One of the Club’s most important initiatives aimed at young people is La Scuola allo Stadio (“The School at the Stadium”). This is a socio-educational project promoted and organised by the Club, aimed mainly at primary and first-year secondary school students, but also open to the first two years of secondary school, whose educational value has been recognised for years by the National Observatory for Sporting Events of the Ministry of the Interior. There have been 20 editions of the project, in which 27,000 students have participated.

On 20 February, in addition to awarding the winning schools of the 20th edition, the 21st edition was presented, enriched with some very special content, agreed upon with the Territorial School Office, the Provincial School Networks, the Social Policy Service of the Province and the Pastoral Office for Schools of the Diocese of Bergamo: “Let’s join forces against bullying and cyberbullying”.

The dates of the 21st edition were:
– 26, 27, 28, 29 February;
– 19, 20, 21 March;
– 26, 27 March;
– 5 April.

La Scuola allo Stadio was born in 2001 from the idea of Lucia Castelli, a Youth Academy educator, and Stefano Bonaccorso, a former youth coach and now Head of Grassroots Football.

The objectives are the following:

• To promote the collaboration between Atalanta and the school;
• To highlight the educational and cultural value of football;
• To get young people used to enjoying sporting events in a civilised way;
• To help prevent racism;
• To promote peaceful coexistence and fair play among young people.

It is a sport-educational project whose high educational value is also recognised by the National Observatory of Sports Events of the Ministry of the Interior.

On Thursday mornings, as has been the case for the last few years, during school hours, the young students of classes 4 and 5 of the primary school and classes 1, 2 and 3 of the secondary school (middle school) have the chance to live and experience for a day the emotions of the important sporting events that are usually held on Sundays. On arrival at the stadium, the students will be welcomed by the staff of La Scuola allo Stadio, who will guide them through seven different stages, ending with the discovery of little-known aspects of the world of football. The students will be guided by the competent staff, who will also use some fun tactics such as the “journey diary” (which will be given to each participant), a quiz game and the reading of some selected sports literature.

The visit is divided into 7 stages.

• Step one: Visiting the stadium: from the entrance gate to the stands, from the dressing rooms to the pitch through the tunnel;
• Step two: Running on the pitch.
• Step three: The dugout – a special view.
• Step four: Finally, match time.
• Step five: Thinking about the social and cultural aspects of football;
• Step six: Meeting and debating with an Atalanta player;
• Step seven: Taking part in competitions.

There are three contests and prizes are awarded. Schoolchildren take part in these competitions, presenting their poems, slogans, videos, posters, photos, songs, music, graphic projects, drawings and art objects.

• Atalanta: the mythology of the name.
• My slogan against racism.
• My slogan for a fair support.

1. Respecting the rules: ethics in sport.
2. The stadium: a meeting place, not a battlefield.
3. The right way to cheer.
4. Sports journalism: the good and the bad.
5. The story of Atalanta.
6. The true principles of the sporting lifestyle.
7. Safety on and off the pitch
8. How to prevent bullying and cyberbullying in sport

As we look forward to the 21st edition, to date, 27,000 students from Bergamo schools (and not only from Bergamo) have participated in the project, along with 2,050 teachers and more than 170 university students.