Did you Know?

F.C. Fossombrone (formerly F.C. Bikkembergs Fossombrone) is an Italian association football located in Fossombrone, Marche. The small club was made popular after it was acquired by Belgian fashion designer Dirk Bikkembergs. The club was founded on 16 June 1949 by a group of local sportsmen in the town of Fossombrone as Polisportiva Forsempronese. Since then, the club spent all of its history playing at the amateur level, arriving up to Eccellenza. In 2005, Dirk Bikkembergs decided to acquire the club and started a huge rebranding, also renaming it F.C. Bikkembergs Fossombrone, with the aim to use the team as a laboratory for styling and fabric technology, in order to make all of his designs tested and promoted directly by football players. In 2006–07 season, under head coach Gabriele Morganti, with former managerial experiences also at professional level, new players were attracted, the club directly decided to target promotion to Serie D. The club reached the regional semi-final in the Coppa Italia Dilettanti, being stopped by Piano San Lazzaro before they might claim a spot for the final, while in the league they missed promotion only by one point of the leader, being defeated in the national playoff finals by Torgiano of Umbria.The following season did not change that much, as Fossombrone, under a new head coach, ended again in second place, missing promotion for a second consecutive time. However, promotion to Serie D finally arrived in 2008–09, with Fossombrone being crowned Eccellenza Marche winners. At the end of the 2009-10 Serie D season Bikkember.gs decided to sell the club.In the season 2010–11, from Serie D group F relegated to Eccellenza Marche, also due to the strong ridemensionamento now by neglect of Bikkembergs.

FOSSOMBRONE F.C.


2006-2007


Match Worn Shirt


Dirk Bikkembergs during the F.C. Fossombrone’s presentation

Things to Know:

Fossombrone always played with blue and white color uniforms with strips since the club was established in 1949. However, since the arrival of Dirk Bikkembergs, kits were completely rebranded in a more original way, with home jerseys being white with blue swirls, while the away is black with a butterfly pattern. Dirk Bikkembergs has also changed the after-game look, discarding the traditional jacket and tie for jeans and tracksuit-like leather jacket. This portrays Fossombrone more as the young team that they are, and Bikkembergs uses the squad to try out his latest designs in sportswear.

FOSSOMBRONE F.C.


2006-2007


Match Worn Shirt


Did you Know?

Due the huge marketing success of Fossombrone F.C. during the first part of the season, SAMSUNG got involved in to the project and it became main sponsor of the team. In fact it’s pretty weird to see such a big sponsor for a “small” 6th League team. So the team played the first part of the season with no sponsor on shirt and the second part of the season with SAMSUNG sponsor.

Things to Know:

When Dirk Bikkembergs bought the F.C Fossombrone back to 2005 , his aim was to make the club the most stylish team in the world – using footballers to promote his elaborate creations. And this was the first time that a football kit was designed by such an high-end fashion designer like him. And always in 2005, Bikkembergs became the first fashion designer to showcase a collection at a football stadium when Barcelona allowed him to turn the Camp Nou into a catwalk. But his relationship with Italian football began when he started working with Inter Milan during the season 2003-2004. But in that case he only designed their  rest kits and post match outfits – getting critical acclaim in the country’s most fashionable city for his work. But that prompted the ambitious Bikkembergs to acquire his own football team, F.C. Fossombrone and designing the game’s kits. 

FOSSOMBRONE F.C.


2006-2007


Match Worn Shirt

Did you Know?

Bikkembergs gave the team a complete overhaul. F.C. Fossombrone’s normal blue and white stripe kits were dumped in favour of trendier home jerseys with white with blue swirls representing a target on shirt.

FOSSOMBRONE F.C.


2006-2007


Goalkeeper Match Worn Shorts

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Another one-of-a-kind style for Fossombrone’s team made by Dirk Bikkembergs. These shorts are part of a kit with butterflies all over the shirt and shorts. Player’s shirts were black with blue butterflies and the goalkeeper’s set was red with black butterflies. 

FOSSOMBRONE F.C.


2007-2008


Match Worn Shirt

Did you Know?

