Gemellaggio: 10 unbelievable stories of friendship in Italian football

#4 Fiorentina and Hellas Verona

La Viola flags in the Veronian Curva Sud

Another club with whom Sampdoria shares a close bond, Hellas Verona has a set of Ultras steeped in the culture of not just the team, but also the ancient city of Verona. The Brigate Gialloblu Ultras of Verona are immensely proud of their coat of arms, and proudly proclaim “against hypocrisy and compromise – we hate everybody”.

Fiorentina is an exception though. The fiercely anti-Juventus and anti-Bologna inhabitants of Stadio Artemio Franchi give no quarters and take no nonsense – Mohammed Salah looks set to be the latest victim of their furious anger. The Ultras Viola, who are the Florentian guardians of “Campanilisimo” or patriotism, are however on amicable terms with their equally volatile counterparts from Verona.

A strongly apolitical outfit, Fiorentina’s relationship with the predominantly fascist Hellas fans, has been a long standing one. With a mass exodus of players from the violet jerseys to the yellow ones in the early to mid 1980s, Hellas Verona won their first and only Scudetto, with a team consisting of a number of former Viola men, including their star man, Antonio Di Gennaro.