university in the world, was founded by Frederick II, making Naples the intellectual centre of the kingdom. Conflict between the Hohenstaufens and the Papacy led in 1266 to Pope Innocent IV crowning the Angevin duke Charles I King of Sicily: Charles officially moved the capital from Palermo to Naples, where he resided at the Castel Nuovo. During this period, many examples of Gothic architecture sprang up around Naples, including the Naples Cathedral, which remains the city's main church.

In 1282, after the Sicilian Vespers, the Kingdom of Sicily was split in half. The Angevin Kingdom of Naples included the southern part of the Italian peninsula, while the island of Sicily became the Aragonese Kingdom of Sicily. Wars between the competing dynasties continued until the Peace of Caltabellotta in 1302, which saw Frederick III recognized as king of Sicily, while Charles II was recognised as king of Naples by Pope Boniface VIII. Despite the split, Naples grew in importance, attracting Pisan and Genoese merchants, Tuscan bankers, and some of the most prominent Renaissance artists of the time, such as Boccaccio, Petrarch and Giotto. During the 14th century, The Hungarian Angevin king Louis the Great captured the city several times. Alfonso I conquered Naples after his victory against the last Angevin king, René, and Naples was unified with Sicily again for a brief period.

Aragonese to Bourbon

Sicily and Naples were separated in 1458, but remained dependencies of Aragon under Ferrante. The new dynasty enhanced Naples' commercial standing by establishing relations with the Iberian peninsula. Naples also became a centre of the Renaissance, with artists such as Laurana, da Messina, Sannazzaro and Poliziano arriving in the city. In 1501, Naples came under direct rule from France under Louis XII, with the Neapolitan king Frederick being taken as a prisoner to France; however, this state of affairs did not last long, as Spain won Naples from the French at the Battle of Garigliano in 1503.

Following the Spanish victory, Naples became part of the Spanish Empire, and remained so throughout the Spanish Habsburg period. The Spanish sent viceroys to Naples to directly deal with local issues: the most important of these viceroys was Pedro Álvarez de Toledo, who was responsible for considerable social, economic and urban reforms in the city; he also supported the activities of the Inquisition.

During this period, Naples became Europe's second-largest city, second only to Paris. The city was a cultural powerhouse during the Baroque era, being home to artists such as Caravaggio, Salvator Rosa and Bernini, philosophers such as Bernardino Telesio, Giordano Bruno, Tommaso Campanella and Giambattista Vico, and writers such as Giambattista Marino. A revolution led by the local fisherman Masaniello saw the creation of a brief independent Neapolitan Republic, though this lasted only a few months before Spanish rule was reasserted. In 1656, an outbreak of bubonic plague killed about half of Naples' 300,000 inhabitants.

In 1714, Spanish rule over Naples came to an end as a result of the War of the Spanish Succession; the Austrian Charles VI ruled the city from Vienna through viceroys of his own. However, the War of the Polish Succession saw the Spanish regain Sicily and Naples as part of a personal union, with the 1738 Treaty of Vienna recognising the two polities as independent under a cadet branch of the Spanish Bourbons.

During the time of Ferdinand IV, the effects of the French Revolution were felt in Naples: Horatio Nelson, an ally of the Bourbons, even arrived in the city in 1798 to warn against the French republicans. Ferdinand was forced to retreat and fled to Palermo, where he was protected by a British fleet. However, Naples' lower class ''lazzaroni'' were strongly pious and royalist, favouring the Bourbons; in the mêlée that followed, they fought the Neapolitan pro-Republican aristocracy, causing a civil war.

Eventually, the Republicans conquered Castel Sant'Elmo and proclaimed a Parthenopaean Republic, secured by the French Army. A counter-revolutionary religious army of ''lazzaroni'' known as the ''sanfedisti'' under Fabrizio Ruffo was raised; they met with great success, and the French were forced to surrender the Neapolitan castles, with their fleet sailing back to Toulon.

Ferdinand IV was restored as king; however, after only seven years Napoleon conquered the kingdom and installed Bonapartist kings, including his brother Joseph Bonaparte. With the help of the Austrian Empire and its allies, the Bonapartists were defeated in the Neapolitan War, and Ferdinand IV once again regained the throne and the kingdom. The Congress of Vienna in 1815 saw the kingdoms of Naples and Sicily combined to form the Two Sicilies, with Naples as the capital city. In 1839, Naples became the first city on the Italian peninsula to have a railway, with the construction of the Naples–Portici line.

Italian unification and the present day

After the Expedition of the Thousand led by Giuseppe Garibaldi, which culminated in the controversial Siege of Gaeta, Naples became part of the Kingdom of Italy in 1861 as part of the Italian unification, ending the era of Bourbon rule. The kingdom of the Two Sicilies had been wealthy, and 80 million ducats were taken from the old kingdom's banks as a contribution to the new Italian treasury. The economy of the area formerly known as Two Sicilies collapsed, leading to an unprecedented wave of emigration, with an estimated 4 million people emigrating from the Naples area between 1876 and 1913.

In 1884, Naples fell victim to a major cholera epidemic, caused largely by the city's poor sewerage infrastructure. Government measures to improve sanitary conditions in the Neapolitan slums in 1885 proved largely ineffective.

During the early 20th century, efforts to industrialise the city were hampered by corruption and a lack of infrastructure. Facing a slumping economic situation, many poorer Neapolitans emigrated northwards, or headed overseas to the United States and Argentina.

Naples was the most-bombed Italian city of World War II. Though Neapolitans did not rebel under Italian fascism, Naples was the first Italian city to rise up against German military occupation; the city was completely freed by October 1, 1943. The symbol of the rebirth of Naples was the rebuilding of the church of Santa Chiara, which had been destroyed in a United States Army Air Corps bombing raid.

Special funding from the Italian government's Fund for the South from 1950 to 1984 helped the local economy to improve somewhat, with city landmarks such as the Piazza del Plebiscito being renovated. However, high unemployment and waste management problems continue to affect Naples; Italian media have attributed the city's waste disposal issues to the activity of the Camorra organised crime network. In 2007, Silvio Berlusconi's government held senior meetings in Naples to demonstrate their intention to solve these problems.

Architecture

:''See also, Buildings and structures in Naples'' Naples hosts a wealth of historical buildings and monuments spanning its 2,800-year history, including castles, fountains, churches, and classical ruins. The most prominent forms of architecture visible in Naples are the Medieval, Renaissance and Baroque styles. The historic centre of Naples is listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. Naples has a total of 448 historical churches, making it one of the most Catholic cities in the world in terms of the number of places of worship.

Piazzas, palaces and castles

:''See also, List of palaces in Naples'' The main city square or ''piazza'' of the city is the Piazza del Plebiscito. Its construction was begun by the Bonapartist king Joachim Murat and finished by the Bourbon king Ferdinand IV. The piazza bounded on the east by the Royal Palace and on the west by the church of San Francesco di Paola, with the colonnades extending on both sides. Nearby is the Teatro di San Carlo, which is the oldest and largest opera house in Italy. Directly across from San Carlo is Galleria Umberto, a shopping centre and social hub. Naples is well known for its historic castles: the ancient Castel Nuovo, also known as ''Maschio Angioino'', is one of the city's foremost landmarks; it was built during the time of Charles I, the first king of Naples. Castel Nuovo has seen many notable historical events: for example, in 1294, Pope Celestine V resigned as pope in a hall of the castle, and following this Pope Boniface VIII was elected pope by the cardinal collegium, before moving to Rome. The castle which Nuovo replaced in importance was the Norman-founded Castel dell'Ovo (''Egg Castle''), which was built on the tiny islet of Megarides, where the original Cumaean colonists founded the city. The third Neapolitan castle of note is Sant'Elmo, which was completed in 1329 and is built in the shape of a star. During the uprising of Masaniello, the Spanish took refuge in Sant'Elmo to escape the revolutionaries.

Museums

Naples is widely known for its wealth of historical museums. The Naples National Archaeological Museum is one of the city's main museums, with one of the most extensive collections of artifacts of the Roman Empire in the world. It also houses many of the antiques unearthed at Pompeii and Herculaneum, as well as some artifacts from the Greek and Renaissance periods.

Previously a Bourbon palace, now a museum and art gallery, the Museo di Capodimonte is another museum of note. The gallery features paintings from the 13th to the 18th century, including major works by Simone Martini, Raphael, Titian, Caravaggio, El Greco and many others, Neapolitan School painters Jusepe de Ribera and Luca Giordano. The royal apartments are furnished with antique 18th century furniture and a collection of porcelain and majolica from the various royal residences: the famous Capodimonte Porcelain Factory was just adjacent to the palace. In front of Royal Palace of Naples there is the Galleria Umberto I, which contains the Coral Jewellery Museum

Churches and religious structures

:''See also: Churches in Naples and Archdiocese of Naples'' Naples is the seat of the Archdiocese of Naples, and the Catholic faith is highly important to the populace; there are hundreds of churches in the city. The Cathedral of Naples is the city's premier place of worship; each year on September 19, it hosts the ''Miracle of Saint Januarius'', the city's patron saint. During the miracle, which thousands of Neapolitans flock to witness, the dried blood of Januarius is said to turn to liquid when brought close to holy relics said to be of his body: this is one of Naples' most important and longstanding religious traditions. Below is a selective list of some of the best-known churches, chapels, monastery complexes and religious structures in Naples:

Other features

Aside from the main ''piazza'', Naples has two other major public squares: the Piazza Dante and the Piazza dei Martiri. The latter originally had only a memorial to religious martyrs, but in 1866, after the Italian unification, four lions were added, representing the four rebellions against the Bourbons.

