The city of Nettuno has taken a historic step by officially recognizing baseball as part of its intangible cultural heritage, confirming what generations of local residents have known for decades: in Nettuno, baseball is far more than a sport. It is a defining element of the city’s identity, a tradition passed down from one generation to the next and deeply connected to the community’s relationship with the United States.
The recognition comes 55 years after one of the most celebrated moments in local sports history – the 1971 championship that earned the city its famous “Golden Star” distinction. Today, the municipality sees baseball as a cultural asset worthy of preservation, promotion, and transmission to future generations.
Around 400 citizens supported the initiative, highlighting how deeply the game remains rooted in everyday life in the coastal town south of Rome.
Nettuno’s connection to baseball is inseparable from its connection to America. The sport arrived and grew in the area following the Allied presence in Italy during World War II, eventually becoming one of the strongest baseball traditions anywhere in Europe. The city’s teams went on to build an extraordinary legacy, winning 17 Italian championships and 7 European Cups, making Nettuno one of the most successful baseball centers on the continent.
That transatlantic bond was further emphasized by the city’s new relationship with Cooperstown, widely regarded as the symbolic home of baseball and home to the National Baseball Hall of Fame. Among the guests connected to the celebrations was Debra Di Maggio, niece and universal heir of the legendary Joe DiMaggio. Her presence underscored the enduring link between Italian American history and Nettuno’s baseball culture. More than 80 years after the sport first took root there, baseball continues to connect Nettuno and the United States through shared memories, values, and passion.
