Italian Sports Legends
The greatest italian sports people of all time — across 15 sports.
⚽ Football
Italian
Alessandro Del Piero
Forward/Attacking Midfielder
Italian football legend and attacking midfielder/forward who captained Juventus for over a decade…
Italian
Alessandro Nesta
Centre Back
One of the most elegant defenders in football history, whose grace and reading of the game defined…
Italian
Andrea Pirlo
Deep-Lying Playmaker
Italian football midfielder and manager, renowned as one of the greatest deep-lying playmakers of…
Italian
Fabio Cannavaro
Centre Back
Italy's 2006 World Cup-winning captain and Ballon d'Or winner — one of the finest defenders of his…
Italian
Federico Chiesa
Winger / Forward
Explosive Italian forward whose directness and ability to score in big moments made him a hero of…
Italian
Filippo Inzaghi
Forward
The ultimate poacher — a predatory striker who lived on the shoulder of the last defender and…
Italian
Francesco Totti
Forward/Attacking Midfielder
Francesco Totti was born in Rome in 1976, grew up a Roma supporter and spent his entire 25-year…
Italian
Franco Baresi
Centre Back/Sweeper
AC Milan's imperious sweeper and Italy captain — arguably the greatest defensive organiser the game…
Italian
Gennaro Gattuso
Midfielder
The ultimate midfield warrior — a ferociously competitive battler who protected AC Milan's defence…
Italian
Gianfranco Zola
Forward/Attacking Midfielder
The little magician — voted Chelsea's greatest ever player by the fans who watched him.
Italian
Gianluigi Buffon
Goalkeeper
Italy's World Cup-winning goalkeeper and Juventus's towering presence in goal across three decades…
Italian
Gianluigi Donnarumma
Goalkeeper
The Euro 2020 Golden Glove winner who debuted at 16 — Italy's most important goalkeeper since…
Italian
Lorenzo Insigne
Winger / Forward
Italian forward who captained Napoli to Coppa Italia glory and was instrumental in Italy's Euro…
Italian
Marco Verratti
Midfielder
Diminutive Italian maestro whose close control and passing in tight spaces made him one of the…
Italian
Mario Balotelli
Forward
Supremely talented but unpredictable Italian striker whose brilliance and controversy made him one…
Italian
Nicolò Barella
Midfielder
Dynamic Italian box-to-box midfielder whose energy, technique and leadership have made him one of…
Italian
Paolo Maldini
Left Back/Centre Back
Paolo Cesare Maldini was born in Milan in 1968, the son of AC Milan captain Cesare Maldini, and…
Italian
Roberto Baggio
Forward/Attacking Midfielder
The Divine Ponytail — Italy's 1994 World Cup Golden Boot winner whose missed penalty in the final…
Italian
Roberto Mancini
Forward/Manager
Italian football player and manager who won Serie A with Sampdoria and Lazio as a player, then led…
Italian
Salvatore Schillaci
Centre Forward
Toto Schillaci — the most celebrated one-tournament wonder in football history who came from…
Italian
Stephan El Shaarawy
Forward / Winger
Exciting Italian-Egyptian forward nicknamed 'Il Faraone' who burst onto the scene at AC Milan…
🎾 Tennis
Italian
Flavia Pennetta
Singles
Flavia Pennetta is an Italian former professional tennis player who won the 2015 US Open, defeating…
Italian
Francesca Schiavone
Singles
Francesca Schiavone is an Italian former professional tennis player who became the first Italian…
Italian
Jannik Sinner
Player
Jannik Sinner is an Italian professional tennis player who has won five Grand Slam singles titles…
Italian
Jasmine Paolini
Singles
Jasmine Paolini is an Italian professional tennis player who reached the French Open and Wimbledon…
Italian
Lorenzo Musetti
Singles
Italian player admired for his classical one-handed backhand who won an Olympic bronze medal in…
Italian
Matteo Berrettini
Singles
Italian player known for his booming serve who reached the 2021 Wimbledon final, the first Italian…
🏃 Athletics
🏊 Swimming