The San Gennaro dei Poveri is a Renaissance-era hospital for the poor, erected by the Spanish in 1667. It was the forerunner of a much more ambitious project, the Bourbon Hospice for the Poor started by Charles III. This was for the destitute and ill of the city; it also provided a self-sufficient community where the poor would live and work. Though a notable landmark, it is no longer a functioning hospital.

Beneath Naples

Underneath Naples lies is a series of caves and structures created by centuries of mining, and the city rests atop a major geothermal zone. Subterranean Naples consists of old Greco-Roman reservoirs dug out from the soft tufo stone on which, and from which, the city is built. Approximately one kilometer of the many kilometers of tunnels under the city can be visited from the Napoli Sotteranea, situated in the historic centre of the city in Via dei Tribunali. There are also large catacombs in and around the city, and other landmarks such as the Piscina Mirabilis, the main cistern serving the Bay of Naples during Roman times. This system of tunnels and cisterns covers most of the city and lies approximately thirty meters below ground level. Moisture levels are around 70%. During World War II, these tunnels were used as air-raid shelters, and there are inscriptions in the walls depicting the suffering endured by the refugees of that era.

Parks, gardens and villas

Of the various public parks in Naples, the most prominent is the Villa Comunale, previously known as the Royal Garden, as its creation was ordered by Bourbon king Ferdinand IV in the 1780s. Another important park is Parco Virgiliano, which looks towards the tiny volcanic islet of Nisida; beyond Nisida lie Procida and Ischia. Parco Virgiliano was named after Virgil, the classical Roman poet who is thought to be entombed nearby. Naples is noted for its numerous stately villas, such as the Neoclassical Villa Floridiana, built in 1816.

The wider Naples area

The islands of Procida (which was used as the set for much of the film ''Il Postino''), Capri and Ischia can all be reached from Naples by hydrofoils and ferries. Sorrento and the Amalfi Coast are situated south of the city, while the Roman ruins of Pompeii, Herculaneum and Stabiae, which were destroyed in the 79 AD eruption of Mount Vesuvius, are also nearby. Naples lies near the volcanic area known as the Campi Flegrei and the port towns of Pozzuoli and Baia, which were part of a vast Roman naval facility, Portus Julius.

Geography

Naples lies atop a geologically active region, near to both Mount Vesuvius and the volcanic area known as the Campi Flegrei (en: ''Phlegraean Fields'').

Quarters

Listed below are the thirty quarters (''quartieri'') of Naples: these thirty neighbourhoods are grouped together into ten governmental community boards.

Climate

Naples has a typical Mediterranean climate, with mild, wet winters and warm, dry summers. The mild climate and fertility of the Gulf of Naples made the region famous during Roman times, when emperors such as Claudius and Tiberius holidayed near the city.

Demographics

The population of the centre area (the ''comune di Napoli'') is around one million people. Naples' greater metropolitan area, sometimes known as ''Greater Naples'', has a population of approximately 4.4 million, and includes towns which such as Arzano, Casandrino, Casavatore, Casoria, Cercola, Marano di Napoli, Melito di Napoli, Mugnano di Napoli, Portici, Pozzuoli, Quarto, San Giorgio a Cremano, San Sebastiano al Vesuvio, Volla. The demographic profile for the Neapolitan province in general is quite young: 19% are under the age of 14, while 13% are over 65, compared to the national average of 14% and 19%, respectively. Naples has a higher percentage of females (52.4%) than males (47.6%). Naples currently has a higher birth rate than other parts of Italy, with 10.46 births per 1,000 inhabitants, compared to the Italian average of 9.45 births.

Unlike many northern Italian cities, there are relatively few foreign immigrants in Naples. 98.5% of the people are Italian nationals. In 2006, there were a total of 19,188 foreigners in the city of Naples; the majority of foreigners are Eastern European, hailing mostly from Ukraine, Poland and the Balkans. There are few non-Europeans, although there are small Sri Lankan and East Asian immigrant communities. Statistics show that the vast majority of immigrants in Naples are female; this is because male workers tend to head North.

Education

Naples is noted for its numerous higher education institutes and research centres. Naples hosts what is thought to be the oldest state university in the world, in the form of the University of Naples Federico II, which was founded by Frederick II in 1224.

The university is among the most prominent in Italy, with around 100,000 students and over 3000 professors. It host to the Botanical Garden of Naples, which was opened in 1807 by Giuseppe Bonaparte, using plans drawn up under the Bourbon king Ferdinand IV. The garden's 15 hectares feature around 25,000 samples of vegetation, representing over 10,000 plant species.

Naples is also served by the ''Seconda Università degli Studi di Napoli'', a modern university which opened in 1989, and which, despite its name, has strong links to the nearby province of Caserta. Another notable centre of education is the ''Istituto Universitario Orientale'', which specialises in Eastern culture, and was founded by the Jesuit missionary Matteo Ripa in 1732, after he returned from the court of Kangxi, the Emperor of the Manchu Qing Dynasty of China.

Other prominent universities in Naples include the Parthenope University of Naples, the private Istituto Universitario ''Suor Orsola Benincasa'', and the Jesuit-run Theological Seminary of Southern Italy. The San Pietro a Maiella music conservatory is the city's foremost institution of musical education; the earliest Neapolitan music conservatories were founded in the 16th century under the Spanish. Naples hosts also the oldest marine zoological study station in the world, Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn, created in 1872 by German scientist Anton Dohrn, and the world's oldest permanent volcano observatory, the Vesuvius Observatory, founded in 1841. The Observatory lies on the slopes of Mount Vesuvius, near the city of Ercolano, and is now a permanent specialized institute of the Italian National Institute of Geophysics.

Governance

Politics

Each of the 8,101 ''comune'' in Italy is today represented locally by an elected mayor and a city council, known as a ''sindaco'' and informally called the first citizen. This system, or one very similar to it, has been in place since the invasion of Italy by Napoleonic forces in 1808. When the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies was restored, the system was kept in place with members of the nobility filling mayoral roles. By the end of the 19th century, party politics had begun to emerge; during the fascist era, each commune was represented by a ''podestà''. Since World War II, the political landscape of Naples has been neither strongly right-wing nor left-wing — both Christian democrats and democratic socialists have governed the city at different times, with roughly equal frequency. Currently, the mayor of Naples is Luigi de Magistris of the IDV party; de Magistris has held the position since the 2011 elections, supported only by the Communist Refoundation Party.

Administrative subdivisions

91,536 103,633 96,078 119,978 84,067 91,460 92,616 106,299 101,192

Map		rowspan=11>
	84,067
Second Municipality of Naples	II	|	Alberto Patruno	Montecalvario, San Giuseppe (Naples)>San Giuseppe, Avvocata, Porto (Naples)
[[Third Municipality of Naples	III	|	Alfonso Principe	Stella (Naples)>Stella, San Carlo all'Arena
Fourth Municipality of Naples	IV	|	David Lebro	San Lorenzo (Naples)
[[Fifth Municipality of Naples	V	|	Mario Coppeto	Arenella, Vomero
Sixth Municipality of Naples	VI	|	Anna Cozzino	San Giovanni a Teduccio, Barra (Naples)>Barra, Ponticelli
Seventh Municipality of Naples	VII	|	Giuseppe Esposito	Miano, Secondigliano, San Pietro a Patierno>S.Pietro a Patierno
Eighth Municipality of Naples	VIII	|	Carmine Malinconico	Chiaiano, Piscinola-Marianella, Scampìa
Ninth Municipality of Naples	IX	|	Fabio Tirelli	Pianura, Soccavo
Tenth Municipality of Naples	X	|	Giuseppe Balzamo	Bagnoli, Fuorigrotta

Economy

Naples is Italy's fourth-richest city, after Milan, Rome and Turin. It is the world's 91st richest city by purchasing power, with an annual GDP of $43 billion. Were Naples a country, it would have the world's 68th biggest economy, approaching the size of that of Qatar. Naples is a major cargo terminal, and the port of Naples is one of the Mediterranean's biggest and most important. The city has experienced significant economic growth since World War II, and unemployment in the region has decreased dramatically since 1999. Naples was also formerly an industrial hub, although many of its factories are now defunct. The city is characterized by high levels of political corruption and organized crime.

Naples is a major national and international tourist destination, being one of Italy and Europe's top tourist cities. Tourists began with visiting Naples in the 18th century, during the Grand Tour. In terms of international arrivals, Naples was the 166th-most-visited city in the world in 2008, with 381,000 visitors (a −1.6% decrease from the previous year), coming after Lille, but overtaking York, Stuttgart, Belgrade and Dallas.

In recent times, there has been a move away from a traditional agriculture-based economy in the province of Naples to one based on service industries. In early 2002, there were over 249,590 enterprises operating in the province registered in the Chamber of Commerce Public Register. The service sector employs the majority of Neapolitans, although more than half of these are small enterprises with fewer than 20 workers; 70 companies are said to be medium-sized with more than 200 workers; and 15 have more than 500 workers.

