Officially the city entered the history in 1064 AD when the "Castra" was occupied by Norman warriors led by Robert Guiscard.

In 1090, during the county of his son Roger Borsa, the sanctuary of "Saint Mary of the Castle" Madonna del Castello was built.

During the House of Hohenstaufen rule in southern Italy, the town obtained the title of city and was the starting point for the evangelization of Calabria by the Minor Friars Order, founded by St. Francis from Assisi.

The town was served, until 1978,[3] by a railway station on the now abandoned narrow gauge line Lagonegro-Lauria-Castrovillari-Spezzano Albanese, owned by the regional company Ferrovie della Calabria.

The team played for several seasons in the Serie C2,[4] the fourth highest football league in Italy and the lowest with a professional status.