
Soccer-Scugnizzo Cup sparks football passion in Naples prison walls
Fuelled by Napoli winning the Italian Serie A title in two of the last three seasons, a passion for soccer is taking root across the city.
More than 30 years had passed since the club's first two Scudetto crowns inspired by Argentina World Cup winner and Napoli icon Diego Maradona.
The long-awaited success has reignited a deep passion for the sport and the fierce devotion Neapolitans are renowned for.
Nowhere is this clearer than in the games in the former prison courtyard, abandoned for over two decades, which are drawing growing crowds and sponsorship.
The Scugnizzo Cup, a grassroots tournament in its sixth year, is becoming one of the city's most popular sporting events.
"It's a game this city loves deeply, almost viscerally, but one that is often tied solely to the passion for the city's professional club," volunteer Sergio Sciambra said.
"At the same time Naples lacks sports facilities and parks, and it has become nearly impossible to play football in public squares taken over by cafes and tourism,"
The prison, known as Scugnizzo Liberato, which translates to liberated street boy in the Neapolitan dialect, has been transformed into a vibrant community space.
"It's a tournament created for the people of the neighbourhoods, to build atmosphere and friendship," said organiser Giuseppe Pipino.
"Naples is sometimes criticised for not being a good example, but the Scugnizzo Cup is for those kids who face more difficulties."
The tournament brings neighbourhood and migrant teams together to play matches in a tight concrete courtyard.
"The Scugnizzo Cup is the testament to a need felt by the city, to reclaim a sport that can no longer be just watched from the stands," volunteer Julian Foster said.
"It shows us that you can still have fun without massive stadiums and football superstar, that there are other ways of being together, ways that have slowly been taken away or forgotten."
During this year's final, the prison courtyard was up by with flares as Manchester City Napoli, named in playful tribute to their Premier League counterparts, crushed Inter Miami Quartieri Uniti 4-0 on Friday.
(Writing by Tommy Lund in Gdansk, additional reporting by Antonio Denti, editing by Ed Osmond)
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


The Star
44 minutes ago
- The Star
Rugby-All-conquering England women embracing their 'aura'
Rugby Union - 2025 Women's Rugby World Cup - England Squad Announcement - Allianz Stadium, Twickenham, London, Britain - July 24, 2025 The newly announced England players pose for a team group photo Action Images via Reuters/Andrew Boyers LONDON (Reuters) -England women's coach John Mitchell says his team will be driven by their own, internal standards rather than outside expectations as they enter their home Rugby World Cup on a remarkable run of form that has made them odds-on favourites. Since 2019 England have won an incredible 55 of their 56 games, but the one defeat still burns as it came in the last World Cup in 2022 when New Zealand snatched a late lineout, and with it victory, on home soil. Since then the Red Roses have had several wins over the Black Ferns, as well as routinely brushing aside all-comers in Europe, but anything but victory in the September 27 final at Twickenham will render their latest 25-game winning streak another footnote of frustration. Mitchell, the vastly-experienced New Zealander who took over in 2023, insists, however, that "external noise" will have no impact on the squad he named on Thursday. "In my time with the Red Roses we have set a standard and it's a standard they look to remain consistent with, something that they're attracted to," he told reporters at Twickenham. "We are looking at the ability to be successful with opportunity and stay away from the risk of failure and talking about those sorts of things. We're a different team from 2022 and now we've got an opportunity to earn the right and finish something that we started." Mitchell said the experience and positional cover in the squad is deeper than ever before, which is likely to be vital with the usual collection of injuries, concussions and suspensions a modern World Cup tends to throw up. "I think that depth is going to allow us to deal with the challenges but I think the stuff that drives us the most is our competition within," he said. "Some people tend to frame "pressure" as a negative word whereas I see this as an opportunity to be successful. "Some of the wins we've had in this cycle have been really tough as well, so there's enough belief and there's been enough feedback of where our game needs to improve. "Our focus is only on our first match against the U.S. and the girls are living those values. There's a nice look in their eyes at the moment as well." Zoe Aldcroft, appointed as captain this year, is desperate to put the ghosts of 2022 behind her having gone off injured 27 minutes into the final and has also embraced England's dominant position in the sport. "We have built this expectation around us and I think that's a massive privilege that we've worked hard to hold that aura around us," she said. "As we go into the tournament, we've got such a strong bubble that we kind of want to keep it in with us. "We know in our circle that we're doing our absolute best to try to push and as long as we've got each other's backs in that circle, I think that's going to be the most important thing." Another player ready to unleash herself in the tournament is back rower Abi Burton, a double Olympian in Sevens but whose career appeared over when she spent more than 10 weeks in hospital with an auto-immune disease in 2022, including 28 days in a coma, having initially been sectioned after being wrongly diagnosed as psychotic. "I knew in my heart that I would get here at some point, though I didn't know how long it would take me to be able to break in, especially after my illness," said Burton, who made her England XVs debut in this year's Six Nations and goes into the World Cup with two caps to her name. "Mum and dad are super proud but they don't base their pride on how I do at rugby. They're more proud that I finished university after my illness. They're just happy that I'm alive and I'm functioning well and I can live on my own." (Reporting by Mitch Phillips, editing by Pritha Sarkar)


