Orlandina Basket: thirteen thousand people who reached Serie A
Capo d'Orlando is the smallest town in Italy ever to play top-flight basketball. The club was born in a primary school yard and still fills a 3,600-seat arena on Sundays. How to see a game, and why it's the right reason to come in winter.
The record nobody tells you
Capo d'Orlando has about thirteen thousand inhabitants. In the 2007-08 season its basketball team played in Italy's top division, against Milan, Bologna and Siena: it is the smallest town by population ever to reach Serie A. That isn't a piece of trivia — around here it defines the town's identity as much as the sea and the lemons do. On a winter Sunday afternoon nobody goes to a shopping centre: they go to the arena.
From a school yard to the parquet
The club was founded in 1978 and at first played in the primary school yard, outdoors. Then the PalaValenti, on the Andrea Doria seafront. The turning point came in 1996, when the entrepreneur Enzo Sindoni — still president today — took the club over: two championships won almost without defeat, promotions one after another, and within a few years, Serie A.
The fall and the climb back
In October 2008 Orlandina was excluded from Serie A over unpaid debts and restarted from Serie C. It looked like the end. Instead: two consecutive promotions, two reinstatements, and by 2014-15 the team was back on the Serie A starting line, where it stayed until 2018. More relegations followed, and each time the rebuild. Everyone in town knows the story by heart, which is why the arena fills up even in lower divisions.
The PalaFantozzi
Opened in 2001 and expanded in 2005, it seats 3,613 — almost a third of the town's population. It is named after Alessandro Fantozzi, the former international point guard who arrived in 1998 and led the climb. For sponsorship reasons it is also known today as the Infodrive Arena. It stands just over a kilometre from the corso: from the centre you walk there, which is true of very few professional clubs in Italy.
The 2026-2027 season
Infodrive Capo d'Orlando plays in Serie B Nazionale, Group A. The season opens on Sunday 27 September at home against Lumezzane and closes on 25 April, also at home, against Viola Reggio Calabria. In between come the fixtures that matter most: the Sicilian derbies with Agrigento and Piazza Armerina, and the visit of Leonessa Brescia, one of the most decorated clubs in Italian basketball. Play-offs start in late April, and the winners go up to Serie A2. Division and fixtures change from season to season: check the club's website before travelling.
How to see a game
Home games are almost always on Sunday afternoon, occasionally Saturday evening or midweek. Tickets are sold online on the club's official site and through ticketing platforms, and for ordinary fixtures you'll find seats on the day; for derbies and the bigger visitors, book ahead. You don't need a car: it's a ten-minute walk from the centre, which on a big match day makes a real difference. How parking works in town →
Why it's a good reason to come in winter
The season runs from late September to April: precisely when Capo d'Orlando is not a seaside resort but a real town. A winter weekend here works like this: Saturday in the Nebrodi — a different thing altogether under snow — dinner in town, Sunday afternoon at the arena, and Monday morning the winter sea from the seafront, empty and beautiful. When to come, month by month →
Frequently asked questions
Which league does Orlandina Basket play in?
In the 2026-2027 season Infodrive Capo d'Orlando plays in Serie B Nazionale, Group A. The division has changed several times: the team played in Serie A from 2007 to 2008 and again from 2014 to 2018. Check the club's official site for the current season.
Where does Orlandina Basket play?
At the PalaFantozzi in Capo d'Orlando, now also known as the Infodrive Arena for sponsorship reasons: 3,613 seats, opened in 2001 and expanded in 2005. It's just over a kilometre from the centre and walkable.
Why is the arena called PalaFantozzi?
It is named after Alessandro Fantozzi, the former Italian international point guard who came to Capo d'Orlando in 1998 and led the team's climb from the lower divisions.
Is Capo d'Orlando really the smallest town ever in Serie A?
Yes: with around thirteen thousand inhabitants, in the 2007-08 season it was the smallest municipality by population to play in Italy's top basketball division.
How do you buy tickets for Orlandina games?
Online through the club's official website and ticketing platforms, or at the box office on match days. For ordinary fixtures seats are usually available late; for Sicilian derbies and the bigger clubs, buy in advance.
Related destinations: Capo d'Orlando.
Stay in Capo d'Orlando
A base in the centre — and everything else becomes a day trip.
The port for the Aeolians is 45 minutes away, the Nebrodi right behind. Breakfast served early for dawn departures.
Direct booking, no intermediaries · See the rooftop →