Carlo Petrini (footballer)
Encyclopedia
Carlo Petrini is a retired Italian
professional football player and coach.
for A.C. Milan
, Torino F.C.
, A.S. Varese 1910
, Ternana Calcio
, A.S. Roma
, Hellas Verona F.C.
and Bologna F.C. 1909
.
His career almost ended after he received a 3 years and 6 month ban from football in the Totonero 1980
match-fixing scandal. After the 1982 amnesty he played for a few more seasons.
Petrini's name came back to the headlines in 1995. His 19-year-old son, Diego, was dying from a brain tumor in the Galliera hospital in Genoa, and he launched an appeal through the media, asking to see his father, which he had not heard from for the past six years. Diego, a promising footballer, died without seeing Petrini, who had decided not to return to Italy. Petrini later wrote a touching book of poetry inspired by this sad story after his final return to Italy in 1998.
Carlo Petrini, who now resides in his native Monticiano
, has been affected for some time from a severe form of glaucoma
, which has caused almost complete blindness in his left eye and serious impairment of the right. According to the doctors who have cared for him over the years, and put him through five surgeries, the disease could be related to the usage of many performance-enhancing drugs
during his career.
Petrini subsequently published another book entitled 'Il calciatore suicidato' (The Footballer Killed Himself), where he personally investigated the mysterious death of Donato Bergamini, a player for Cosenza, who was found dead in 1989 on Route 106 near Roseto Capo Spulico. Despite the courts ruling the death a suicide, Petrini argued that the death of the footballer had occurred at the hands of local criminals. Subsequently he published five books, the last of which is titled 'Calcio nei coglioni', released in October 2007.
In 2006, along with other former players, Petrini joined the Association of Victims of Doping (Associazione Vittime del Doping) founded by Claudia Beatrice, daughter of Bruno Beatrice, a former Fiorentina
midfielder who died of leukemia in 1987 at just 39 years.
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
professional football player and coach.
Playing career
He played for 8 seasons (112 games, 19 goals) in the Serie ASerie A
Serie A , now called Serie A TIM due to sponsorship by Telecom Italia, is a professional league competition for football clubs located at the top of the Italian football league system and has been operating for over eighty years since 1929. It had been organized by Lega Calcio until 2010, but a new...
for A.C. Milan
A.C. Milan
Associazione Calcio Milan, commonly referred to as A.C. Milan or simply Milan , is a professional Italian football club based in Milan, Lombardy, that plays in the Serie A. Milan was founded in 1899 by English lace-maker Herbert Kilpin and businessman Alfred Edwards among others...
, Torino F.C.
Torino F.C.
Torino Football Club, commonly referred to as simply Torino, is a professional Italian football club based in Turin, Piedmont, that was founded in 1906. The club has spent most of its history in the top tier in Italian football....
, A.S. Varese 1910
A.S. Varese 1910
A.S. Varese 1910 is an Italian football club from Varese, founded 22 March 1910. It currently plays in Serie B, ranked one division below Serie A in the Italian football league.-History:...
, Ternana Calcio
Ternana Calcio
Ternana Calcio is an Italian football club based in the city of Terni, Umbria.The team's colours are red and green.The club was founded in 1925 and refounded in 1993. In its history, Ternana have twice played in Serie A...
, A.S. Roma
A.S. Roma
Associazione Sportiva Roma, commonly referred to as simply Roma, is a professional Italian football club based in Rome. Founded by a merger in 1927, Roma have participated in the top-tier of Italian football for all of their existence but one season in the early 50s...
, Hellas Verona F.C.
Hellas Verona F.C.
Hellas Verona Football Club is a professional Italian association football team, based in Verona, Veneto. The team's colours are yellow and blue and gialloblu is the team's most widely used nickname...
and Bologna F.C. 1909
Bologna F.C. 1909
Bologna Football Club 1909, known simply as Bologna, is an Italian Football League club based in Bologna, Emilia-Romagna, formed in 1993. The club are nicknamed the rossoblù because of the red and blue striped shirts they wear. Red and Blue are the official colours of the town.During its history...