Employment in the province of Naples breaks down as follows:

!	! Public services	! Manufacturing	! Commerce	! Construction	! Transportation	! Financial services	! Agriculture	Hotel>Hotel trade	! Other activities
Percentage	30.7%	18%	14%	9.5%	8.2%	7.4%	5.1%	3.7%	3.4%

Transport

Naples is well-connected to several major motorways (it: ''autostrada''). The Autostrada A1, the longest transalpine motorway in Italy, links Naples to Milan. The A3 runs southwards from Naples to Salerno, where the motorway to Reggio Calabria begins, while the A16 runs east to Canosa. The A16 is nicknamed the ''autostrada dei Due Mari'' ("Motorway of the Two Seas") because it connects the Tyrrhenian Sea to the Adriatic Sea.

Naples has an extensive public transport network, including trams, buses, funiculars and trolleybuses. Three public elevators are active within the bridge of Chiaia, in via Acton and near the Sanità Bridge. The city furthermore operates the Naples Metro, an underground rapid transit railway system which integrates both surface railway lines and the city's metro stations. Suburban rail services are provided by Trenitalia, Circumvesuviana, Ferrovia Cumana and Metronapoli.

The city's main train station is Napoli Centrale, which is located in Piazza Garibaldi; other significant stations include the Napoli Campi Flegri and Napoli Mergellina. Naples' streets are famously narrow (it was the first city in the world to set up a pedestrian one-way street), so the general public commonly use compact hatchback cars and scooters for personal transit.

Since 2007, Naples has been connected to Rome by a high-speed railway run by Treno Alta Velocità, with trains running at almost , reducing the journey time to under an hour.

The port of Naples runs several public ferry, hydrofoil and SWATH catamaran services, linking numerous locations in both the Neapolitan province, including Capri, Ischia and Sorrento, and the Salernitan province, including Salerno, Positano and Amalfi. Services are also available to destinations further afield, such as Sicily, Sardinia, Ponza and the Aeolian Islands.

Within the suburb of San Pietro a Patierno is the Naples International Airport, the largest airport in southern Italy, with around 140 national international flights arriving or departing daily.

Culture

Art

Naples has long been a centre of art and architecture, dotted with Medieval, Baroque and Renaissance-era churches, castles and palaces. In the 18th century, Naples went through a period of neoclassicism, following the discovery of the remarkably intact Roman ruins of Herculaneum and Pompeii.

The Neapolitan Academy of Fine Arts, founded by Charles III of Bourbon in 1752 as the Real Accademia di Disegno (en: ''Royal Academy of Design''), was the centre of the artistic School of Posillipo in the 19th century. Artists such as Domenico Morelli, Giacomo Di Chirico, Francesco Saverio Altamura and Gioacchino Toma worked in Naples during this period, and many of their works are now exhibited in the Academy's art collection. The modern Academy offers courses in painting, decorating, sculpture, design, restoration, and urban planning. Naples is also known for its theatres, which are among the oldest in Europe - the Teatro di San Carlo opera house dates back to the 18th century.

Naples is also the home of the artistic tradition of Capodimonte porcelain. In 1743, Charles of Bourbon founded the Royal Factory of Capodimonte, many of whose artworks are now on display in the Museum of Capodimonte. Several of Naples' mid-19th-century porcelain factories remain active today.

===Cuisine===

Naples is internationally famous for its cuisine and wine; it draws culinary influences from the numerous cultures which have inhabited it over the course of its history, including the Greeks, Spanish and French. Neapolitan cuisine emerged as a distinct form in the 18th century. The ingredients are typically rich in taste, while remaining affordable to the general populace.

Naples is traditionally credited as the home of pizza. This originated as a meal of the poor, but under Ferdinand IV it became popular among the upper classes: famously, the Margherita pizza was named after Queen Margherita after a visit to the city. Cooked traditionally in a wood-burning oven, the ingredients of Neapolitan pizza have been strictly regulated by law since 2004, and must include wheat flour type "00" with the addition of flour type "0" yeast, natural water, peeled tomatoes or fresh cherry tomatoes, marine salt and extra virgin olive oil.

Spaghetti is also associated with the city and is commonly eaten with the sauce ''ragù'': a popular Neapolitan folkloric symbol is the comic figure Pulcinella eating a plate of spaghetti. ''Parmigiana di melanzane'', ''mozzarella'', ''spaghetti alle vongole'' and ''casatiello'' are among the dishes popular in the city.

Naples is well known for its sweet dishes, including colourful gelato, which is similar to ice cream, though more fruit-based. Popular Neapolitan pastry dishes include ''zeppole'', ''babà'', ''sfogliatelle'' and ''pastiera'', the latter of which is prepared specially for Easter celebrations. Another seasonal sweet is ''struffoli'', a sweet-tasting honey dough decorated and eaten around Christmas.

Neapolitan coffee is also widely acclaimed. The traditional Neapolitan flip coffee pot known as the ''cuccuma'' or ''cuccumella'' was the basis for the invention of the espresso machine, and also inspired the Moka pot.

Wineries in the Vesuvius area produce wines such as the ''Lacryma Christi'' ("tear of Christ") and ''Terzigno''. Naples is also the home of ''limoncello'', a popular lemon liqueur.

Naples in film

Naples has been the setting of many works of film. Comedies set in Naples include ''It Started in Naples'', ''L'oro di Napoli'' by Vittorio De Sica and Dino Risi's ''Scent of a Woman.'' The 2008 film ''Gomorrah'', based on the book by Roberto Saviano, explores the dark underbelly of the city of Naples through five intertwining stories about the powerful Neapolitan crime syndicate, the Camorra. In the 1954 ''Tom and Jerry'' cartoon ''Neapolitan Mouse'', Tom and Jerry visit Naples on a cruise.

Language

The Naples dialect, a distinct language which is mainly spoken in the city, is also found in the region of Campania, and has been diffused to other areas of Southern Italy by Neapolitan migrants. On 14 October 2008, a law was passed by the Region of Campania, stating that the Neapolitan language was to be legally protected.

The term "Neapolitan language" is often used to refer to the Italo-Western group of dialects of Southern Italy; for example, Ethnologue groups the various dialects as a single separate Romance language called ''Napoletano-Calabrese''. This linguistic group is spoken throughout most of southern continental Italy, including the Gaeta and Sora districts of southern Lazio, the southern part of Marche and Abruzzo, Molise, Basilicata, northern Calabria, and northern and central Puglia. In 1976, there were theorised to be 7,047,399 native speakers of this group of dialects.

Music

Naples has played an important role in the history of western Western European music. The first music conservatories were established in the city under Spanish rule in the 16th century. The San Pietro a Majella music conservatory, founded in 1826 by Francesco I of Bourbon, continues to operate today as both a prestigious centre of musical education and a musical museum.

During the late Baroque period, Alessandro Scarlatti, the father of Domenico Scarlatti, established the Neapolitan school of opera; this was in the form of ''opera seria'', which was a new development for its time. Another form of opera originating in Naples is ''opera buffa'', a style of comic opera strongly linked to Battista Pergolesi and Piccinni; later contributors to the genre included Rossini and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. The Teatro di San Carlo, built in 1737, is the oldest working theatre in Europe, and remains the operatic centre of Naples.

The earliest six-string guitar was created by a Neapolitan named Gaetano Vinaccia in 1779; the instrument is now referred to as the romantic guitar). The Vinaccia family also developed the mandolin. Influenced by the Spanish, Neapolitans became pioneers of classical guitar music, with Ferdinando Carulli and Mauro Giuliani being prominent exponents. Giuliani, who was actually from Apulia but lived and worked in Naples, is widely considered to be one of the greatest guitar players and composers of the 19th century, along with his Catalan contemporary Fernando Sor. Another Neapolitan musician of note was opera singer Enrico Caruso, one of the most prominent opera tenors of all time: he was considered a man of the people in Naples, hailing from a working class background.

A notable element of popular Neapolitan music is the ''Canzone Napoletana'' style, essentially the traditional music of the city, with a repertoire of hundreds of folk songs, some of which can be traced back to the 13th century. The genre became a formal institution in 1835, after the introduction of the annual Festival of Piedigrotta songwriting competition. Some of the best-known recording artists in this field include Roberto Murolo, Sergio Bruni and Renato Carosone. There are furthermore various forms of music popular in Naples but not well-known outside it, such as ''cantautore'' ("singer-songwriter") and ''sceneggiata'', which has been described as a musical soap opera; the most well-known exponent of this style is Mario Merola.

Sports

Football is by far the most popular sport in Naples. Brought to the city by the English during the early 20th century, the sport is deeply embedded in local culture: it is popular at every level of society, from the ''scugnizzi'' (street children) to wealthy professionals. The city's best known football club is SSC Napoli, which plays its home games at the Stadio San Paolo in Fuorigrotta. The team plays in the Serie A league and has won the ''Scudetto'' twice; it once named Diego Maradona among its players. The team has also won the UEFA Cup.

The city has produced numerous prominent professional players, including Ciro Ferrara and Fabio Cannavaro. Cannavaro was captain of Italy's national team until 2010, and led the team to victory in the 2006 World Cup. He was consequently named World Player of the Year.

