PalaDozza: 70 years of basketball

On 11 and 12 September, the PalaDozza becomes the heart of basketball in Bologna: a special late-night opening of the MUBIT, the screening of a documentary film dedicated to Carlo Recalcati, a commemorative match and the launch of a book marking the 70th anniversary of the ‘Tempio dei Canestri’.

Two special days dedicated to the history and culture of basketball. It all begins on Friday 11 September, to coincide with the Notte Blu, with a special late-night opening until 11.00 pm at the MUBIT, the Italian Basketball Museum in Piazza Azzarita. On the same evening, at 8.45 pm, the PalaDozza will be transformed into a cinema with the screening of “Per Tutti Charly”, the documentary film dedicated to Carlo Recalcati, a legend of Italian basketball who turns 81 on that very day and who will be in attendance at the event.

The following day, Saturday 12 September, the spotlight shifts to 70 years of basketball at the PalaDozza, which opens its doors at 4.00 pm with a celebratory friendly match between Fortitudo Bologna and Libertas Livorno, followed by an event at the MUBIT dedicated to the stories, key figures and legacy of one of the most iconic arenas in Italian basketball.

Here is the detailed programme:

Friday 11 September: Notte Blu, MUBIT and Carlo Recalcati

• Blue
  Night On 11 September, Bologna lights up for Blue Night, an evening dedicated to the waterways and the heritage of the canals that for centuries have criss-crossed and transformed the city. With tours, music, various events and special openings, the programme also extends to Piazza Azzarita: for the occasion, it will also be possible to visit the MUBIT – Museum of Italian Basketball, inside the PalaDozza, in the evening (until 11.00 pm). An opportunity to explore the history of Italian basketball through its champions, teams, memorabilia and great achievements, right in one of the places that, more than any other, embodies the culture of basketball in Bologna.
• At the PalaDozza: ‘Per Tutti Charly’
  At 8.45 pm, the evening continues at the PalaDozza with ‘Per Tutti Charly, the documentary film dedicated to the life and career of Carlo Recalcati, one of the most iconic figures in Italian basketball. A date of particular significance: Recalcati will be in Bologna on the very day of his 81st birthday. A player, coach and head coach of the Italian national team, ‘Charly’ has spanned over half a century of Italian basketball and retains a special bond with Bologna: it was at the PalaDozza that he led Fortitudo to their first Scudetto in 2000. Through archive footage, testimonies and personal accounts, the documentary traces his sporting and personal journey, accompanied by the voices of some of the great figures of Italian basketball. The screening will therefore also be an opportunity to gather in the very same venue where some of the most important chapters of his history were written.

Saturday 12 September: 70 years of basketball at the PalaDozza

The following day, the celebrations continue with a particularly significant anniversary. The PalaDozza was inaugurated on 9 August 1956, a date which was also marked in 2026 with free entry to the MUBIT. However, it was on Wednesday 12 September of the same year that the new sports arena hosted its first official basketball match: Italy v Poland, which ended 70–54 in favour of the Azzurri.

That match kicked off the Mairano Trophy, a prestigious international tournament which, that year, effectively served as a pre-Olympic qualifier: CONI had in fact stipulated that Italy would only qualify for the Melbourne Olympics by finishing in the top three. The Azzurri finished the tournament in fourth place and did not go on to the Games, but it was on the court in Piazza Azzarita that a small piece of Italian basketball history was written: in the final match against Sweden, Lino Cappelletti scored 45 points, setting a national team record that was to stand for 31 years – and this at a time when the three-point shot did not yet exist.

The Mairano Trophy thus marked the beginning of the long-standing relationship between the PalaDozza and the Italian national team, which was to transform the Bologna venue into one of the Azzurri’s true homes.

• Fortitudo v Livorno: basketball at the heart of the celebrations
  At 4.00 pm, the PalaDozza will host a friendly match between Fortitudo Bologna and Libertas Livorno, organised by the blue-and-white club as part of the celebrations. A match that extends the celebrations to where it all began: on the court. 
• The Heart of Basketball: Seventy Years in Review at the MUBIT
  After the match, at 6.30 pm, the day continues inside the MUBIT with the launch of *The Heart of Basketball. 70 Years of the PalaDozza*. History and legend of the temple of basketball, the new book by journalist Enrico Schiavina, published by Minerva. The book traces seventy years of matches, teams and champions who have passed beneath the great dome in Piazza Azzarita, portraying the PalaDozza not merely as a sports venue, but as a true repository of the collective memory of Bologna and Italian basketball. The launch will provide an opportunity for a wider discussion on the PalaDozza and Bolognese basketball between Enrico Schiavina, Emilio Marrese and Walter Fuochi, three writers who, over the years, have chronicled its key figures, rivalries, victories and transformations.

The event will be primarily by invitation, but a number of the available seats will also be made available to members of the public.

A sticker to mark the 70th anniversary of the PalaDozza

To ensure that collectors too can keep a small piece of this history, the Figurine Forever association will also produce a special sticker dedicated to the PalaDozza’s 70th anniversary. The commemorative edition will be available at the MUBIT bookshop, transforming one of the items most closely associated with popular sporting memory into a memento of the PalaDozza’s 70th anniversary.