Birth and early years
The Sporting Club Lecce is established on 15 March 1908, and initially includes football, athletics and cycling sections. The first President is Francesco Marangi. The first shirts are black and white. In the early years the team plays mainly in Puglia. The first stop is in 1923/24. On 16 September 1927 the Unione Sportiva Lecce was born by the merging Juventus and Gladiator and the shirts are still black and white. The first president is Louis Lopez y Rojo. In the season 1927/28 Lecce is accepted again in the Serie B championship for the reorganization of tournaments and the shirt has the same colours as today: red-yellow. It’s a nice era: the following year Lecce is promoted to the Serie B.
The first season start: Lecce in Serie B.
1929/30 is the year when the reorganization of the Serie A and B, combined in one group,  sets out and for the first time Lecce takes part in the lower division tournament. The first game in Serie B is encouraging: on 6th October 1929 Lecce wins 2-1 in Novara. The Serie B year is quite positive with the achievement of the thirteenth place in the league and the safety. Two more Serie B championships follow the next years, when Lecce reaches respectively the fourteenth and the seventeenth place, before the second stop of activity, after the conclusion of the 1931/32 league. In those years some local teams take part in the minor championships.
The resumption of activity and the pre-war period
The activity is suspended for four years until the 1936/37 season when U.S. Lecce starts up again in Serie C, reaching the eleventh place. The two following years are negative: in the first year Lecce retires after four days from the Serie C championship, while in the second year it reaches the third place, but is relegated to the twelfth and final place for breach of federal regulation. In the following years Lecce comes close to the Serie B (Lecce placed at n°2 in 1940/41, and n°3 in the final round in 1942/43) before reaching it at the end of the 1945/46 championship.
Three more Serie B championships before the decline
The comeback to the lower division is positive and at the end of the 1946/47 season Lecce ranks the fourth place due to Pavesi’s goals, seasonal top goal scorer with 27 goals. The following year Lecce finishes on the third place and is consequently admitted to the next year Serie B championship over only one round: even in this case a forward is highlighted, Silvestri, author of 20 goals. But the crisis is near: in the 1948/49 championship Lecce finishes the season twentieth with the consequent relegation in Serie C. The darkest period in the history of the team starts, after some football seasons ended with checkered results, at the end of the 1954/55 championship Lecce is relegated to the fourth series. Among the few things to highlight there’s Anselmo Bislenghi, who, with 83 goals, is considered the outstanding bomber in the entire history of Lecce.
1957/58: the comeback in Serie C. The'60s
1957/58 is the year of rebirth. Lecce manages to finish sixth in the C round of the first Interregional division, and is readmitted to the Serie C.
For Lecce starts an era as protagonist in the Serie C, often with exciting results. The start is encouraging and in the first year, 1958/59, Lecce finishes on the sixth place. In 1961/62 Lecce is close to the Serie B, finishing in the second place and losing the promotion in the last 180 minutes to Foggia’s advantage. The rest of the decade passes without any great results.
The early 70’s, the 1972/73 en-plein and the Tarabochia record
The new decade, 1970/71 season, starts immediately with the fourth position. But the best results are still to come. In 1971/72 Lecce reaches the second place, coming close the Serie B: the same result for three consecutive years. But despite all, the 1972/73 season will go down in history. Lecce ends the Serie C winning all the nineteen matches, still today a record for the Serie A, B and C-1. In this year Lecce also finds a new bomber: Ferrari, author of 26 goals. But it's all useless because Avellino wins the championship. In 1973/74 Lecce loses the promotion in favour of Pescara for a huge gaffe: Lecce doesn’t play the match against Marsala (the referee was not appointed, but another one was called), and so loses the match with the addition of one point penalty. In the same season Lecce loses at Lucca the final Italy cup for Series C: 0-1 against Monza. In 1974/75 another record: the goal defended by Emmerich Tarabochia remains untouched for 1791 minutes. It’s still the Italian record in the first three categories of the championship.
The 1975/76 season and the cycle in Serie B
While 1972/73 is the year of record, 1975/76 is the year of triumphs. In this year Lecce wins the championship of Serie C, gaining the promotion to Serie B, closing the year without any home defeat. But it’s only one of the triumphs achieved. Lecce wins the Italy Cup of Serie C: in the final Lecce exceeds Monza by 1-0, with a goal by Loddo. And in 1976 Lecce wins the semi-professional Italian-English Cup, winning over Scarborough by 4-0, after losing by 1-0 in the first leg. In the Serie B championship Lecce gets to a middle-high ranking. Meanwhile the new President of Lecce is Franco Jurlano. In March 1980, Lecce and its affiliated, Claudio Merlo, are involved in a scandal of pools-betting. However, the Team proves its non-involvement while the player is disqualified. In the ‘70s and '80s Lecce fills low-ranking positions, while in 1983/84 Lecce reaches the fourth-place. Also in this period two tragedies occurred: On 2 December 1983 Michele Lo Russo and Ciro Pezzella die in a car accident. With 418 presences Lo Russo still is the most faithful player of the club.
The first promotion to Serie A and the 1985/86 championship
In 1984/85 for the first time in its history Lecce reaches the Serie A. It also finishes the cadet championship in first place with 50 points along with Pisa. The decisive match is played in Monza on 16 June 1985 and Lecce, coached by Fascetti, equalizes 1-1. In the team, among others, play the Di Chiara brothers (Stefano and Alberto - author of the promotion goal), Miceli, and Vanoli Paciocco. Again, Lecce ends the championship without any home defeat. Meanwhile the new stadium, called "Via del Mare", is built inaugurated with the match Lecce-Torino 0-0 of 22 September 1985. Three days later, Lecce hosts for the first time a match of the Italian national team: Italy-Norway 1-2. But the big dream lasts only one year because Lecce at the end of its first season in Serie A finishes at the last place with 16 points and so goes back to Serie B. All this despite the purchase by President Jurlano and sports director Cataldo, of the Argentines Pasculli and Barbas, and the Italian Causio. That unhappy season is memorable because of the victory over Rome, that loses the championship shield because of this defeat.