.
His career almost ended after he received a 3 years and 6 month ban from football in the Totonero 1980
Totonero 1980
Totonero 1980 or Totonero was a scandal of match fixing in Italy in 1980 in Italian Serie A and Serie B. It was uncovered on 23 March 1980 by the Guardia di Finanza, after the spalling of two Roman shopkeepers, Alvaro Trinca and Massimo Cruciani, who declared that some Italian football players sold...
match-fixing scandal. After the 1982 amnesty he played for a few more seasons.
After retirement
After ending his career in football in the mid-eighties, Petrini devoted himself to business, for a time managing his own finance company. After initial success, the business was affected by the accumulation of debts to moneylenders. To escape his creditors, Petrini left Italy and took refuge in France, where he lived for several years in complete anonymity.Petrini's name came back to the headlines in 1995. His 19-year-old son, Diego, was dying from a brain tumor in the Galliera hospital in Genoa, and he launched an appeal through the media, asking to see his father, which he had not heard from for the past six years. Diego, a promising footballer, died without seeing Petrini, who had decided not to return to Italy. Petrini later wrote a touching book of poetry inspired by this sad story after his final return to Italy in 1998.
Carlo Petrini, who now resides in his native Monticiano
Monticiano
Monticiano is a town and comune on the right bank of the Val di Merse, Tuscany, Italy, administratively part of the Province of Siena. It has 1,412 inhabitants as of December 31, 2004...
, has been affected for some time from a severe form of glaucoma
Glaucoma
Glaucoma is an eye disorder in which the optic nerve suffers damage, permanently damaging vision in the affected eye and progressing to complete blindness if untreated. It is often, but not always, associated with increased pressure of the fluid in the eye...
, which has caused almost complete blindness in his left eye and serious impairment of the right. According to the doctors who have cared for him over the years, and put him through five surgeries, the disease could be related to the usage of many performance-enhancing drugs
Performance-enhancing drugs
Performance-enhancing drugs are substances used by athletes to improve their performances in the sports in which they engage.- Types of performance-enhancing drugs :...
during his career.
The books
In 2000 Petrini published his autobiography, entitled 'Nel fango del dio pallone', in which he narrated in first person past events in the world of football. In particular, the book claimed that the practice of doping in the sixties and seventies was rampant: he claimed he used drugs multiple times with the complicity of sports doctors. He also made claims of match-fixing in his book.Petrini subsequently published another book entitled 'Il calciatore suicidato' (The Footballer Killed Himself), where he personally investigated the mysterious death of Donato Bergamini, a player for Cosenza, who was found dead in 1989 on Route 106 near Roseto Capo Spulico. Despite the courts ruling the death a suicide, Petrini argued that the death of the footballer had occurred at the hands of local criminals. Subsequently he published five books, the last of which is titled 'Calcio nei coglioni', released in October 2007.
Involvement in civil society
Petrini continues to rally against the usage of performance-enhancing drugs, showing concern especially for the spread of doping practices among the young. He said: "A recent survey has shown that one teenager in three is willing to make use of illegal drugs while achieving success in the world of football. What is even more disturbing is that 10% of them declare themselves 'ready to die for use of doping', just to look like their sports idol."In 2006, along with other former players, Petrini joined the Association of Victims of Doping (Associazione Vittime del Doping) founded by Claudia Beatrice, daughter of Bruno Beatrice, a former Fiorentina
ACF Fiorentina
ACF Fiorentina, commonly referred to as simply Fiorentina, is a professional Italian football club from Florence, Tuscany. Founded by a merger in 1926, Fiorentina have played at the top level of Italian football for the majority of their existence; only four clubs have played in more Serie A...
midfielder who died of leukemia in 1987 at just 39 years.