San Marino football joins in mourning the passing of Gigi Riva

San Marino football cannot and will not remain indifferent to the loss of a giant of the game. Yesterday evening, the news that travelled around the world – the death of Gigi Riva – also touched the hearts of all football lovers in the Republic. A timeless, cross‑generational icon, Riva was a shining example of integrity and consistency, an extraordinary man even before being a centre-forward without equal. The all-time leading scorer for the Italian national team, with 35 goals in just 42 appearances, “Rombo di Tuono” – Thunderclap, the nickname coined by Gianni Brera after an Inter-Cagliari match dominated by the striker, a Sardinian by adoption – has passed away at the age of 79. The San Marino Football Federation extends its deepest condolences and sympathy to his family, with a special thought for the FIGC and the Italian national team, for whom Gigi Riva remained a key figure even in his second professional life, serving as a member of the Azzurri’s backroom staff on several occasions. European champion on the pitch in 1968 and World Cup runner-up at Mexico ’70, he was also part of the triumphant 2006 World Cup campaign in Germany as Team Manager. The most recent official friendly between Italy and San Marino was held in his Cagliari, on 28 May 2021. The Sardegna Arena – now Unipol Domus – will soon be named after the greatest of them all, Gigi Riva.

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