Riccardo Budoni was born in Rome on September 8, 1959.
He spent his early career in Le Marche in the Teramo youth setup. In 1977-78 he was put up to the first squad. The "Diavoli” were in Serie C and finished 8th thus gaining admission to the following year's new C1 format. The manager was Maurizio Bruno and Budoni played 5 league games.
In 1978-79 he joined Lazio. He played for the Primavera team (U19's) and won a Coppa Italia. In 1979-80 he was brought up to the first team. The keeper was Massimo Cacciatori with Budoni and Giuseppe Avagliano as backups.
The 1979-80 season turned out to be Lazio’s "annus horribilis" First a fan, Vincenzo Paparelli, was killed in the stadium by a flare shot from the Roma end before a local derby. Then in March four Lazio players were arrested for their alleged involvement in the Totonero match fixing scandal. One of the players was keeper Massimo Cacciatori. There were six matches remaining and the Biancocelesti were in the thick of the relegation battle. Avagliano played two and Budoni played four contributing to helping Lazio avoid relegation. Budoni played in the epic game won against Catanzaro but unfortunately Lazio were then punished with relegation anyway for their players' involvement in the scandal.
In 1980 Budoni went to Siena on loan. The "Robur" were in C2 and finished 4th, first under Giorgio Bravi and then Costanzo Balleri. Budoni played 34 league games.
In 1981-82 he joined Empoli again on loan. The Azzurri were in C1 and finished 14th. The manager was first Narciso Pezzotti and then Giampiero Vitali. Budoni played every league game, 34. One interesting teammate was a young Fausto Salsano who would later join Sampdoria and win the Coppa Italia four times plus the European Winners’ Cup.
In 1982-83 he joined Brescia in Serie C1. The main keeper was Giorgio Pellizzaro and Budoni only played one league game. The Rondinelle finished 11th.
In 1983-84 he joined Piacenza in C2. Again, he was reserve keeper and only made one league appearance. The Biancorossi were promoted under Battista Rota.
In 1984-85 he was back at Brescia. The main keeper was Roberto Aliboni and Budoni only played one game in Coppa Italia. The Rondinelle won the league and were promoted to Serie B under Antonio Pasinato.
In 1985-86 he was with Massese in Serie C2 and he finally played regularly again. The Apuani finished 7th and Budoni played 32 league games.
His last club was Spezia between 1986-1988 in Serie C. The Bianconeri finished 12th and 6th and Budoni played a total of 26 league games. One of his managers was, future Italy, Gian Piero Ventura while the other was Sergio Carpanesi.
Budoni then retired at not even 30.
He then had another career in 5-a-side football. He played almost twenty years for teams in and around Rome, where this sport is immensely popular.
He then became a 5-a-side coach for another twenty years. He won a Serie C championship as Nepi's coach and then a Serie B as assistant the year later (2002-03).
He now does some punditry for Lazio Style Channel, the club's official TV and radio channel.
Budoni was a goalkeeper. He was not particularly physical at 1.72 and 69 kilos. He did not have a high-level career but played over a hundred games in the 3rd and 4th tiers.
His peak was with Lazio in Serie A. He is still remembered for stepping in for Massimo Cacciatori and contributing to saving Lazio on the field but sadly they were then regulated anyway but Budoni had done his bit.
Lazio Career
Season | Total Appearances Serie A |
1979-80 | 4 |
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