In the 2007/2008 season the Bikkembergs Fossombrone team missed again the chance to go to Serie D. But its popularity was increasing day by day. A full set of team’s merchandising was made for fans and there were multiple team’s items made that were sold in official Bikkemberg’s stores around the country. While the team had to wait one more year to be crowned Eccellenza’s champion, it was already the Eccellenza’s National champion in terms of popularity. 

FOSSOMBRONE F.C.


2008-2009


Match Worn Shirt

Did you Know?

Bikkembergs even designed boots to mirror their home jerseys, giving the team a complete fashion makeover. The team’s name was changed to F.C. Bikkembergs Fossombrone.  Off the pitch, the team’s after-game look was equally as impressive and F.C. Fossombrone’s players were beginning to gain some popularity. With their look in place, it was now time to change their fortunes in the Eccellenza Marche, a regional 16 team division for local non league clubs hoping for promotion to Serie D. And 2008-2009 was finally the right season. F.C. Bikkembergs Fossombrone won the Eccellenza Marche’s championship. It wasn’t just their exquisite kits that were getting talked about all over Italy, as F.C. Fossombrone were now getting noticed for their football.

FOSSOMBRONE F.C.


2009-2010


Match Worn Shirt


Did you Know?

The 2009-2010 season was the team’s debut season in Serie D, which was split into nine divisions. Fossombrone finished a respectable third in group D. In heartbreaking fashion they ended the season level on points with Carpi, missing out on promotion on goal difference.

FOSSOMBRONE F.C.


2009-2010


Match Worn Warm-Up Shirt


Did you Know?

As we said Dirk Bikkembergs invested his own cash in building a credible team after styling them back to the season 2006/2007. A significant investment for an Eccellenza Championship’s team was made on bringing in new players since the beginning , but it wasn’t quite enough since Fossombrone was crowned Eccellenza Marche champions only in 2009 with the manager Gabriele Morganti, experienced in the professional game, who offered more forward-thinking methods. The team was finally promoted to Serie D three years after Bikkembergs’ investment. However, the F.C. Bikkembergs Fossombrone success story didn’t last long. On July 18th, 2010 Bikkembergs was accused of tax evasion to the tune of 111m Euros and then it is when the F.C. Fossombrone project began to crumble. He appeared in the Italian media, denying the allegations, and controversially slammed the Italian tax authorities, claiming he was being targeted because he was a foreign owner. Bikkembergs decided to leave Italy, disgusted by the way he was treated and eventually he sold his stake in the club.

FOSSOMBRONE F.C.


2009-2010


Match Worn Shorts

FOSSOMBRONE F.C.


Match Worn Boots


Did you Know?

These one-of-a-kind football boots merge fashion and football clash in the best possible way, as men’s stylist Dirrk Bikkemberg brought his unique style also to the world of football boots with these exclusive pair made exclusively for Fossombrone’s players. Boots that looks like nothing else on the market, called “Tirosegno” (“Shooting Gallery”) and the stylish “Capitano” (“Captain”). These boots were not seen on the feet of many top-flight stars. Giorgio Chiellini from Juventus F.C. was an early testimonial, together with Barcelona’s striker Giuly which they probably were the best ones. Bikkembergs football boots had something of a cult following in the industry, and their rare, eccentric releases was a real big treat for fans.

Things to Know:

The Bikkembergs boots made for Fossombrone’s players were released in blue/silver, like the team home kit, and red/silver like the team away kit. They were given to the Fossombrone’s players with an exclusive box with the team’s history written on it, team and Bikkembergs logos and some pictures of the very first team’s picture of Fossombrone.

FOSSOMBRONE F.C.


2009-2010


Match Worn Shorts


Did you Know?

In 2011, in what must have been bittersweet for Bikkembergs, he was completely exonerated from tax evasion accusations and any wrongdoing. In the same year he sold the club. Clearly still stung, he sold his business to Montegranaro fashion company Zeis Excelsa. The brand itself is still alive today and was bought out again in 2015 by Chinese company, Guangzhou Canudilo Fashion & Accessories.