Italian
Federica Pellegrini
Freestyle (Middle Distance)
Italian freestyler who won Olympic gold in the 200m freestyle (2008) and set world records in…
Italian
Thomas Ceccon
Backstroke
Versatile Italian swimmer who smashed the 100m backstroke world record en route to World and…
🚴 Cycling
Italian
Elisa Longo Borghini
Road Cyclist (Classics/Climber)
A versatile Italian classics specialist and climber who has won two Giro d'Italia Women titles and…
Italian
Fausto Coppi
Road Cyclist
Nicknamed 'Il Campionissimo,' Coppi is considered one of cycling's greatest all-rounders, excelling…
Italian
Gino Bartali
Road Cyclist
A devout Catholic and rival of Fausto Coppi, Bartali combined elite racing success with wartime…
Italian
Marco Pantani
Road Cyclist (Climber)
Italian climbing specialist regarded as one of the greatest mountain riders ever, whose career was…
Italian
Vincenzo Nibali
Road Cyclist (GC/Climber)
Italian road cyclist nicknamed 'The Shark of Messina,' one of only seven riders in history to win…
🏎️ Formula 1
Italian
Andrea Kimi Antonelli
Driver
Italian Formula 1 driver who became the youngest driver to test a modern F1 car at age 17 and…
Italian
Giancarlo Fisichella
Driver
Italian Formula 1 driver who competed from 1996-2009, achieving 3 Grand Prix victories and 19…
Italian
Jarno Trulli
Driver
Italian Formula One driver known for exceptional qualifying pace and defensive driving, winning…
Italian
Lella Lombardi
Racing Driver
Italian Formula 1 racing driver who became the first and only woman to score World Championship…
Italian
Maria Teresa de Filippis
Racing Driver
Italian Formula 1 racing driver who became the first woman to compete in F1 World Championship…
⛷️ Alpine Skiing
Italian
Alberto Tomba
Slalom / Giant Slalom
Italian slalom/GS icon who won three Olympic golds and became the sport's first global celebrity.
Italian
Federica Brignone
Giant Slalom / Super-G
Italian alpine skier and two-time Olympic champion who became the first Italian woman to win the…
Italian
Sofia Goggia
Downhill
Italian downhill specialist who won Olympic gold in 2018 and has claimed four World Cup downhill…
Italian
Deborah Compagnoni
Giant Slalom / Slalom / Super-G
Italian racer who won Olympic gold in three straight Games (1992, 1994, 1998), becoming Italy's…
Italian
Gustav Thoni
Giant Slalom / Slalom
Italian skiing legend who dominated the technical disciplines in the early 1970s, winning four…
⛸️ Figure Skating
🏔️ Winter Sports
Italian
Armin Zöggeler
Luger
Italian luger nicknamed 'The Cannibal,' the most decorated athlete in luge history who became the…
Italian
Manuela Di Centa
Cross-Country Skier
Italian cross-country skier who achieved an unmatched feat at the 1994 Lillehammer Olympics,…
🏁 Motorsport
Italian
Andrea Dovizioso
MotoGP Rider
Italian MotoGP rider known for his consistency and three consecutive runner-up finishes in the…
Italian
Giacomo Agostini
Grand Prix Motorcycle Racer
15 World Championship titles — Giacomo Agostini is the most decorated motorcycle racer in history.
Italian
Loris Capirossi
Motorcycle Racer
Italian motorcycle racer who won three World Championships across 125cc and 250cc categories, with…
Italian
Pecco Bagnaia
MotoGP Rider
Italian MotoGP rider and two-time world champion, known for his precision, racecraft and dominant…
Italian
Valentino Rossi
MotoGP Rider
Italian motorcycle racer widely regarded as one of the greatest MotoGP riders of all time, known…
🏐 Volleyball
Italian
Ivan Zaytsev
Outside Hitter
Italian-Russian volleyball player and opposite hitter who captained Italy to European Championship…
Italian
Paola Egonu
Opposite Hitter
Italian volleyball player and outside hitter, considered one of the world's best players, Olympic…
Italian
Simone Giannelli
Setter
Italian volleyball setter who captains the national team and plays professionally in Italy's…