Editing ACF Fiorentina (section)

===Foundation prior to World War II===
[[File:Associazione Calcio Fiorentina 1940-1941.jpg|thumb|1940–41 Fiorentina team]]

'''Associazione Calcio Fiorentina''' was founded in the autumn of 1926 by local noble and [[National Fascist Party]] member [[Luigi Ridolfi Vay da Verrazzano]],<ref name="Martin">{{cite book | last = Martin | first = Simon| title =Football and Fascism: The National Game Under Mussolini| date = September 2004| publisher = Berg Publishers| url =https://books.google.com/books?id=LSOmTCa8g50C&q=fiorentina+Luigi+Ridolfi+fascist&pg=PA142| isbn = 1-85973-705-6}}</ref> who initiated the merger of two older Florentine clubs, [[C.S. Firenze|CS Firenze]] and [[P.G. Libertas|PG Libertas]]. The aim of the merger was to give Florence a strong club to rival those of the more dominant [[Italian Football Championship]] sides of the time from [[Northern Italy|Northwest Italy]]. Also influential was the cultural revival and rediscovery of {{lang|it|[[Calcio Fiorentino]]}}, an ancestor of modern football that was played by members of the {{lang|it|[[Medici]]|italic=no}} family.<ref name="Martin"/>

After a rough start and three seasons in lower leagues, Fiorentina reached ''{{lang|it|Serie A|italic=no}}'' in 1931. That same year saw the opening of the new stadium, originally named after [[Giovanni Berta]], a prominent fascist, but now known as [[Stadio Artemio Franchi]]. At the time, the stadium was a masterpiece of engineering, and its inauguration was monumental. To be able to compete with the best teams in Italy, Fiorentina strengthened their team with some new players, notably the Uruguayan [[Pedro Petrone]], nicknamed ''el Artillero''. Despite enjoying a good season and finishing in fourth place, Fiorentina were relegated the following year, although they would return quickly to {{lang|it|Serie A|italic=no}}. In 1941, they won their first [[Coppa Italia]], but the team were unable to build on their success during the 1940s due to World War II and other troubles.