1986-1993: the ups and downs between Serie A and Serie B
Lecce now is in the Serie B close to the Serie A in 1986/87. The team, initially coached by Santin, replaced by Mazzone, finishes the championship in third place with Cesena and Cremonese without reaching the Serie A. One more year in Serie B, Lecce and comes back to the Serie A in 1987/88 after winning over Catanzaro: 2 goals scored by Pasculli and Vincenzi. The team remains for three years in the Serie A, with a ninth place in 1988/89, and then in 1990/91it is again relegated to the Serie B. After two more years in Serie B, in 1992/93 Lecce is surprisingly in Serie A: the coach is Bruno Bolchi, and in the last match on June 13, 1993 Lecce defeates Lucchese 2-1. But after one year Lecce comes back to Serie B. In this season there’s a number of negative records: the greatest number of points lost on its field, 26 out of 34; lowest score in the league, only 11 points, worst English average, -40; maximum total number of defeats, 26 .
The arrival of Semeraro family
Lecce finishes the 1994/95 season at the bottom of Serie B, and so after nineteen years it is back in Serie C. Lecce changes its ownership with the arrival of the Semeraro family at the top of a corporate group (Banca del Salento) and the chairmanship committed to Mario Moroni. The following year Lecce comes back to the Serie B, and back in Serie A after just one year of Serie B at the end of the 1996/97 season. Coach is Giampiero Ventura. But at the end of the 1997/98 championship Lecce comes back in Serie B after a year with three coach changes: first Prandelli, then Pereno and finally Sonetti. In the 1998/99 championship Lecce comes back to the Serie A after winning over Chievo, 2-1 and after a great second half of the season. For 3 seasons Lecce is in Serie A, a record that matches the one already obtained at the end of the 80s. But in the 2001/02 season Cavasin is dispensed and so Lecce, coached by Delio Rossi, is relegated in Serie B.
A cycle begins again in Serie A
After one year, Lecce under Delio Rossi comes back to the Serie A in 2003/04 after winning against Palermo 3-0. The 2003/04 championship, with Delio Rossi as coach, finishes with Lecce at the tenth place, with an extraordinary second half of the season that sees Lecce scoring 29 points. This is the Chevanton record year: scorer of 19 goals in championship, not only is the best scorer of Lecce in Serie A but is now also the all-time top goal scorer with 30 goals, overtaking the old Pasculli record.
The first season of Zeman
In the 2004/05 season Lecce is coached by Zdenek Zeman. After a good start with positive results, Lecce closes the first half of the season at the fourteenth place with 22 points. Safety comes in the last championship day with the draw with Parma 3-3. It’s a year to remember: Vucinic equals the record of Chevanton, scoring 19 goals in one championship, Bojinov is made over in January, increasing the cash, but displeasing fans, Lecce achieves the record for conceded and scored goals in a single Serie A championship: 66 goals scored, 73 conceded.
The relegation toSerie B: the comeback of Zeman
After Zeman, the next coach is Angelo Gregucci Adamo, for the first time as coach in Premier League.  But since the first days of championship Lecce is at the bottom of the league: after just five days of championship it has only one point and so Gregucci is dispensed. Silvio Baldini takes his place but without the expected success: at the end of the first half of the season Lecce is last together with Treviso at 12 points. Also Baldini is replaced after two further rounds of the championship: coaches of the team are Paleari-Rizzo. But there aren’t any crucial changes, and Lecce relegates to Serie B. In 2006 the leadership decides to entrust the team once more to Zdenek Zeman, but the choice is not successful. After 18 days of the championship, with the team at the fourteenth place, Zeman is replaced by Giuseppe Papadopulo. With the new coach, Lecce ends the championship at the ninth place.
The comeback toSerie A after the play-off
After a great first half of championship, Lecce is ready to come back to Serie A:  Juventus, Naples and Genoa are promoted to Serie A and so Lecce is one of the big favorites for the promotion. The start is not so encouraging: after 10 games, Lecce reaches the 7th place. But the situation changes after the first half of the championship: Lecce reaches the third position along with Pisa, with only one point behind the first two teams, ChievoVerona and Bologna. At the 39th day Lecce wins over Albinoleffe 4-0 gaining the second position. But on the next day Lecce is beaten by Bari 1-2, and so Bologna is second, and manages to keep its position until the end of the championship. Lecce has to face the play off. At first Lecce wins over Pisa in the semifinals thanks to a double victory, then wins over Albinoleffe, gaining the promotion to Serie A.
The 2007/08 season is the season of records: 11 winning matches that equals the historical record of away games in Premier League championship (the other teams able to win as many away games as Lecce are Perugia in the 2004/05, Juventus in the 2006/07, Albinoleffe, Pisa and ChievoVerona in the 2007/08 championship).
Lecce also sets some records related only to its Serie B history: the highest number of victories in one championship (23) and the highest number of goals achieved in away matches (36). It also equaled the total number of goals scored (70, as in 1947/48) and the lowest number of defeats in away matches (3, as in 1992/93). These records are not enough to confirm Papadopulo as coach: from Siena arrives Mario Beretta.
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