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Fiorentina Hall of Fame reaches its third edition and Fiorentina Museum becomes an official part of the club on Monday evening at 20:30. The event will be broadcast live on Violachannel.

This is the official statement:

Alongside the launch of the third edition of the Fiorentina Hall of Fame, the new “corporate” logo of the Fiorentina Museum was also unveiled. The logo was personally chosen by Andrea Della Valle, the club’s honorary president, as a way of welcoming the cultural organisation Foundation for Sports History Museums into the Viola family.

The awarding of the prestigious Viola Marzocco means that the Fiorentina Museum will be forever etched into the history of ACF Fiorentina. It is a history that has been built on decades of hard work and passion.

The city of Florence has always strongly identified with its football team. Much-loved players have won and lost in the famous shirt; a shirt that represents an eternity of traditions for every one of us. Yet the shirt also represents the entrepreneurs who have driven the club forward – the coaches, employees and backers who have made Fiorentina’s journey to the elite of international and domestic football a reality.

The Fiorentina Museum and ACF Fiorentina wish to celebrate these men and women. They want to show the world that their contribution has not been forgotten and intend to reward them for their dedication to the Fiorentina colours and the city of Florence.

The aim of the Fiorentina Hall of Fame is to teach young players about the greats who wore the shirt before many of them were even born. Our future stars must learn to love the shirt, aware that it represents not only a wonderful club but also the beautiful city of Florence.

This year will see Nello Baglini, Claudio Merlo, Armando Segato, Renzo Contratto, Mario Mazzoni, Giorgio Albertazzi and Gabriel Omar Batistuta enter into the Hall of Fame.

Baglini is remembered as the president of the club at the time the second Scudetto was won, and indeed it was Merlo who ran that glorious midfield. Segato was another midfielder who also tasted Scudetto glory – this time in 1956. Contratto was an ever-present in the Viola defence during the 1980s, whilst Mazzoni is a legendary coach who won the Coppa Italia with the first team in 1975.

Albertazzi is a great of Italian theatre and a Fiorentina ambassador, and this year’s cohort is completed by Gabriel Omar Batistuta, the Argentine striker who lifted a Coppa Italia and Italian Supercup with the Viola during the 1990s.
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