Roma was born on 7 June 1927, when three clubs from the Italian capital agreed to become one. On 7 June 2027 the Giallorossi turn 100. A whole century of wolves, yellow, red and the eternal captain, Francesco Totti.

Three clubs, one Roma

The driving force was Italo Foschi, president of Fortitudo-Pro Roma and an official of the then Fascist party in Rome. He wanted a team that could take on the powerful northern clubs, and together with Ulisse Igliori of Alba-Audace and Vittorio Scialoja of Roman he agreed the merger at his home on via Forlì.

Lazio had also discussed joining, but in the end refused. So Rome was left with two big clubs, which to this day share the city and the Olimpico.

There is also a second date. On 22 July 1927 the first official assembly was held to assign the club's posts, and this is the day the current owners have chosen for the big annual celebration, while the club recognises 7 June as the day of the agreement.

The colours of the Capitol

Yellow and red were not chosen by chance. They are the colours of the banner of the Campidoglio, the city of Rome, and they gave the team its nickname, "Giallorossi".

Red almost always dominates the shirt, though its shade has changed many times. In 1978-79, for a while, it looked almost orange, while in the late 1960s and early 1970s the white shirt was worn as the first-choice kit.

There is also a rare exception: on 1 March 1931, against Triestina, Roma played in a green shirt.

The she-wolf and the "lupetto"

The first crest was a triangular shield: at the top, on a yellow background, the Capitoline she-wolf suckling Romulus and Remus, and below, on red, the initials ASR. This also gave rise to the nickname "the Wolves".

The city, however, did not allow the she-wolf to be registered as a trademark. So in 1978 designer Piero Gratton created the "lupetto", a stylised wolf's head with red eyes.

The she-wolf returned to the shirt after an agreement with the city in 1997. But the lupetto stayed in the fans' hearts and reappeared on away shirts after 2010.

From Testaccio to the Scudetti

From 1929 to 1940 Roma played at the legendary Campo Testaccio, where fans also gathered on the Monte dei Cocci hill. There, in 1931, they beat Juventus 5-0, a match that even inspired a film.

The first Scudetto came in 1942, the first title for a club from central or southern Italy. The second came in 1983 with Nils Liedholm and the Brazilian Falcão, and the third in 2001 with Fabio Capello.

Totti and the legends

The most bitter night was 30 May 1984, in the European Cup final at their own Olimpico, where they lost to Liverpool on penalties. The great European joy came in 2022, with the first Conference League and José Mourinho on the bench.

History in the shirt was written by Fulvio Bernardini, Amedeo Amadei, Bruno Conti and Daniele De Rossi. Above them all, though, stands Francesco Totti, with 786 appearances and 307 goals from 1993 to 2017.

Since he retired, the number 10 has not been given to anyone.

Celebrate with us

From the agreement on via Forlì to Gratton's lupetto and Totti's goals, Roma completes a full century. Tanti auguri and happy 100th birthday to the Giallorossi!

See our AS Roma jerseys at sportarena.gr.

Photo: Stadio Olimpico during Roma v Juventus in 2014 – romazone, Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY 2.0.