Pietro Bignardi was born in Rio Marina (LI) on 27 November 1890, son of Alfonso and Cignoni Giulietta. After graduating from the Liceo Muratori high school in Modena on 6 August 1910, he enrolled at the Regia Scuola Superiore di Agraria (Royal School of Agriculture). Curiously, only his surname appears on the cover of his university file, as in the lists that mention football teams, perhaps as proof of the fame he already enjoyed. He served as an officer in the First World War and graduated on 18 December 1919, presenting an oral thesis on the improvement of the bovine variety for milk production and obtaining a mark of 100/110. He served as an officer in the National Forestry Militia (Milizia Nazionale Forestale, MNF). He died in Medolla (MO) on 28 October 1949.
Bignardi played as a midfielder in all six matches of Bologna FC’s first First Division championship in the 1910-11 season. During the First World War, he also played for Fortitudo Bologna FC in the Emilia Cup and for other minor teams in Bologna.
1 - Bologna FC line-up in the 1910-11 season.
2 - Detail of the cover of the university file.
3 - Request for certification of exams taken to complete the cadet course.
4 - Request for a degree certificate submitted by the Como Cohort of the National Forestry Militia on 31 August 1939, on the eve of the Second World War.