The Roma Club Vienna: '' We hope to grow to have more fans in the city''

Gianluca Pelizzi is the president and founder of the Roma Club Vienna: he tells us about his very young club, which was created only in 2019.

How and when was your Roma club born?
"Our club was born out of a need, because I moved to Vienna 5 years ago and when I arrived there was no club, and I was going to watch the matches in the bookies because I didn't have any kind of season ticket yet. So I arrived let's say in spring 2017. So all of 2018 I watched the matches in the bookies, then I subscribed to Dazn to watch the matches even from home. Clearly, I had searched whether or not there was a Roma Club in Vienna and I hadn't found anything. So after two years, I decided to create Roma Club Vienna, thinking that maybe there were other people like me looking for a club without finding one. So I made this fantastic decision, I worked on it, and in the winter of 2019 we started doing the first nights. Clearly, at first, we were just a few people, then I put ads on Facebook and social media, doing some publicity. Then unfortunately covid came along in 2020 and that kind of nipped us in the bud. Between lockdowns, and closed pubs, especially here in Austria the lockdown was very strict, and especially every time the season started again, the contagions would go up dramatically and then we would fall back on the restrictions like the lockdown. For the past year or so we have been recovering and the situation is a little calmer.''

What are the activities you do in the club? Such as watching games? 
''The activities we do with the club are mainly seeing matches. We are still expanding the base of the club itself because having just started we need people to be permanently in the club. This is because tourists let's say in the summer, there are a lot of them. In fact until September/October we have many members from outside, but in the period from January to Easter, finding a Romanist on vacation in Vienna is a bit difficult. So our first goal is to broaden the base. We also have many locals who are fans, or who sympathize with Roma. Then we have the most united group with people who always come to the games; also we are very much armed with Erasmus students who stay a few months and then return to Italy. This is what we mainly do. Then a couple of times a year I organize a dinner with everybody. We go and eat something typical, so we can all be together. Now and then we organize some away trips, especially to Rome. So when Roma plays at home, we try to bring with us fans who have never had the chance to go to the Stadio Olimpico.''

What do you think of this year's team? 
''I think we have strengthened a lot on the soccer market. I  also think we are going to fill in roles in which we found ourselves uncovered last season. Certainly, on paper we are stronger than last year, injuries and bad moments aside, such as Abraham, for example, who has yet to regain the talent and performance he had last year. I also notice a greater maturity also in managing matches, a greater knowledge of the coach toward his players. We are optimistic. Even in the management of situations at bad times in matches, you start to notice this increase in maturity derived from Mourinho's second year in charge and the Conference win that was loaded with motivation and allowed some players to realize how high their potential actually is. Also, this year's market session was a really high level that reinforced us with experienced players. Unfortunately at the level of injuries, some will only start in 2023, banking everything on the start of the new year.''

Do you think Mourinho is a good fit for the team? What do you think he will succeed in these contract years?
''I am in love with Mourinho. He is the right man at the right time. The results of last year confirmed that. Mourinho is a people dragger, so he has really restored more enthusiasm to a fan base that certainly did not lack love for their team. If it were up to me, I would make a 10-year contract, I think a coach like that can hardly return to the Roma bench, I would tie him to our bench for life. He is one of the best in the world in my opinion. I expect to return to the Champions League. It is definitely a stage we deserve and I hope the coach continues this project as long as possible.''

First Wijnaldum, now Dybala. Do you think injuries are affecting the team's performance? 
''Obviously, the injuries are affecting the team's performance. Wijnaldum was bought with the promise of giving dynamism to the midfield, Dybala was the one who was supposed to inspire the attack, a promise fulfilled obviously in these games played by him. Of course, with their absence, Roma loses great potential and a way of playing that Mourinho had conceived probably in June/July and still can not realize. Then you add in the various Celik, Karsdorp, Kumbulla...it goes on and on. But Wijnaldum's absence alone has been a big problem.''

How do you plan to grow your club?
''On social media, we are doing quite well. People are writing to us on Instagram, and we have on Facebook both the page and the group, a little less used, but those are good too. The important thing is to have a stable base that increases in numbers so that we have something on which we can build more. Having people come and go does not help, but those who work here and live here could help us in growth. Clearly, everyone is welcome: tourists, citizens, and people who stay even just a year or a few months...our club is open to Roma fans. It's nice to meet new people even for one evening, exchange contacts, etc... I hope to grow as a club just to have more Romans in Vienna and to be able to organize events with many people.''

What does Roma mean to you?
''Roma for me is a very important part of my life. It accompanies me daily in my days. If Roma wins the week starts well, if Roma loses the week starts badly. For those who are abroad living for a period of time, I think the attachment to the city and the team is even closer figuratively, because they cannot experience it as before, but have to do it from afar. My feeling for Roma is really strong. When something is ''taken away'' from you, you miss it more, and that is what has happened to me with Roma since I have been living in Vienna. Since then it has become even more important than it was before.''