THE OPPONENT
THE OPPONENT
The other side of the champion
Behind every victory, there’s a story to uncover. Behind every success, there’s an unforgettable opponent.
On Sunday, April 21, in the late evening on Rai3, Marco Tardelli returns with “The Opponent,” an original format produced by Rai Cultura and Stand by me.
In four episodes, Tardelli retraces the careers and lives of four extraordinary football champions – Gigi Riva, Paolo Maldini, Bruno Giordano, and Luciano Spalletti – from a new perspective: the story of their fiercest opponents, whether they be real people or inner demons. Unheard anecdotes, never-confessed memories, both pleasant and painful, within an engaging narrative enriched by precious images from the Rai Archives and exclusive interviews with friends, colleagues, and family members of the athletes.
In this second season, airing just before the UEFA Euro 2024 championship, Marco Tardelli will narrate four stories linked to great football names who, during the European championships, faced their greatest opponents.
Starting with Gigi Riva, who achieved his first major success with the 1968 European Championship win, giving Italy its first title. We then continue with Paolo Maldini, who in 2000 saw the cup slip from his hands in the final against France. Next is Bruno Giordano, who in 1980 had to forgo an almost certain call-up due to a suspension following the match-fixing scandal. The season concludes with Luciano Spalletti, who, after his recent championship triumph with Napoli, faces a new and challenging task: ensuring that the reigning champion national team performs admirably.
Marco Tardelli, the 1982 World Cup champion, five-time Italian champion with Juventus, and winner of all three major UEFA competitions, as well as a former coach, returns in the second edition of “The Opponent” to tell us about the sports world he knows so well from an unprecedented point of view, where fragility and sensitivity are at the heart of the narrative, more than a record-breaking physical performance or a victory etched in history.
“The Opponent,” a Rai Cultura and Stand by me production, is hosted by Marco Tardelli. Produced by Simona Ercolani. Curated by Riccardo Chiattelli. Head of the project: Andrea Felici. Written by Giulia Soi. Rai delegates: Mario Sagna and Serena Valeri; Stand by me executive producer: Simona Meli. Directed by Daniele Babbo.