What happened to Ennerre? How the Italian sportswear brand went from dominating Italian football into complete oblivion
Not even 40 years have passed, but the 80s seem much more far than they really are.
It is not just a chronological question, but also a point of view: despite the fact that 90s are considered the best decade of Italian football, really 80s represents the best period for Italian football. Opened with the victory in the World Championship in Spain in 1982, at that time were playing in Italy Platini with Juventus and Maradona with Napoli, there was the birth of the great Milan that would win from 1988 four Champions League in 6 years, Falcao became the Eighth King of Rome with the Giallorossi jersey, Hellas Verona triumphed in Serie A and Inter made the same with the Germans Brehme and Matthaeus, heir of Rummenigge.
The Longobarda shirt, thanks to the popularity of the film, soon became an icon of those years, along with the other uniforms that were worn in the "real" fields. In 1983 NR was the technical sponsor of Triestina and created the historical jersey that presented the halberd at the center, while in 1985 he has dressed Pisa during the first international victory of its history: the Mitropa Cup.
In that year also the Italian National Football Team dressed NR for seven games in the first part of the season: at the time it was forbidden for national teams to expose the logo of the technical sponsor and so it was invented the suits that had the logo in the buckle.
Among great successes, the attack of oriental productions and new market demands led Raccuglia to review his plans and to separate himself from the partners with whom he had founded the company.
They tried to produce product not made of 100% acrylic, but in polyester as done by the biggest companies of that time: NR found big problems with the players who believed in the thermo-protective effect of the lance and “Principe” Giannini discussed with the company: during winter Roma wore the old shirts in some games.
NAPOLI AND MARADONA
In 1985 Raccuglia left the company, which was owned only by Lazzarini family, also founders and owners of "Pantofola d'Oro", one of the most famous brands of soccer shoes of the time. As the same Raccuglia said:
"I had a marvelous relationship with Emidio Lazzarini, the one who brought the production of soccer shoes to the family business. With the Lazzarini family I joined my NR brand and Pantofola d'Oro brand, then for personal reasons the company broke up and shortly after my release, it failed".
Raccuglia created soon created a new brand, Ennedue, to continue drawing the best sweaters in the market.
He personally maintained relations with the clubs, through the knowledge gained over years. The most important was certainly the sponsorship with Napoli: at the time it was the teams that paid the technical suppliers for materials and Napoli chose NR.
Raccuglia created shirts for Napoli as early as 1978 and the collaboration continued over the years through personal relationships with Maradona and the president Ferlaino.
From 1987 to 1990 they won two league titles, one Italian Cup, one Italian Super Cup and one UEFA Cup. The historical jerseys with the sponsors Mars and Buitoni, with Scudetto and Coppa Italia patches sewn together on the fabric, also presented the initial NR. The jersey with the number 10 of Maradona is an antique for Neapolitan who still today produce non-original replicas, nostalgic of the models of the time: from the one made by Raccuglia to the latest, with the iconic white wave.
The last appearance of the NR brand in the playgrounds was in 2011, when they appeared for half a season in the Tokyo Verdy uniforms in JLeague, through the Japanese company that held the rights.
TODAY
Although disappeared from football fields, the brand has always remained alive in the memory of collectors: on the Facebook page of the brand are periodically published vintage photos and comments recall the quality and beauty of those uniforms, which soon we could see again on the fields to football. Raccuglia, after more than thirty years since the company's release, is again the owner of the rights of the brand that today manages with his son.
Since 2017 Ennerre has been reborn and, reliving the period of glory that characterized it in 80s and 90s, today offers a streetwear collection that combines Italian elegance with the aesthetics of minimal design and the taste of street culture, characterizing aspects of Japanese fashion.
The brand, present at the latest editions of Pitti Uomo, aims to create design sportswear products that are not only functional but are fashion items.
The Raccuglia family also wants to return to the world of football: a vintage line will soon be revived waiting to see new champions with the green N and R surrounded by black on the game uniform.