The Star
44 minutes ago
- The Star
Soccer-Colombia eye upset against giants Brazil in Copa America group finale rematch
FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football - Women's Champions League - Quarter Final - First Leg - Real Madrid v Arsenal - Estadio Alfredo Di Stefano, Madrid, Spain - March 18, 2025 Real Madrid's Linda Caicedo celebrates scoring their first goal REUTERS/Susana Vera/File Photo (Reuters) -The stage is set for South American fireworks as defending champions Brazil face a determined Colombia side in Friday's Group B finale at the Women's Copa America in Quito — a enthralling rematch of the tournament's previous final. While Brazil have already secured a semi-final berth with a perfect three wins from three, Colombia sit second with seven points and know that even a draw or a narrow defeat could be enough to join them in the next round. But 'Las Cafeteras' have even bigger ambitions, as upsetting the reigning champions would propel them past Brazil to the top of the group. "It will be a very mental, very physical game, but we are motivated, Colombia and Real Madrid forward Linda Caicedo told reporters. "We know who Brazil are, but we're growing and hungry to win." Colombia arrive in confident mood after thrashing Bolivia 8-0 in their last outing, building momentum following a goalless draw with Venezuela and a 4-1 win over Paraguay. Coach Angelo Marsiglia's side will lean heavily on the attacking threat of Caicedo and Chelsea striker Mayra Ramirez, who labelled the encounter "a final." "Against Brazil it's always a 'Clasico' or another final," Ramirez said. "We have to treat it like a final and hope it goes our way. "We are psychologically prepared to face Brazil. We came here to compete in all six games and we have to get the three points tomorrow for our team." Meanwhile, Brazil's Duda Sampaio insisted their approach remains unchanged despite having already secured qualification. "That's our identity. We press until the last minute no matter the score or the opponent," she said after Tuesday's 4-1 win over Paraguay. "Colombia are a great team and will really test us." The eight-time winners have been inspired by captain Marta, who came out of international retirement to support a younger generation. Like Colombia, they have conceded just one goal so far while rotating their squad through dominant performances. "Colombia are always a tough opponent. This is a 'Clasico'," said Yasmim, who scored two free-kick goals against Paraguay, echoing the sense of rivalry that promises to make Friday's showdown unmissable. (Reporting by Janina Nuno Rios in Mexico City, ediitng by Pritha Sarkar)


The Star
2 hours ago
- The Star
Judge finds five former players not guilty of sexual assault in Hockey Canada trial
Dillon Dube arrives at court as a judge prepares to announce the verdict in the trial against five teammates from Canada's 2018 gold medal–winning world junior hockey team, charged with sexually assaulting a woman in a hotel room, at the Superior Court of Justice in London, Ontario, Canada, July 24, 2025. REUTERS/Carlos Osorio (Reuters) -Five former members of Canada's 2018 world junior ice hockey team were found not guilty of sexually assaulting a woman in a hotel room that year, a judge declared on Thursday, according to CBC News. The charges against Michael McLeod, Alex Formenton, Dillon Dube, Carter Hart and Cal Foote stemmed from an encounter in a hotel room in the Canadian city of London after a Hockey Canada gala to celebrate their world junior championship victory. All five former National Hockey League players faced one count of sexual assault while McLeod faced an additional count of being a party to an offence. They all pleaded not guilty. McLeod was also found not guilty of the additional charge. When the charges were announced in January 2024, McLeod and Foote were with the New Jersey Devils, Dube was with the Calgary Flames, Hart was with the Philadelphia Flyers while Formenton was playing in Switzerland. The trial, which began in April, has faced many disruptions including a mistrial and two dismissed juries before a decision to proceed to a judge-alone trial. A police investigation into the alleged incident was closed without charges in February 2019, but investigators reopened it in July 2022 in response to public outrage over reports that Hockey Canada used players' registration fees to pay an undisclosed settlement to the woman who made the accusations. The scandal prompted the Canadian federal government to freeze Hockey Canada's funding for 10 months while a number of major companies either paused or canceled their sponsorships with the national governing body. Amid the scandal, Hockey Canada said it would no longer use the fund financed by player registration fees to settle sexual assault claims, and the organization's CEO and board of directors stepped down. (Reporting by Frank Pingue in Toronto; Editing by Nia Williams and Caroline Stauffer)