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New York Times

One New York pizzeria offers a slice of home for Napoli's Serie A title celebration

As Napoli sealed a second Serie A title in three seasons in nail-biting fashion last week, roughly 4,400 miles to the west, one of the loudest celebrations came from an unexpected spot: outside a bustling restaurant in the heart of New York City, where the Partenopei's triumph was toasted as if the scudetto had been won in Times Square. Advertisement And at the center of that celebration, orchestrating the chaos with the passion of a true Neapolitan, was one man: Rosario Procino. 'In Italy, Neapolitans are always seen as the ones born to suffer. It feels like everything, politics, history, economy, is stacked against Napoli,' Procino, owner of the restaurant Ribalta, told The Athletic. 'We suffer so much that when we finally achieve something, the joy is explosive, more intense than anyone else could imagine. This scudetto was the most Neapolitan scudetto ever, because it was a very suffered scudetto.' On the pitch, Napoli was suffering through the championship point by point with Inter. Procino and his partner were also suffering, as they were forced to close Ribalta a week before the finale due to a chimney fire. The forced shutdown was a heavy blow—not just for the staff and loyal patrons who rely on it, but for the broader soccer-loving community. Long hailed as the best Neapolitan pizza spot in the city (a view this writer wholeheartedly shares) and the undisputed home of Italian soccer in New York, Ribalta, for the first time in 12 years, couldn't play host for the biggest game of the season. But Procino, an unofficial ambassador of Italian soccer in the U.S., wasn't about to let down his friends or the thousands of Napoli fans traveling from across the country to be part of something special. 'They were coming here because they couldn't be in Naples,' he said. 'This is the closest thing they have to home.' While working tirelessly to reopen his restaurant, Procino found a nearby bar that could accommodate around 200 fans for the match. He also set up a TV outside Ribalta so others could watch from the street. When the final whistle blew, the two groups merged, joining hundreds more who had gathered at Ribalta, to march together to Washington Square Park cheering loudly for Napoli. Back in Naples, Procino's fan group has earned the nickname Curva C — a nod to Napoli's two ultra factions, Curva A and Curva B, famously occupying stands inside Diego Armando Maradona Stadium. Now, thanks to Procino, New York has its own passionate sect. This wasn't the first time Procino has created an unforgettable atmosphere for Italian soccer's biggest moments. Advertisement Before Ribalta opened in 2013, there wasn't a true home for Italian soccer fans in New York. Most ended up watching games in British or Irish pubs, surrounded by scattered screens and no real sense of belonging. When Procino and his partner, Pasquale – both Napoli natives and lifelong fans – took over Ribalta, they saw an opportunity. A large blank wall that once played black-and-white films became the centerpiece for their vision: a dedicated space to broadcast Italian soccer. They installed a projector, and Procino reached out to every Italian fan club in the city, inviting them to make Ribalta their home. The timing of Serie A matches, mostly at noon or 2:45 p.m. on a Sunday, meant there was no overlap, allowing each club its moment. Napoli fans, Roma supporters, followers of Inter Milan, AC Milan, Fiorentina and Bologna—they all found a place at Ribalta, turning it into a true gathering ground for Italian football culture in New York. 'For that first year, it was incredible! Everyone came out,' Procino recalled. 'I remember one Napoli vs. Roma match in particular: 200 Napoli fans, 200 Roma fans packed the restaurant's 3,000-square-foot dining area. 'The atmosphere was absolutely wild. But of course, as they say in America, 'Monkey see, monkey do.' Soon enough, other Italian restaurants started copying the idea.' While fans of other clubs began searching for Italian restaurants they could claim as their own home turf, Ribalta became the house of Napoli and also the Italian national team. 'When Italy plays, all the Italians come to us, because nobody has the big screen, nobody has the vibe that we recreated over and over again,' Procino said. One of the defining moments for Ribalta came during the Euro 2021 final, when Italy lifted the trophy. Procino secured a permit to close off 13th street between Broadway and 5th Avenue. The game kicked off at 3 p.m., but by 10:30 a.m., an estimated 4,000-5,000 fans flooded the block in a sea of blue flags and torches, dressed in Napoli's blue kit. Since then, every two years, Ribalta has transformed into the epicenter of Italian and Neapolitan football fandom. Advertisement 'It's probably for the best that these big victories only happen every two years,' Procino said with a grin. 'After all, this is still a restaurant, we can't just focus on soccer all the time.' But it is all about soccer for Serie A. With nine teams owned by Americans, the league is searching for ways to grow its audience in the U.S. to catch up to their English and Spanish frenemies. To expand its presence and develop new business opportunities, the league opened an office in the city in 2022 with a banger inaugural event at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. All the Serie A clubs were there, as well as Italian soccer legends and Serie A ambassadors Alessandro del Piero, Andrea Pirlo and Christian Vieri. 'It's a project that started more than two years ago: we strongly believe in it and it's finally happening, 20 years later than it should have,' Serie A CEO Luigi De Siervo told reporters. Since then the league's office has organized many events and watch parties to promote the league and strengthen relationships. Procino and his pizzas were a fixture in each event. 'We have a very tight relationship with Serie A. We became their shadow Serie A office in a way,' he said. Shadow or not, Procino wears his pride on his sleeve. He is proud of his team, his culture, and his country. Napoli, which has always been treated like the underdog, beaten down socially, economically, and politically, has a long, painful history, including the so-called 'unification' of Italy, which for many in the South felt more like an invasion than a union. Because of that, Naples has carried a heavy burden of stereotypes. People often speak poorly of the city without ever having set foot there. 'There is a saying: when it comes to Naples, you cry twice. You cry upon arrival because you're desperate, you don't know where you are, and then you cry again when you leave, because you don't want to leave,' Procino explained. Advertisement When he talks about Napoli, there's a spark in his eyes. The same light that shone when, as a 17-year-old, he stood in Curva B watching Maradona deliver Napoli's second scudetto. With the other two scudetti, he was able to recreate the experience of walking in the streets of his hometown after Maradona lifted the trophy on April 29, 1989. 'For an immigrant in general, it's very difficult to be away from your family, from your land, from your from all what is your life,' he said. 'For Neapolitans, even more, they compare us to the Brazilians with their saudade. So being able to rebuild even a small piece of Naples here in New York, a place that feels like home for all Neapolitans, gave me a real sense of purpose.' Echoing the spirit of the classic anthem 'O Surdato 'Nnammurato, sung by Napoli fans after every victory, it seems like Italian soccer will always be celebrated at Ribalta – as long as Procino has a say – no matter the distance from home or circumstances.