Marco Ancora
I collect match-worn football shirts, ever since I wanted not just to watch a game but to understand it. I work in marketing and sales, and I follow branding and the development of football closely. A shirt tells a story, and that story is why I collect.
A shirt often tells a story. The story is the interesting part, not the fabric or the material in front of you.
A small club against the giants
My father comes from the Lecce region and moved to Switzerland at 17. When we watched football as kids, Lecce matches were on. That is where my passion for the club began. It felt like David against Goliath: a club always seen as the small one.
My first match in person was Lecce – Brescia in 2003, Roberto Baggio’s last season. I have the shirt from that match in my collection. I looked for it for a long time. After that came my enthusiasm for Fabrizio Miccoli, who represented Lecce in Italian football.
The path to match-worn shirts
I got my first shirt at almost seven years old: Raúl González. My mother is from Madrid and my grandfather was a big Real Madrid fan. Then came a Chevantón shirt, which fuelled my passion further.
The first piece in my collection was a shirt of Guillermo Giacomazzi from the 2011/12 season. I bought it at an auction. That is when I realised there is a way to get match-worn shirts. That is how it started.
I was also a passionate Football Manager player. I was always more interested in the background of football: marketing, finance, running a club as a business. I played myself, but knew early on that I lacked the talent for a career. Everything around the game fascinated me all the more.
Official distribution for Switzerland and Liechtenstein
In summer 2012 U.S. Lecce had been forced down to the third division and a new president had taken over the club. The official store run by Salentinamente was closed for business reasons and the merchandise was no longer available. I was not happy with that and founded LecceStore.ch.
I received the licence for Switzerland and Liechtenstein shortly before the 2013/14 season, and the shop went live. I built e-commerce, logistics, purchasing, import and export entirely myself. Once the concept was proven, I handed it back. That became Leccestore.com, and official U.S. Lecce merchandise could finally be ordered online internationally.
The people behind the shirts
When Fabrizio Miccoli was in the headlines because of ongoing legal proceedings, I tried to get in touch. His father called me and handed me Fabrizio on the phone. For me it was a special moment: a player I see as an idol, on the line.
After that I got to know Giovanni Fasano. He was in charge of kit at the club and later co-founded M908. With him I was able to help design a black and yellow shirt. He is one of the most important relationships that came out of the collection.
At an Operazione Nostalgia event I met Lecce legends including Chevantón, Marco Cassetti and Mirko Vučinić. About his Queens Park Rangers shirt, where he spent six months, Chevantón told me that not even his father has it, and his father has every shirt of his. Moments like that stay with you.
As of 8 October 2026. The photos date from the events named. Sources for current roles: Udinese · Genoa · Tottenham · Modena · Panathinaikos · U.S. Lecce
Shirts that keep moving
As a collector I have probably made every mistake there is, and I have been cheated before. That gave me a lot of experience. I bought through auctions and exchanged a lot with other collectors.
Over the years I have resold several dozen shirts through the CharityStars platform. With every sale there, part of the proceeds goes to a good cause. My donations went to an orphanage in northern Italy. To an institution for people with autism in Lecce I gave around 50 shirts and other material from Lecce, Miccoli and Chevantón, simply to bring some joy.
Some shirts I buy to give away, such as Franco Baresi and Paul Pogba. I gave the Maradona shirt to Miccoli: the shirt of his idol for my idol.
Marketing, sales and football
I work in marketing and sales. Through Ancora Marketing I support positioning, mandates and partnerships and bring the right people together. Ancora Football is the part that belongs to football. I handle enquiries in a straightforward way; the easiest way to reach me is by email or LinkedIn.