Some of the city's smaller clubs include Sporting Neapolis and Internapoli, which play at the Stadio Arturo Collana. The city also has teams in a variety of other sports: Eldo Napoli represents the city in basketball's Serie A and plays in the city of Bagnoli. Partenope Rugby are the city's best-known rugby union side: the team has won the rugby union Serie A twice. Other popular local sports include water polo, horse racing, sailing, fencing, boxing, taekwondo and martial arts. The Accademia Nazionale di Scherma (National Academy and Fencing School of Naples) is the only place in Italy where the titles "Master of Sword" and "Master of Kendo" can be obtained.

Notable people from Naples

Statius (45–96), poet

Pope Boniface V (died 625), pope

Pope Urban VI (1318–1389), pope

Joan I of Naples (1328–1382), queen

Pope Boniface IX (1356–1404), pope

Giovanni Pontano (1426–1503), writer, diplomat, humanist, poet

Alfonso II of Naples (1448–1495), king

Jacopo Sannazaro (1458–1530), poet

Pietro Summonte (1463–1526), poet, writer, humanist

Pirro Ligorio (1510–1583), architect

Laura Terracina (1519-c. 1577), poet

Giambattista Della Porta (1535–1615), alchemist, scientist, philosoper, writer, playwright

Giordano Bruno (1548–1600), philosopher

Luca Valerio (1552–1618), mathematician

Giambattista Marino (1569–1625), poet

Gian Lorenzo Bernini (1598–1680), sculptor, painter, architect

Salvator Rosa (1615–1673), poet, satirist, painter

Francesco Antonio Picchiati (1619–1694), architect

Masaniello (1622–1647), revolutionary

Gennaro Annese (1604–1648), revolutionary

Luca Giordano (1634–1705), painter

Ludovico Sabbatini (1650–1724), religious teacher, priest

Giambattista Vico (1668–1744), philosopher

Ferdinando Sanfelice (1675–1748), painter

Domenico Antonio Vaccaro (1678–1745) architect, painter

Domenico Scarlatti (1685–1757), composer

Nicola Porpora (1686–1768), composer

Alphonsus Liguori, (1696–1787), saint, writer

Bernardo Tanucci (1698–1783), jurist, politician, minister

Luigi Vanvitelli, (1700–1773), architect

Eleonora Fonseca Pimentel (1751–1799), poet, journalist, revolutionary

Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies (1751–1825), king

Gaetano Filangieri (1752–1788), jurist

Raffaele Sacco (1787–1872), poet, inventor, lyricist

Salvadore Cammarano (1801–1852), librettist, poet, playwright

Domenico Morelli (1823–1901), painter

Ruggiero Bonghi (1826–1895), philologist, politician

Lord Acton (1834–1902), historian

Giovanni Bovio (1837–1903, philosopher, politician

Peppino Turco (1846–1907), songwriter, journalist

Lamont Young, (1851–1929), architect

Vincenzo Gemito (1852–1929), sculptor

Matilde Serao (1856–1927), writer, journalist

Ruggero Leoncavallo (1857–1919), composer

Salvatore Di Giacomo (1860–1934), poet

Eduardo di Capua (1865 - 1917), composer

Ferdinando Russo (1866–1927), poet, journalist, writer

Benedetto Croce, (1866–1952), writer, politician, senator, philosoper

Victor Emmanuel III of Italy (1869–1947), king

Enrico Caruso (1873–1921), opera singer

Salvatore Gambardella (1873 – 1913 ), composer

Enrico Cannio (1874 - 1949), composer

Ernesto De Curtis (1875 - 1937), composer

Enrico De Nicola (1877–1959), president, jurist, journalist

Libero Bovio (1883–1942) poet, songwriter

Cesare Andrea Bixio (1896 – 1978), composer

Totò (1898–1967), actor

Eduardo De Filippo (1900–1984), actor, writer

Renato Caccioppoli (1904–1959), mathematician

Luigi Cosenza (1904–1984), architect

Salvatore Mazzocco (1915 – 1976), composer

Renato Carosone (1920–2001), singer-songwriter, musician

Domenico Rea (1921–1994), writer, journalist

Giorgio Napolitano (1925 – ), politician, president

Fausto Sarli (1927–2010), fashion designer

Bud Spencer (1929 - ), swimmer, water polo player, actor

Luciano De Crescenzo (1929 - ), engineer, writer, actor, director, philosoper

Mario Merola (1934–2005), singer

Mariano Rigillo (1939 - ), actor

Mario Trevi (1941 - ), singer

Riccardo Muti (1941 - ), conductor

Edoardo Bennato (1946 - ), architect, singer, songwriter

Tullio De Piscopo (1946 - ), singer, songwriter

Mario Terlizzo (1947 - ), Royal caribbean Director of port operations

Michele Campanella (1947 – ), pianist and conductor

Gianni Nazzaro (1948 - ) singer, actor

Tony Esposito, (1950 - ), musician, songwriter

Gabriele Salvatores, (1950 - ), director, Academy Award winner

Alan Sorrenti (1950 - ), singer, songwriter

Marisa Laurito (1951 - ), actress, singer

Francesco Clemente (1952 - ), artist

Massimo Troisi (1953–1994), actor

Lina Sastri (1955 - ), actress

Pino Daniele (1955 – ), singer-songwriter, musician

Teresa De Sio (1955 - ), musician, singer, songwriter

Nino D'Angelo (1957 - ), singer, actor

Mario Martone (1959 - ), director

Iaia Forte (1962 - ), actress

Gigi D'Alessio (1967 - ), singer

Paolo Sorrentino (1970 - ), screenwriter, director

Fabio Cannavaro (1973 – ), World Cup-winning footballer

Antonio Di Natale (1977 – ), national footballer

Massimiliano Rosolino (1978 – ), swimmer, olympian

Roberto Saviano (1979 – ), journalist, writer

Ambra Vallo, principal dancer

Twin towns and sister cities

Whs	Historic Centre of Naples
State party
Type	Cultural
Criteria	ii, iv
Id	726
Region	Europe
Year	1995
Session	19th
Link	http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/726 }}

Naples is involved in town twinning (known as ''gemellaggio'' in Italian). Below is a list of partner cities listed on the official website of the city of Naples:

Kagoshima, Japan London, United Kingdom Miami, United States Baku, Azerbaijan Athens, Greece Budapest, Hungary Călăraşi, Romania Gafsa, Tunisia Kolkata, India Nablus, Palestinian Authority Nosy Be, Madagascar Palma, Spain Santiago de Cuba, Cuba Tripoli, Lebanon Santiago de Cuba Province, Cuba Valencia, Carabobo, Venezuela İzmir, Turkey Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, since 1964

UNESCO status

In 1995, the historic centre of Naples was listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site, a United Nations programme which aims to catalogue, name, and conserve sites of outstanding cultural or natural importance to the common heritage of mankind. The UNESCO evaluation committee described Naples' centre as being "of exceptional value", and went on to say that Naples' setting on the Bay of Naples "gives it an outstanding universal value which has had a profound influence".

See also

Camorra

Neapolitan language

Neapolitan Mastiff

Diego Armando Maradona

Sirenuse

Corsica

University of Naples Federico II

List of radio stations in Naples

Naples waste management issue

References

Bibliography

Harold Acton, ''The Bourbons of Naples (1734-1825)'', London, Methuen, 1956.

Harold Acton, ''The Last Bourbons of Naples (1825-1861)'', London, Methuen, 1961.

Edward Chaney, 'Inigo Jones in Naples', ''The Evolution of the Grand Tour'', London, Routledge 2000.

Notes

External links

City Council's website

See pictures from the Antonio Mucherino's web site

Category:Populated places established in the 7th century BC Category:Ancient Greek cities Category:Baroque sites of Campania Category:Cumaean colonies Category:World Heritage Sites in Italy Category:Cities and towns in Campania Category:Mediterranean port cities and towns in Italy

af:Napels als:Neapel ar:نابولي an:Nápols ast:Nápoles ay:Napoli az:Neapol bn:নেপলস be:Горад Неапаль be-x-old:Нэапаль bs:Napulj br:Napoli bg:Неапол ca:Nàpols cv:Неаполь ceb:Napoles cs:Neapol cy:Napoli da:Napoli pdc:Napols de:Neapel et:Napoli el:Νάπολη eml:Nâpol es:Nápoles eo:Napolo ext:Nápoli eu:Napoli fa:ناپل fr:Naples fy:Napels (stêd) ga:Napoli gd:Napoli gl:Nápoles - Napoli ko:나폴리 hy:Նեապոլ hi:नापोलि hr:Napulj io:Napoli id:Napoli ia:Napoli os:Неаполь is:Napólí it:Napoli he:נאפולי pam:Naples ka:ნეაპოლი sw:Napoli kv:Неаполь la:Neapolis lv:Neapole lt:Neapolis lij:Nappoli lmo:Napul hu:Nápoly mk:Неапол mr:नापोली ms:Napoli nah:Napoli nl:Napels (stad) new:नेपल्स ja:ナポリ nap:Napule no:Napoli nn:Napoli oc:Nàpols pnb:نیپلز pms:Nàpoli pl:Neapol pt:Nápoles ro:Napoli rm:Napoli qu:Napoli ru:Неаполь sc:Nàpoli sco:Naples sq:Napoli scn:Nàpuli simple:Naples sk:Neapol sl:Neapelj sr:Напуљ sh:Napulj fi:Napoli sv:Neapel tl:Napoli (lungsod) ta:நாபொலி roa-tara:Napule th:เนเปิลส์ tr:Napoli udm:Неаполь uk:Неаполь ug:Naplés vec:Nàpułi vi:Napoli vo:Napoli vls:Noapels war:Napoles yi:נאפאלי yo:Naples zh-yue:拿坡利 bat-smg:Neapuolės zh:那不勒斯

