Next up in our Get To Know feature series, we spoke to Luca Rossi, secretary of Italian Cottagers, to find out more about another one of our Official International Supporters Groups.
How did your affiliation with Fulham start?
It started around twenty years ago as I fell in love with English football and so began attending matches in London. As soon as I entered Craven Cottage I knew this was the one. It just felt immediately like a home away from home.
How did you build the group/find other members?
The group was originally started as a web forum by a group of English football fans a few years earlier and later it evolved into an official club. Later on, social networks were of great help especially our Facebook Community, that today is our main connecting platform. It's our 'virtual pub' as we like to call it! We get lots of Italian football fans asking for advice on purchasing tickets and how to experience the Cottage at its best.
How do you keep up with all the action?
It’s very easy now to keep up with the action on TV, as the Premier League gets excellent coverage over here in Italy and through the commentary on the Fulham website. Not to mention that often there’s some members of the Italian Cottagers attending the home matches and posting some pictures from the match.
Have you ever experienced Craven Cottage?
I’ve had the great fortune of experiencing the Cottage plenty of times. For four years, between 2008-2009 (right after the Great Escape), and 2011-2012 (those memorable seasons), I’ve had season tickets to Fulham. I was flying over to London at least once a month so I could attend at least half of the home matches. I’ll never forget those amazing years sitting in the Hammy End!
After those magic seasons, I try to attend at least one or two matches every season.
Who is your all-time favourite Fulham player and why?
It has to be “that boy” Clint Dempsey. I still have tears thinking about that goal in the Europa League Round of 16! I just loved the way our no. 23 played.
What’s the best way for other Fulham fans to get in contact with you?
The best way to get in touch with the Italian Cottagers is to sign up for our Facebook Community. We’re also trying to make plans for an 'official' road-trip to the Cottage as soon as we can make it.
To find out more about Italian Cottagers, you can view their page here.
To view a full list of Fulham's Official Supporter Clubs and find out how you can get involved, click here.
To get in touch with us and make your group officially recognised by the Club, please email supportergroups@fulhamfc.com.