Giampiero Boniperti

Template:Short description Template:Use dmy dates Template:Infobox person Giampiero Boniperti (Template:IPA; 4 July 1928 – 17 June 2021) was an Italian footballer who played his entire 15-season career at Juventus between 1946 and 1961,<ref name=":0">Template:Cite news</ref> winning five Serie A titles and two Coppa Italia titles. He also played for the Italy national team at international level and took part in the 1950 and 1954 FIFA World Cup finals, as well as the 1952 Summer Olympics with Italy. After retirement from professional football, Boniperti was the CEO and chairman of Juventus and, later, a deputy to the European Parliament.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

A forward, Boniperti is regarded by several pundits, including Mario Sconcerti, as one of Italy's and Juventus's greatest ever players, and is considered by some in the sport, such as Bruno Nicolè, to be Italy's greatest player of all time;<ref name=treccani1>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="Gli eroi in bianconero: Giampiero BONIPERTI">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="Riva il migliore">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="il bel centrattacco">Template:Cite web</ref> with 182 goals in all competitions, Boniperti was the highest goalscorer in Juventus history for more than 40 years, until his record was bested by Alessandro Del Piero on 10 January 2006.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Del Piero also broke his club record of 443 Serie A appearances on 14 February 2010, when he played his 444th Serie A game in a 3–2 win against Genoa;<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> with 443 Serie A appearances for Juventus, Boniperti is currently third in the club's rankings, behind only Del Piero and Gianluigi Buffon.<ref name="Presenze Giocatori Campionato Serie A">Template:Cite web</ref> Boniperti also held the record for most minutes played in Serie A by a Juventus player (39,680), until his record was surpassed by Buffon on 19 March 2017, in the 66th minute of a 1–0 away win over Sampdoria.<ref name="39,681 Serie A minutes">Template:Cite web</ref> Boniperti is the eleventh-highest goalscorer of all-time in Serie A. In March 2004, he was named by Pelé as one of the world's top 125 greatest living footballers.

Club career

Born in Barengo, Piedmont, Boniperti signed for Juventus at age 16; he had already built himself a reputation prior to this at youth level, as he scored 11 goals in one match.<ref name="Gli eroi in bianconero: Giampiero BONIPERTI"/><ref name="storiedicalcio">Template:Cite web</ref> He could score successfully with both feet and was known for his power and tactical awareness.<ref name=":0" /> He played his first match for the Old Lady in Serie A on 2 March 1947 against A.C. Milan, which ended in a 2–1 defeat.<ref name="70 years"/> His first goal for them in the league was three months later, against Sampdoria. Juventus ended the 1946–47 Serie A season as runners-up to local rivals Torino. Giampiero ended the season with five goals in six games to his name.<ref name=treccani1/><ref name="Gli eroi in bianconero: Giampiero BONIPERTI"/><ref name="storiedicalcio"/>

Although he began as a centre forward, he could also play as an inside forward or on the right wing. In his second season with Juventus, he was 20 years old and scored 27 goals during that season, finishing above Valentino Mazzola as the league's top scorer.<ref name="Gli eroi in bianconero: Giampiero BONIPERTI"/><ref name="storiedicalcio"/> Boniperti's first league championship with Juventus was during the 1949–50 season. By his 24th birthday, he had scored 100 goals for the club, adding a second scudetto title to his name in 1951–52. Although he was named the club's captain in 1954, for much of the 1950s, Juve and Boniperti struggled to put the club back to the top of the Italian championship.<ref name="Gli eroi in bianconero: Giampiero BONIPERTI"/><ref name="storiedicalcio"/>

From left to right: Omar Sívori, John Charles and Boniperti, the attacking Magical Trio of Juventus at the turn of the 1950s and 1960s.

In 1957, Juventus signed two forwards: John Charles and Omar Sívori. With them, Boniperti would be a part of what was referred to as the Magical Trio. During Boniperti's last four seasons at the club before his retirement, Juventus was successful in the Italian league, winning the Serie A three times (1957–58, 1959–60 and 1960–61), and the Coppa Italia twice (1958–59 and 1959–60).<ref name="Gli eroi in bianconero: Giampiero BONIPERTI"/><ref name="storiedicalcio"/> At the time of his retirement, Boniperti was Juventus' all-time top goalscorer with 182 in all competitions. This record stood for over 40 years before Alessandro Del Piero beat it on 10 January 2006.<ref name="Gli eroi in bianconero: Giampiero BONIPERTI"/> As of 2010, Boniperti was the second top goalscorer of all-time at Juventus and was seventh on the list of all-time top appearances for the club. With 443 appearances in Serie A for Juventus, he held the club record for most appearances in the competition until long-serving player and former Juventus captain Alessandro Del Piero beat it on 14 February 2010.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

International career

Boniperti (left) as Italy captain, in private with the Azzurri coach Lajos Czeizler in 1954.