Coordinates	52°05′36″N5°7′10″N
Clubname	Napoli
Fullname	Società Sportiva Calcio Napoli S.p.A.
Nickname	''Partenopei''''Azzurri'' (The Blues)''
Founded	(as ''Associazione Calcio Napoli'')
Ground	Stadio San Paolo,Naples, Italy
Capacity	60,240
Chrtitle	President
Owner	Aurelio De Laurentiis (through Filmauro srl)
Chairman	Aurelio De Laurentiis
Mgrtitle	Head Coach
Manager	Walter Mazzarri
League	Serie A
Season	2010–11
Position	Serie A, 3rd
Website	http://www.sscnapoli.it
Pattern la1	_napoli1112h
Pattern b1	_napoli1112h
Pattern ra1	_napoli1112h
Leftarm1	77BBFF
Body1	77BBFF
Rightarm1	77BBFF
Shorts1	FFFFFFF
Socks1	77BBFF
Pattern la2	_napoli1112t
Pattern b2	_napoli1112t
Pattern ra2	_napoli1112t
Leftarm2	464646
Body2	464646
Rightarm2	464646
Shorts2	464646
Socks2	464646
Pattern la3	_napoli1112a
Pattern b3	_napoli1112a
Pattern ra3	_napoli1112a
Leftarm3	FFFF00
Body3	FFFF00
Rightarm3	FFFF00
Shorts3	77BBFF
Socks3	FFFF00 }}

Società Sportiva Calcio Napoli, commonly referred to as Napoli, is a professional Italian football club based in Naples and founded in 1926. The club has spent most of its history in Serie A, where it currently plays its 2011–12 season. Napoli has won Serie A twice, in 1986–87 and 1989–90. They have also won the Italian Cup three times and the Italian Super Cup, and on the European stage have won the UEFA Cup in 1988–89. Napoli is also the most successful club in Southern Italy and the fourth most supported football club in Italy.

The club has had several name changes since first appearing in 1926; the most important of these was in 1964, when it was changed from ''Associazione Calcio Napoli'' to ''Società Sportiva Calcio Napoli''. The most recent change was in 2004, when the club went bankrupt but was refounded by film producer Aurelio De Laurentiis as ''Napoli Soccer''; he restored the name to ''Società Sportiva Calcio Napoli'' in early 2006.

History

:''For more details on this topic, see History of S.S.C. Napoli'' The first club was founded as Naples Foot-Ball & Cricket Club in 1904 by English sailor William Poths and his associate Hector M. Bayon. Neapolitans such as Conforti, Catterina and Amedeo Salsi were also involved, the latter of which was the club's first president. The original kit of the club was a sky blue and navy blue striped shirt, with black shorts. The name of the club was shortened to Naples Foot-Ball Club in 1906.

Early into its existence, the Italian Football Championship was limited to just Northern clubs, so Southern clubs competed against sailors or in cups such as Thomas Lipton's ''Lipton Challenge Cup''. In the cup competed between Naples and Palermo FBC, Naples won three finals. The foreign contingent at the club broke off in 1912 to form Internazionale Napoli, in time for both club's debut in the Italian Championship of 1912–13. Though the sides had a keen rivalry in the Campania section, they were not as successful outside of it and a few years after World War I, they merged as Foot-Ball Club Internazionale-Naples, also known as FBC Internaples.

Associazione Calcio Napoli

Under the presidency of Giorgio Ascarelli, the club changed its name to Associazione Calcio Napoli on 23 August 1926. After a poor start, with a sole point in an entire championship, Napoli was readmitted to Serie A's forerunner ''National Division'' by the Italian FA, and began to improve thanks in part to Paraguayan-born Attila Sallustro, who was the first fully fledged hero to the fans. He was a capable goal-scorer and eventually set the all-time goal-scoring record for Napoli, which still stands today.

Napoli entered the Serie A-era under the management of William Garbutt. During his six-year stint, the club would be dramatically transformed, frequently finishing in the top half of the table. This included two third-place finishes during the 1932–33 and 1933–34 seasons, with added notables such as Antonio Vojak, Arnaldo Sentimenti and Carlo Buscaglia. For the years leading up to World War II Napoli went into decline, surviving relegation in 1939–40 by goal average.

Napoli lost a closely-contested relegation battle at the end of 1942 and were relegated to Serie B. They moved from ''Stadio Giorgio Ascarelli'' to ''Stadio Arturo Collana'' and stayed in Serie B until after the war. When play continued, Napoli earned the right to compete in Serie A, but were relegated after two seasons for a bribery scandal. The club bounced back to ensure top flight football at the start of the 1950s. Napoli moved to their new home ground Stadio San Paolo in 1959. Despite erratic league form with highs and lows during this period, including a further relegation and promotion, Napoli had some cup success when they beat SPAL to lift the Coppa Italia in 1962, with goals from Gianni Corelli and Pierluigi Ronzon. Their fourth relegation cut celebrations short the following season.

Napoli on the rise: Maradona era

As the club changed their name to Società Sportiva Calcio Napoli on 25 June 1964 they began to rise up again, gaining promotion in 1964–65. Under the management of former player Bruno Pesaola, they won the Coppa delle Alpi and were back amongst the elite in Serie A, with consistent top five finishes. Napoli came very close to winning the league in 1967–68, finishing just behind AC Milan in second place. Some of the most popular players from this period were Dino Zoff, José Altafini, Omar Sívori, and hometown midfielder Antonio Juliano. Juliano would eventually break the appearance records, which still stand today.

The trend of Napoli performing well in the league continued into the 1970s, with third place spots in 1970–71 and 1973–74. Under the coaching of former player Luís Vinício, this gained them entry into the early UEFA Cup competitions; in 1974–75 they reached the third round knocking out Porto 2–0 on the way. During the same season, Napoli finished second in Serie A; just two points behind champions Juventus. Solid performances from locally born players such as Bruscolotti, Juliano and Esposito were relied upon during this period, coupled with goals from Giuseppe Savoldi.

After beating Southampton 4–1 on aggregate to lift the Anglo-Italian League Cup, Napoli were entered into the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup for 1976–77, where they reached the semi-finals, losing 2–1 on aggregate to Anderlecht. The club won their second Coppa Italia trophy in 1975–76, knocking out Milan and Fiorentina ''en route'', before beating rivals Verona 4–0 in the final. In terms of the Italian league, Napoli were still very much a consistent top six side for much of the late 1970s. Even into the earliest two seasons of the 1980s, the club were performing respectably with a third place finish in 1980–81, however by 1983 they had slipped dramatically and were involved in relegation battles. Napoli broke the world transfer record fee, turning to Diego Maradona with a €12 million deal from Barcelona on 30 June 1984. The squad was gradually re-built, with the likes of Ciro Ferrara, Salvatore Bagni, and Fernando De Napoli filling the ranks. The rise up the tables was gradual, by 1985–86, they had a third place finish under their belts, but better was yet to come. The 1986–87 season was the landmark in Napoli's history; they won the double, securing the Serie A title by three points and then beating Atalanta 4–0 to lift the Coppa Italia.

Because a mainland Southern Italian team had never won the league before, this turned Diego Maradona into a cultural, social and borderline religious icon for Neapolitans, which stretched beyond the realms of just football.

The club were unsuccessful in the European Cup in the following season and finished runners-up in Serie A. However, Napoli were entered into the UEFA Cup for 1988–89 and won their first major European title. Juventus, Bayern Munich, and PAOK were defeated on the way to the final, where Napoli beat Stuttgart 5–4 on aggregate, with two goals from Careca and one each from Maradona, Ferrara and Alemão.

Napoli added their second Serie A title in 1989–90, beating Milan by two points in the title race. However, this was surrounded by less auspicious circumstances as Napoli were awarded two points for a game, when in Bergamo, an Atalanta fan threw a ₤100 lira coin at Alemão's head. A controversial set of events set off at the 1990 World Cup, when Maradona made comments pertaining to North-South inequality in the country and the ''risorgimento'', asking Neapolitans to root for Argentina in the semi-finals against Italy in Naples.

Napoli ultras responded by displaying a banner in their ''curva'' that read: "Maradona, Naples loves you, but Italy is our homeland". It was the only stadium during the competition where the Argentine national anthem wasn't jeered, Maradona bowed to the Napoli fans at the end and his country went on to reach the final. However, after the final the Italian Football Federation forced Maradona to take a doping test, which he failed testing positive for cocaine; Napoli and he claimed it was a revenge plot for events at the World Cup. Maradona was banned for 15 months and would never play for the club again. The club still managed to win the Supercoppa Italiana that year, with a record 5–1 victory against Juventus, but it would be their last major trophy. In the European Cup however, they went out in the second round.

Decline and rebirth

Though the club finished fourth during the 1991–92 season, Napoli gradually went into decline after that season, both financially and on the field. Players such as Gianfranco Zola, Daniel Fonseca, Ciro Ferrara and Careca had all departed by 1994. Though Napoli did manage to qualify for the 1994–95 UEFA Cup, reaching the third round and in 1996–97, Napoli appeared at the Coppa Italia final, but lost 3–1 to Vicenza. Napoli's league form had dropped lower, and relegation to Serie B came at the end of 1997–98 when they recorded only two wins all season.

