Palazzo Vecchio exhibition marks Fiorentina’s centenary

A century of Fiorentina will be told through the people who followed the club rather than the players who took to the pitch in a new photographic exhibition opening at Palazzo Vecchio in Florence on Sunday, 23 August.

Cent’anni di Fiorentini. Dentro e fuori lo stadio — One Hundred Years of Florentines: Inside and Outside the Stadium — brings together 13 photographs from the historic Foto Locchi Archive. The exhibition will run until 13 September in the Michelozzo Courtyard of Palazzo Vecchio, Florence’s city hall.

Organised by ACF Fiorentina in collaboration with the Foto Locchi Archive and with the patronage of the City of Florence, the exhibition is part of events marking the football club’s centenary. Fiorentina was founded in August 1926 following the merger of two Florentine sporting organisations, Club Sportivo Firenze and Palestra Ginnastica Fiorentina Libertas.

Supporters rather than trophies

Instead of concentrating on famous players, victories and trophies, the exhibition looks at how supporting Fiorentina became part of everyday life in Florence.

The photographs span the period from the 1930s to the mid-1990s and show men, women, children and families before, during and after matches. Streets, trams, neighbourhoods and the Campo di Marte area around the stadium become part of the story alongside the stands themselves.

Some images document the journey to the stadium and the crowds gathering before kick-off, while others show supporters following matches away from the ground, including groups gathered around television sets.

The photographs also provide a record of how Florence changed during the 20th century. Clothing, behaviour and the use of public spaces evolve from the 1930s through the post-war years and the economic boom to the final decades of the century.

Florence Mayor Sara Funaro said the exhibition reflects the way the history of Fiorentina has become intertwined with that of the city. She said the photographs preserve memories of supporters, families, match days and Florence’s streets, showing a city that has changed while maintaining a strong connection with the club.

Fiorentina president Giuseppe B. Commisso said the decision to focus on supporters was intended to recognise the generations of Florentines who helped shape the club’s identity.

A photographic record of Florence

The images come from the Foto Locchi Archive, whose collection is protected by Italy’s Ministry of Culture. It contains more than five million photographs documenting around a century of life in Florence, with approximately 300,000 images digitised.

Its holdings cover subjects ranging from everyday life and sport to fashion, entertainment, culture and major historical events.

The exhibition also records the changing architecture and social role of Fiorentina’s stadium. Opened in 1931 and now known as the Artemio Franchi Stadium, it became both the club’s home and one of the landmarks of 20th-century Florence.

The centenary itself falls in late August. Historical sources generally date the foundation of the club to 29 August 1926.

Practical information

Exhibition: Cent’anni di Fiorentini. Dentro e fuori lo stadio
Dates: 23 August–13 September 2026
Venue: Michelozzo Courtyard, Palazzo Vecchio, Piazza della Signoria, Florence
Photographs: 13 works from the Foto Locchi Archive
Organisers: ACF Fiorentina and Foto Locchi Archive, with the patronage of the City of Florence

The City of Florence announced the exhibition on 17 August as part of the programme surrounding Fiorentina’s 100th anniversary.

(Cover photo: Courtyard of the Palazzo Vecchio, Florence by Jo Jan via Wikipedia)

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