After playing 14 games in the Serie A league, Boniperti was called up to play for the Italy national football team, making his international debut on 9 November 1947, in a game against Austria; the match ended in a 5–1 loss to the Austrian side.<ref name="figc.it">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="treccani2">Template:Cite web</ref> He got even with Austria a couple of years later, when in May 1949 he scored his first international goal for Italy, with a 3–1 victory. Boniperti managed to achieve 38 caps (24 of which he played as captain) and scored 8 goals for Italy. Boniperti played for Italy in the 1950 and 1954 FIFA World Cup finals (captaining the team in the latter edition of the tournament), as well as in the 1952 Summer Olympics.<ref name="figc.it"/><ref>Template:FIFA player</ref>

Style of play

Boniperti (right) in training with Bianconeri in the 1951–52 season

A talented, creative, and prolific forward, with good technique, Boniperti is regarded by several pundits as one of the greatest and most successful Italian players of all time and is considered by some in the sport, including Alessandro Del Piero, as one of Juventus's greatest players ever. A forward, he began his career as a striker, making a name for himself due to his eye for goal, and later emerging to prominence as a goalscorer for much of his career; in this role, he was usually supported by teammates such as John and Karl Aage Hansen, and Karl Aage Præst. As a centre-forward, he was known for his ability in the air and for having the capacity to score with both feet, as well as his head. A team player, in the later part of his career, he moved into a deeper position, functioning as a second striker or inside forward, as an attacking midfielder, as a winger, or even as a central midfielder, as a defensive midfielder, or as a midfield playmaker. Due to his ball control, technical ability, vision, tactical intelligence, and passing range, he excelled as an assist provider during the final few years of his career, creatively supporting his more offensive teammates John Charles and Omar Sívori. In addition to his footballing ability, he was also known for his leadership.<ref name=treccani1/><ref name="Gli eroi in bianconero: Giampiero BONIPERTI"/><ref name="Riva il migliore"/><ref name="il bel centrattacco"/><ref name="storiedicalcio"/><ref name="70 years"/><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

After retirement

Juventus executive

A short while after his retirement, the Agnelli family offered Boniperti an executive position as a director in the club's management team; in 1971, he was appointed the chairman of the board of directors (Template:Langx), a position he held for many years, and still had a role at the club as one of the honorary chairmen (Template:Langx, served along with Franzo Grande Stevens).<ref name="70 years">Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="Boniperti turns 86">Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="Boniperti turns 88">Template:Cite web</ref>

He often found the pressure of watching rather than playing quite unbearable, and was known to drive around Turin at halftime and just listen to the match on the radio. When players asked for pay rises, Boniperti would point to photographs of recent defeats on the wall and turn them away in shame. The pressure of remaining Italy's top team was intense for him, even behind the scenes.<ref name=":0" />

Politics

From 1994 until 1999, Boniperti was elected as a deputy in the European Parliament with the centre-right wing party Forza Italia.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Personal life

Boniperti's grandson Filippo has followed in his grandfather's footsteps in pursuing a career in football and played for Juventus and the Italy U19 team as a midfielder.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> He is currently a free agent.

Boniperti died in Turin on 17 June 2021 due to heart failure, aged 92.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The Italy national team wore black armbands in tribute to him in their match on 20 June against Wales in the UEFA Euro 2020.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

Career statistics

Club

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition<ref name="enciclopediadelcalcio">Template:Cite web</ref>

Club	Season	League			National Cup		Continental		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Juventus	1946–47	Serie A	6	5	—		—		6	5
	1947–48		40	27	—		—		41	28
	1948–49		32	15	—		—		34	15
	1949–50		35	21	—		—		35	21
	1950–51		37	22	—		—		40	23
	1951–52		33	19	—		—		35	22
	1952–53		29	7	—		—		31	7
	1953–54		30	14	—		—		30	14
	1954–55		27	9	—		—		28	9
	1955–56		31	6	—		—		31	6
	1956–57		24	4	—		—		26	5
	1957–58		34	8	6	1	—		34	8
	1958–59		26	8	3	0	2	0	33	8
	1959–60		31	7	3	0	—		36	7
	1960–61		28	6	1	0	1	0	30	6
Career total			443	178	13	1	3<ref name="designatedcaptain" group="nb">Boniperti also played in the Latin Cup and the Coppa dell'Amicizia unofficially.</ref>	0	459	179

International

Appearances and goals by national team and year<ref name="RSSSF">Template:Cite web</ref>

National team	Year	Apps	Goals
Italy	1947	1	0
	1948	0	0
	1949	3	1
	1950	3	0
	1951	5	1
	1952	4	0
	1953	4	0
	1954	4	3
	1955	3	2
	1956	3	0
	1957	2	0
	1958	3	0
	1959	1	0
	1960	2	1
Total		38	8

Scores and results list Italy's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Boniperti goal.<ref name="RSSSF"/><ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

List of international goals scored by Giampiero Boniperti

No.	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1	22 May 1949	Stadio Comunale, Florence, Italy	Template:Fb	3–0	3–1	1948–53 Central European International Cup
2	25 November 1951	Cornaredo Stadium, Lugano, Switzerland	Template:Fb	1–1	1–1
3	24 January 1954	San Siro, Milan, Italy	Template:Fb	3–1	5–1	1954 FIFA World Cup qualification
4				5–1
5	17 June 1954	Stade Olympique, Lausanne, Switzerland	Template:Fb	1–1	1–2	1954 FIFA World Cup
6	16 January 1955	Stadio della Vittoria, Bari, Italy	Template:Fb	1–0	1–0	Friendly
7	18 December 1955	Stadio Olimpico, Rome, Italy	Template:Fb	2–1	2–1	Friendly
8	10 December 1960	Stadio San Paolo, Naples, Italy	Template:Fb	1–1	1–2	Friendly

Honours

Juventus<ref name="Gli eroi in bianconero: Giampiero BONIPERTI"/>

• Serie A: 1949–50, 1951–52, 1957–58, 1959–60, 1960–61
• Coppa Italia: 1958–59, 1959–60

Individual

• Serie A top scorer: 1947–48 (27 goals)<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
• Serie A Team of The Year: 1958,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> 1960<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
• FIFA 100: 2004<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
• Italian Football Hall of Fame: 2012<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
• CONI Award for Outstanding Sporting Career: 2013<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
• Juventus FC Hall of Fame: 2025<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>

See also

• List of one-club men in association football

External links

• Template:NFT player