Having been in the lower leagues, the team was forced to upgrade their stadium in accordance with Serie B regulations, and as construction hadn't finished by the beginning of the season, they played their first several home matches in nearby Chieti. After months of delays, when it finally did open in December, the severe winter weather and poor fertilizer made the pitch unplayable, causing their first fixture there to be called off. Later that month two of their players, Danilo Di Vincenzo and Pippo Biondi, died in a car crash.