The club returned to Serie A after gaining promotion in the 1999–2000 season, though after a closely contested relegation battle they were relegated back down. They failed to gain promotion following this and slipped further down. By August 2004, Napoli was declared bankrupt with debts estimated up to €70 million. To secure football in the city, film producer Aurelio De Laurentiis refounded the club under the name Napoli Soccer, as they were not allowed to use their old name. FIGC placed Napoli in Serie C1, where they missed out on promotion after losing 2–1 in play-offs to local rivals Avellino.

Despite the fact that Napoli were playing in such a low division, they retained higher average attendances than most of the Serie A clubs, breaking the Serie C attendance record with 51,000 at one game. The following season, they secured promotion to Serie B and De Laurentiis bought back the club's history, restoring its name to Società Sportiva Calcio Napoli in May 2006. After just one season back in Serie B, they were promoted on the final day, along with fellow sleeping giants Genoa. Napoli finished the season placed 8th in the Serie A, enough to secure a place in the Intertoto Cup third round. That same year, Napoli also defeated five major teams, Milan, Internazionale, Juventus, Fiorentina, and Udinese.

The 2008–09 season saw Napoli qualifying to the UEFA Cup via Intertoto Cup. However, the team was eliminated in the first round by Portuguese team Benfica. At the domestic level, Napoli made a very impressive start, proposing as one of the main candidates for a Champions League spot; however, results and performances quickly declined in mid-season, causing Napoli to fall down to 11th place in the league table, and leading to the dismissal of manager Edy Reja in March 2009, with Roberto Donadoni being appointed as his replacement.

Despite reinforcements in the summer transfer window, Napoli began the 2009–10 season began with a number of poor results. After a 2–1 loss to Roma in October 2009, Donadoni was relieved of his duties and replaced by former Sampdoria manager, Walter Mazzarri. Under Mazzarri, Napoli climbed up the table, before finishing in 6th place to qualify for the Europa League. Napoli, under Mazzarri's guide and reinforced by players such as Edinson Cavani, spent most of the 2010–11 season in the first places, finishing third and qualifying directly to the group phase of the 2011–12 UEFA Champions League.

Players

Current squad

Out on loan

Retired numbers

10 – Diego Armando Maradona, Second Striker, 1984–91

Notable players

Presidents

Below is the official presidential history of Napoli, from when Giorgio Ascarelli took over at the club in 1926, until the present day.

Managers

Napoli have had many managers and trainers, some seasons they have had co-managers running the team. Here is a chronological list of them from 1926 onwards:

Statistics and records

Antonio Juliano holds Napoli's official appearance record, having made 502 over the course of 16 years from 1962 until 1978. Juliano also holds the record for league appearances with 394. The all-time leading goalscorer for Napoli is Attila Sallustro, with 118 league goals scored. In Serie A the only Napoli player to finish the season as the league's topscorer, known in Italy as the ''capocannoniere'', is Diego Maradona in the 1987–88 season with 15 goals.

The biggest ever victory recorded by Napoli was 8–1 against Pro Patria, in the 1955–56 season of Serie A. Napoli's heaviest championship defeat came during the 1927–28 season when eventual champions Torino beat them 11–0.

Below are appearance and goalscoring records pertaining to Napoli players in the Italian leagues.

!	!Name	!Nationality	!Appearances
!1			394
!2			387
!3			310
!4			273
!5			273
!6			259
!7			256
!8			247
!9			240
!10			227

!	!Name	!Nationality	!Goals
!1			118
!2			102
!3			81
!4			73
!5			71
!6			69
!7	align="left"		56
!8	align="left"		55
!9	align="left"		52
!10	align="left"		47

Colours, badge and nicknames

As Naples is a coastal city, the colours of the club have always been derived from the blue waters of the Gulf of Naples. Originally while using the name ''Naples FBC'', the colours of the club implemented two shades of blue. Since the 1920s however, a singular blue tone has been used in the form of azure; as thus they share the nickname ''azzurri'' with the Italian national side.

One of the nicknames of Napoli is ''I ciucciarelli'' which means "the little donkeys" in the local dialect, they were given this name after a particularly poor performance during the 1926–27 season. It was originally meant to be derogatory, as the Neapolitan symbol is a rampant black horse, the club however adopted the donkey as a mascot called '''O Ciuccio'', displaying it with pride.

The club badge Napoli are most famous for is a large N placed within a circle. This crest can be traced back to Internazionale Napoli, who used a similar design on their shirts. Since the club officially adopted the N badge as its representative, Napoli have altered it slightly at various times; sometimes it features the club's name around it, sometimes it does not. The main difference between each badge is the shade of blue used. Usually the N is white, although it has occasionally been gold.

''Partenopei'' is a popular nickname for the club and people from the city of Naples in general. It is derived from Greek mythology where the siren ''Parthenópē'' tried to enchant Odysseus from his ship to Capri. In the story Odysseus had his men tie him to the ship's mast so he was able to resist the song of the siren; as a result Parthenope, unable to live with the rejection of her love, drowned herself and her body was washed up upon the shore of Naples.

Sponsors and manufacturers

!Period	!Kit manufacturer	!Shirt sponsor
1978–80	rowspan=2		''None''
1981–82
1981–81
1982–83		Francesco Cirio>Cirio
1983–84		Latte Berna
1984–85		Linea Time		Cirio
	1985–88	rowspan=2	NR		Buitoni
1985–91
	1991–94		Umbro		Voiello
	1994–96	rowspan=2		Record Cucine
	1996–97		Centrale del Latte di Napoli
	1997–99	rowspan=2		Polenghi
	1999–00	rowspan=2
	2000–03		Diadora
	2003–04		Legea		Russo Cicciano
	2004–06	rowspan=2		Manuale d'amore / Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow
	2005–06
	2006–09		[[Diadora
	2009–2011	rowspan=2	Macron
	2011-

Supporters and rivalries

Napoli is the fourth most supported football club in Italy with around 8% of Italian football fans supporting the club. Like other top clubs in the country, Napoli's fanbase goes beyond the Italian border; it has been estimated by the club that there are around 5 to 6 million fans worldwide.

Napoli have several rivalries, the most significant of which is with Roma. In terms of location Napoli and Roma are quite close, together they compete in the'' Derby del Sole'' ("Derby of the Sun"), a rivalry which was at its peak in the 1980s. There are also strong rivalries with Lazio and Hellas Verona, as well as local Campanian ones with Salernitana and Avellino.

Conversely, the fans of Napoli have a long standing friendship with Genoa, Palermo and Catania which goes back to 1982. On the last day of the 2006–07 season, the club drew 0–0 with Genoa ensuring both were promoted back into Serie A; Genoa ultras could be seen holding up banners saying "Benvenuto fratello napoletano", meaning "Welcome, Neapolitan brother".

Honours

National titles

Serie A: 2 :*Champions: 1986–87; 1989–90 Serie B: 1 :*Champions: 1949–50 Serie C1: 1 :*Southern Champions: 2005–06 Coppa Italia: 3 :*Winners: 1961–62; 1975–76; 1986–87 Supercoppa Italiana: 1 :*Winners: 1990–91

European titles

UEFA Cup: 1 :*Winners: 1988–89

Coppa delle Alpi: 1 :*Winners: 1966

Anglo-Italian League Cup: 1 :*Winners: 1976

References

External links

Category:Italian football clubs Category:Football clubs in Campania Category:Association football clubs established in 1926 Category:Sport in Naples Category:Italian football (soccer) First Division clubs Category:Serie A clubs Category:Serie B clubs Category:Lega Pro Prima Divisione clubs Category:Scudetto winners Category:Coppa Italia winners Category:1926 establishments in Italy

af:SSC Napoli ar:نادي نابولي an:SSC Napoli ast:SSC Nápoles az:Napoli (Neapol) be-x-old:Напалі Нэапаль bar:SSC Neapel bs:Società Sportiva Calcio Napoli bg:ССК Наполи ca:Società Sportiva Calcio Napoli cs:SSC Napoli cy:S.S.C. Napoli da:S.S.C. Napoli de:SSC Neapel et:SSC Napoli el:Σ.Σ.Κ. Νάπολι es:SSC Napoli eo:SSC Napoli ext:SSC Napoli fa:باشگاه فوتبال ناپولی fr:SSC Naples fur:Società Sportiva Calcio Napoli ga:Società Sportiva Calcio Napoli gl:SSC Napoli ko:SSC 나폴리 hy:Նապոլի ՖԱ hr:S.S.C. Napoli id:S.S.C. Napoli ia:SSC Napoli is:SSC Napoli it:Società Sportiva Calcio Napoli he:נאפולי (כדורגל) ka:ნაპოლი (საფეხბურთო კლუბი) ku:SSC Napoli la:SSC Napoli lv:SSC Napoli lt:SSC Napoli hu:SSC Napoli mr:एस.एस.सी. नेपोली nl:SSC Napoli ja:SSCナポリ nap:Società Sportiva Calcio Napoli no:SSC Napoli oc:Società Sportiva Calcio Napoli pl:SSC Napoli pt:Società Sportiva Calcio Napoli ro:SSC Napoli ru:Наполи sc:S.S.C. Napoli sq:S.S.C. Napoli scn:Società Sportiva Calcio Napoli simple:S.S.C. Napoli sk:SSC Neapol sl:S.S.C. Napoli sr:ФК Наполи fi:SSC Napoli sv:SSC Napoli tet:SSC Napoli tr:SSC Napoli uk:Наполі vi:S.S.C. Napoli zh:那不勒斯足球俱乐部

Coordinates	52°05′36″N5°7′10″N
name	Eduardo Vargas
fullname	Eduardo Jesús Vargas Rojas
birth date	November 20, 1989
birth place	Santiago, Chile
height
currentclub	Universidad de Chile
clubnumber	17
position	Forward
youthclubs1	Cobreloa
years1	2006–2009
years2	2010–
clubs1	Cobreloa
clubs2	Universidad de Chile
caps1	53
caps2	41
goals1	10
goals2	12
nationalyears1	2009
nationalyears2	2009–
nationalteam1	Chile U-20
nationalteam2	Chile
nationalcaps1	?
nationalcaps2	3
nationalgoals1	?
nationalgoals2	0
ntupdate	14 August 2011 }}

Eduardo Jesús Vargas Rojas (born November 20, 1989 in Santiago, Chile) is a footballer. He currently plays for Universidad de Chile as forward.

