The town most likely owes its name to the Latin Ripellium, due to its location on the banks of the Ticino River, or to Gruppellum, meaning a small cluster of houses.

The Visconti family of Breme and Gropello, divided into several branches, held the co-lordship of the fiefdom in the following centuries (which also included Zerbolò and Carbonara al Ticino).

After the end of feudalism (1797), the Taverna family remained the owners of the castle and a vast estate, which they sold in 1845 to the Pavia-born surgeon and university professor Carlo Cairoli.

Ornamenti esteriori da Città.» «Silver, with a cross of shortened arms in red, surrounded by eight blue T's, paired in twos, one upright and the other upside down.

On May 3, 2011, Gropello Cairoli was named a "city for historical merits", and on the occasion of the event, a commemorative plaque was placed on the front of the town hall.

In the municipal area lies the Bosco Francesco Barbieri, located near the town center and at the foot of the terrace that marks the boundary of the Ticino valley.

The most typical product is the "Il Cairoli" biscuit, made by four local bakeries using rice flour, wheat, corn, sugar, eggs, yeast, and a few drops of lemon to commemorate Garibaldi's expedition to Sicily.

The promotion was maintained the following year after a play-out tie against Gambolò and again in the 2012–13 tournament, when finishing in eighth place marked the highest point ever reached by Gropello soccer.

After being relegated the following year and further dropping to Third Category at the end of the 2015–16 season, ASD Gropello San Giorgio started to climb back up, winning the promotion playoffs on May 21, 2017.

regional championships in Lombardy, earning promotion to Serie C in May 2016 (winning the playoff tiebreaker against Alto Verbano of Luino) and maintaining the category the following year.