Five of 24 European Championship teams are led by an Italian.
Never before has a nation dominated so clearly on the coaching bench.
The secret is our ability to make the best of everything, even in difficult situations, says Renzo Ulivieri from the Italian Football Association.
When three teams had Dutch national coaches in the 2008 European Championship, it was a new record. Now the record is broken when five coaches in this year's European Championship are Italians.
The Italian national team is coached by Luciano Spalletti, who in 2023 led Napoli to a league title for the first time since Diego Maradona's glory days. In Turkey, it is Vincenzo Montella who is in charge, Belgium is coached by Domenico Tedesco, Slovakia is led by Francesco Calzona, and in Hungary, it is Marco Rossi who is in charge.
"Our coaches are outstanding for two reasons"
All coaches except Rossi reached the round of 16. At the Italian Football Association, the joy is great:
It is a great pride for Italian football and especially for our coach education, says Ulivieri to AP.
The Italian Football Association's coach education is world-renowned for producing high-quality coaches. At the Italian Football Association's training facility in Coverciano in Florence, many great coaches have been trained.
Among the Italian European Championship coaches, all except Tedesco have been trained there.
We think our coaches are outstanding for two reasons. We have a good coach education and then our coaches get a very educational training within our league system. Tactics are very important both in professional leagues and amateur football, says Ulivieri.
Success in European football
But it's not just at the national team level that Italian coaches are showing the way. During the past season, Italian coaches won both the Champions League, Carlo Ancelotti in Real Madrid, and the Europa League, Gian Piero Gasperini in Atalanta. Had Fiorentina, who were then coached by Vincenzo Italiano, won the Conference League final, Italian coaches would have achieved a "hat-trick".
Historically, no nationality has won as many Champions League titles on the coaching bench, and no coach surpasses the reigning champion: Real Madrid's Carlo Ancelotti, who has five total wins.
The secret is our ability to make the best of everything, even in difficult situations. An Italian-Naples art that is often useful as a coach, says Ulivieri.
Now the knockout matches in this year's European Championship finals begin with Spalletti's Italy facing Switzerland on Saturday. Italy is the reigning champion since Roberto Mancini led the team to gold in 2021.
Can Spalletti follow in his predecessor's footsteps?
Luciano Spalletti (Italy), Vincenzo Montella (Turkey), Domenico Tedesco (Belgium), Francesco Calzona (Slovakia), Marco Rossi (Hungary).