Biography

Career

Vargas started playing in amateurs teams in Renca, but he didn't participated in other youth team, because he lived very far of any club in the zone, he continued playing in the pre-selectión of third Division Players in Puerto Montt. He was the top scorer of his team.

Osvaldo Hurtado contacted about Vargas with Jorge Aravena (In this moment coach of Cobreloa), and he was submitted in various evaluations in Cobreloa. Finally he was incorporated to Cobreloa squad in 2006.

He participated in Cobreloa B, third Division team, scoring with the team, against Universidad Arturo Prat on August 7 of 2006, after he scored another goal against San Marcos de Arica on August 28, 2006.

On 8 January 2010, Universidad de Chile signed the winger from Cobreloa for around $700.000.

International career

In 2008, Vargas participated in the Toulon Tournament, Milk Cup, where he was chosen as the tournament's best winger. He also took part in the Kupa Talents Cup, where he was awarded as the best player of the tournament.

Vargas was a regular in the U-20 National Team during the squad's friendly games prior to the 2009 South American Youth Championship. However, he did not make it to the tournament due to an injury.

External links

BDFA profile

Category:1989 births Category:Chilean footballers Category:Living people Category:Cobreloa footballers Category:Universidad de Chile players

es:Eduardo Vargas sv:Eduardo Vargas

Coordinates	52°05′36″N5°7′10″N
name	Marek Hamšík
birth date	July 27, 1987
birth place	Banská Bystrica, Czechoslovakia
height
position	Attacking Midfielder
currentclub	Napoli
clubnumber	17
youthyears1	2001 | youthclubs1 Jupie Podlavice
youthyears2	2002–2004 | youthclubs2 Slovan Bratislava
years1	2004 | clubs1 Slovan Bratislava | caps1 6 | goals1 1
years2	2004–2007 | clubs2 Brescia | caps2 65 | goals2 10
years3	2007– | clubs3 Napoli | caps3 140 | goals3 42
nationalyears1	| nationalteam1 Slovakia U-17 | nationalcaps1 6 | nationalgoals1 3
nationalyears2	2005–2006 | nationalteam2 Slovakia U-19 | nationalcaps2 6 | nationalgoals2 1
nationalyears3	2006–2007 | nationalteam3 Slovakia U-21 | nationalcaps3 2 | nationalgoals3 0
nationalyears4	2007– | nationalteam4 Slovakia | nationalcaps4 47 | nationalgoals4 8
club-update	10 April 2011
nationalteam-update	11 August 2011 }}

Marek Hamšík (born 27 July 1987) is a Slovak football midfielder who currently plays for Serie A club S.S.C. Napoli and captains the Slovakia national team.

Club career

Early career

Despite the fact that Hamšík grew up in Banská Bystrica, he has never played for major local team Dukla Banská Bystrica. Instead he began playing for a small youth team Jupie Podlavice. In 2002 he signed with a major Slovak team Slovan Bratislava. He played once for the Slovan A-team and scored a goal.

He moved from Slovan to Brescia in 2004 as a 17 year old young talent at a transfer fee of €500,000. His first match in Serie A with Brescia was against Chievo Verona on 20 March 2005 when he was 17 years and 237 days old. Later in that season, Brescia finished 19th in the Serie A league and were relegated to the Serie B. In 2005–06, he played 24 league matches for Brescia in Serie B, with Brescia finishing 10th. He had an impressive 2006–07 season, scoring 10 goals in 40 matches.

Napoli

On 28 June 2007 newly-promoted Serie A club Napoli announced that Hamšík had signed a five-year contract with them. The transfer cost Napoli €5.5 million. The president of the club De Laurentiis described him as a player who should be closely watched in the future.

He played his first major match with Napoli against Cesena in the first round of the Italian Cup. Napoli won 4–0, Hamšík made the opening goal and scored the second himself. He scored his first goal in the Serie A on 16 September 2007 in the match against Sampdoria.

His football icon is Czech midfielder Pavel Nedvěd. In 2007 he was voted the second best Slovak footballer of the year (after Martin Škrtel) and also he was voted the best young Slovak footballer (''The Peter Dubovský Trophy''). Hamšík ended his first season with Napoli as the club's top scorer, with 9 goals from 37 games. At the start of the 2008/09 season, Hamšík scored in both of Napoli's first two games and went on to score a further 9 goals in his second season with the club, finishing as Napoli's top scorer for the second year running. In 2009 he was again runner-up as best Slovak footballer of the year and repeated his success as the best young Slovak footballer.

International career

Hamšík represented Slovakia at junior level, playing in the UEFA Under-17 European Championships qualifiers and the UEFA Under-19 European Championships. He played also for the Slovak U-21 national team.

He is a regular member of the Slovak national team. He made his debut on 7 February 2007 in the friendly match against Poland which ended 2–2. He played his second match against Germany in the Euro 2008 qualification, which Slovakia lost 2–1. He has become the key member of the attack in the national team, usually playing as a left or central attacking midfielder. Hamsik captained his country in their first World Cup experience in South Africa 2010, where Slovakia was beaten by later finalist Netherlands in the first knockout stage match.

International goals

Štadión Zimný, Dubnica, Slovakia 21 November 2007 6 September 2008 19 November 2008 19 November 2008 10 February 2009 5 September 2009 14 November 2009

# !! Date !! Venue !! Opponent !! Score !! Result !! Competition
1.	13 October 2007	|		1 – 0	7–0	UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying Group D>UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying
2.	| Stadio Olimpico, Serravalle, San Marino ||		3 – 0	5–0	UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying Group D>UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying
3.	|	Tehelné pole, Bratislava, Slovakia		2 – 0	2–1	2010 FIFA World Cup qualification - UEFA Group 3>2010 FIFA World Cup qualification
4.	|	Stadium Pod Dubňom, Žilina, Slovakia		1 – 0	4–0	Exhibition game>Friendly match
5.	|	Stadium Pod Dubňom, Žilina, Slovakia		2 – 0	4–0	Exhibition game>Friendly match
6.	|	Tsirion Stadium, Limassol, Cyprus		2 – 0	2–3	Exhibition game>Friendly match
7.	|	Tehelné pole, Bratislava, Slovakia		2 – 1	2–2	2010 FIFA World Cup qualification - UEFA Group 3>2010 FIFA World Cup qualification
8.	|	Tehelné pole, Bratislava, Slovakia		1 – 0	1–0	Exhibition game>Friendly match

Club statistics

1 0 0 0 1 10 1 9 1 9 12 0 11

Club	Season	League	Cup	!colspan="2"	Total
!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals
rowspan="2" valign="center"	Slovan Bratislava		6
!Total	!6!!1!!-!!-!!-!!-!!6!!1
rowspan="4" valign="center"	Brescia		1	|	0
serie B 2005-06	2005–06	24	|	4
Serie B 2006-07	2006–07	40	|	5
!Total	!65!!10!!9!!2!!-!!-!!74!!12
rowspan="5" align=center valign=center	Napoli	!colspan="2"	37	|	3
!colspan="2"	2008–09	32	|	2	1	6	2	40	12
!colspan="2"	2009–10	37	|	2
!colspan="2"	2010–11	37	|	2	0	10	2	49	13
Total	!143!!41!!9!!2!!16!!4!!168!!47
Career total	!214!!52!!18!!4!!16!!4!!248!!60

References

;Notes

External links

Player profile on Napoli's official website

Category:1987 births Category:Living people Category:People from Banská Bystrica Category:ŠK Slovan Bratislava players Category:Brescia Calcio players Category:S.S.C. Napoli players Category:Serie A footballers Category:Serie B footballers Category:Expatriate footballers in Italy Category:Association football midfielders Category:Slovak expatriate footballers Category:Slovak footballers Category:Slovakia international footballers Category:2010 FIFA World Cup players

ar:ماريك هامشيك bg:Марек Хамшик ca:Marek Hamšík da:Marek Hamšík de:Marek Hamšík es:Marek Hamšík fr:Marek Hamšík ko:마레크 함시크 hy:Մարեկ Համշիկ hr:Marek Hamšík it:Marek Hamšík he:מארק האמשיק la:Marcus Hamšík hu:Marek Hamšík mr:मेरेक हम्शिक mn:Марек Хамшик nl:Marek Hamšík ja:マレク・ハムシーク nap:Marek Hamšík no:Marek Hamšík nn:Marek Hamšík pl:Marek Hamšík pt:Marek Hamšík ro:Marek Hamšík ru:Гамшик, Марек sk:Marek Hamšík fi:Marek Hamšík sv:Marek Hamšík th:มาเรก ฮัมชีก tr:Marek Hamšík uk:Марек Гамшик zh:馬歷·咸錫

Coordinates	52°05′36″N5°7′10″N
playername	Ezequiel Lavezzi
height
dateofbirth	May 03, 1985
cityofbirth	Villa Gobernador Gálvez
countryofbirth	Argentina
currentclub	Napoli
clubnumber	10
position	Forward
youthyears1	1995–2003 | youthclubs1 Boca Juniors
years1	2003–2004 | clubs1 Estudiantes-BA | caps1 39 | goals1 17
years2	2004–2005 | clubs2 Genoa | caps2 0 | goals2 0
years3	2004–2005 | clubs3 → San Lorenzo (loan) | caps3 29 | goals3 8
years4	2005–2007 | clubs4 San Lorenzo | caps4 55 | goals4 16
years5	2007– | clubs5 Napoli | caps5 126 | goals5 27 | nationalyears1 2007–2008 | nationalteam1 Argentina U20 | nationalcaps1 7 | nationalgoals1 1
nationalyears2	2008 | nationalteam2 Argentina U23 | nationalcaps2 10 | nationalgoals2 6
nationalyears3	2007– | nationalteam3 Argentina | nationalcaps3 15 | nationalgoals3 1
medaltemplates	}}

| club-update = 9 May 2010 | nationalteam-update = 12 July 2011 }}

Ezequiel Iván Lavezzi (born 3 May 1985), nicknamed ''"El Pocho"'', is an Argentine football striker who currently plays for Italian Serie A club Napoli and the Argentine national team.

Club career

Early career

The media, as they tend to do to many promising young Argentine players who appear in Italy, have been quick to dub Lavezzi the "New Maradona". Lavezzi himself, however, plays this down, instead comparing himself to another young Argentine player, Carlos Tévez.

As a youngster, Lavezzi had a very keen interest in football and supported his local side Rosario Central; he would later get their badge tattooed on his back.

From a very young age, the footballing talent of Lavezzi was recognised, as he played in the youth squads of Rosario Central. After being rejected in Boca Juniors. Lavezzi moved to the youth side of Estudiantes de Buenos Aires in 2003, where over one season, he played 39 games and scored 17 goals.

Genoa

Known as ''el Pocho'' or ''the Chubby One'', he was bought by Italian side Genoa in 2004 for €1 million, but was loaned out straight-away to Argentina side San Lorenzo. Here at the age of 19, he competed in the Apertura 2004 tournament scoring six goals in total over the course of the season; which saw him finish as 4th top scorer.

Lavezzi's most notable contributions included a spectacular effort against River Plate at the El Monumental. He scored in the 69th minute to give San Lorenzo a famous victory and seriously damage River's title challenge. This gained him the nickname ''la Bestia'' ("the Beast") from the Argentine media.

Although it was planned for Lavezzi to return back to Genoa after a season on loan, there were problems: while Lavezzi was playing in Argentina, Genoa were involved in an alleged match-fixing scandal which saw them relegated down to Serie C1, the third level of Italian football. Due to financial constraints, the promising forward was sold to San Lorenzo for €1.2 million.

San Lorenzo

On his return to San Lorenzo for the Apertura 2005 season, he managed to help the club up into the top half of the table, and with eight goals, he finished as the overall fourth top scorer. His last act as a San Lorenzo player was to help them to the Clausura 2007 title, beating out Boca Juniors by six points.

Napoli

Napoli had recently achieved promotion back to Serie A, after finishing as runners-up the previous season in Serie B. Looking to strengthen their squad for a return to the top level, Napoli signed Lavezzi on a five-year contract on 5 July 2007. The transfer deal was worth around €6 million and he was presented before the fans and given the #7 shirt for his first season.

Lavezzi soon made an impact for the club by scoring a hat-trick in a 3–1 victory over Pisa in the Coppa Italia at the Stadio San Paolo; this was the first hat-trick by a Napoli player in 14 years. The first league goal Lavezzi scored for Napoli came during a 5–0 victory against Udinese on 2 September 2007. After the match, he was described in reports as "inspirational," with the media proclaiming, "Napoli's star is born." The Neapolitan club hadn't won a league match by such a large margin since 1988, when Diego Maradona was at the club.

He completed the 2007–08 season with eight goals in 35 games. He quickly became a focal point of the fans' affection with his quick feet and sharpness around the box. In the 2008–09 season, he scored seven goals in 30 games. In the season 2009/2010 he scored 8 goals in 30 games but he had not played around 10 games because of injuries. Lavezzi stayed at Napoli for the 2010-11 season but was handed the number 22 jersey after he gifted his number seven to recently signed Edison Cavani as a welcome gesture. In the same season he scored two goals in the Europa League, against IF Elfsborg and Liverpool respectively, scored six and assisted a further 12 in the Serie A (the best of which was a great scoop over Christian Abbiati in the home game against AC Milan) and also scored a goal in the Coppa Italia against Bologna.

International career

Lavezzi made his international debut for the Argentine national team team against Chile on 18 April 2007.

In 2008 Lavezzi was selected to the Argentina Olympic football team which represented Argentina at the 2008 Olympics, during the Olympic games he scored two goals, one against Australia on 10 August 2008, and a penalty against Serbia on 13 August 2008. Lavezzi also appeared in the final minutes of extra time against Nigeria, in a game Argentina won 1–0.

Lavezzi's club form was not enough to see him included in Diego Maradona's 2010 FIFA World Cup squad. On the 17th of November 2010, Argentina faced Brazil in a friendly match in Qatar, in which Argentina won by a goal from Lionel Messi in the injury time after a superb one-two play with Lavezzi. He has become a regular member under Sergio Batista. He scored the goal in the friendly match against Albania played on 21st June 2011. The match ended 4-0 in favor of Argentina. Lavezzi was replaced by Sergio Agüero in the 65th minute of the match. He was named in Argentina's Copa America Squad by Sergio Batista .

Infamous pundit and ex Arsenal legend Charlie George has said that he believes Lavezzi has the potential to be one of the best strikers in the world if given the opportunity at a "big" team.

Club statistics

39 8 9 7 8 3 7 30 1 6

Club	Season	League	Cup	Continental	Total
!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals
rowspan="2" valign="center"	Estudiantes (BA)	2003–04		|17|
!Total	!39!!17!!-!!-!!-!!-!!39!!17
rowspan="4" valign="center"	San Lorenzo		29
Primera División Argentina 2005-06	2005–06	22
Primera División Argentina 2006-07	2006–07	33
!Total	!84!!24!!-!!-!!13!!1!!97!!25
rowspan="5" align=center valign=center	Napoli	!colspan="2"	35	|	5
!colspan="2"	2008–09	30	|	1	0	3	1	34	8
!colspan="2"	2009–10		|	8	1
!colspan="2"	2010–11	31	|	1	1	9	2	42	9
Total	!126!!29!!8!!5!!12!!3!!146!!37
Career total	!249!!70!!8!!5!!25!!4!!282!!79

Honours

Club

San Lorenzo

Argentine Primera División (1): 2007 Clausura

S.S.C. Napoli

UEFA Intertoto Cup (1): 2008

International

; Argentina

Summer Olympic Games (1): 2008

References

External links

Player profile on Napoli's official website

Profile at FutbolPunto with maps and graphs

Futbol360 profile

Category:1985 births Category:Living people Category:Argentine footballers Category:Argentine expatriate sportspeople in Italy Category:Association football forwards Category:Estudiantes de Buenos Aires footballers Category:San Lorenzo footballers Category:S.S.C. Napoli players Category:People from Santa Fe Province Category:Argentina international footballers Category:Serie A footballers Category:Expatriate footballers in Italy Category:2011 Copa América players Category:Footballers at the 2008 Summer Olympics Category:Olympic footballers of Argentina Category:Olympic gold medalists for Argentina Category:Primera División Argentina players Category:Argentine expatriate footballers Category:Olympic medalists in football

ar:إزكويل لافيزي ca:Ezequiel Iván Lavezzi da:Ezequiel Lavezzi de:Ezequiel Lavezzi es:Ezequiel Lavezzi fr:Ezequiel Lavezzi ko:에세키엘 라베시 hr:Ezequiel Lavezzi it:Ezequiel Lavezzi he:אסקיאל לאבצי nl:Ezequiel Lavezzi ja:エセキエル・ラベッシ nap:Ezequiel Lavezzi no:Ezequiel Lavezzi pl:Ezequiel Lavezzi pt:Ezequiel Lavezzi ru:Лавесси, Эсекьель sq:Ezequiel Lavezzi fi:Ezequiel Lavezzi sv:Ezequiel Lavezzi tr:Ezequiel Lavezzi vi:Ezequiel Lavezzi zh:埃兹奎尔·拉维齐