Franco Baresi, the legendary former AC Milan defender and Italy international, has passed away at the age of 66.
Baresi played 719 games for Milan across 20 consecutive seasons, winning six Serie A titles and three European Cups (Champions Leagues).
He also played 81 times for the Italy national team, with whom he won the 1982 World Cup.
“The entire history of Milan is in tears following the passing of Franco Baresi,” a Milan club statement read on Friday. “His example and integrity will be forever etched into the club’s DNA, just as his iconic number 6 shirt is.
La Storia del Milan è in lacrime per la scomparsa di Franco Baresi. Il suo esempio e la sua profondità saranno, per sempre come la sua maglia numero 6, parte integrante e fondamentale del DNA e del cammino di tutto il Club. Le condoglianze che AC Milan porge alla famiglia tutta… pic.twitter.com/a8wNOCUc2o
— AC Milan (@acmilan) July 31, 2026
“The condolences Milan extends to Franco Baresi’s family at such a difficult time are shared by every Rossonero, who feels this loss as their own.”
Juventus, the 36-time Italian champions, posted: “There are people who, with their talent, enter history. And others who, with their humanity, remain there forever. Franco Baresi was both.
“Class, style, leadership, and respect on and off the field. An example for generations of players and fans, loved and admired by all football enthusiasts. His memory will live on forever.
“Juventus Football Club stands in solidarity with the Baresi family and AC Milan in this moment of profound sorrow.”
Napoli wrote on social media: “Our President Aurelio De Laurentiis, (head coach, Max) Allegri, the executives, and all of Napoli express their deepest condolences for the passing of Franco Baresi, a flag and legend of Milan and of the entire panorama of Italian football.”
A statement from the Italian league read: “Serie A expresses its condolences for the passing of Franco Baresi and stands with his family in this sorrowful moment.”
By The Athletic’s Serie A correspondent James Horncastle
Baresi played for three great Milan sides. First, the Scudetto della Stella team, then the Immortals and the Invincibles. He credited Nils Liedholm in particular with playing a transformative role in his career. The Swede had granted Baresi his debut in 1978, then, upon his return to the club in 1984, he introduced the zonal marking schemes he had used at Roma.
Everyone else in Italy played man-to-man with a libero sweeping up behind the rest of the defence. This change laid the groundwork for Liedholm’s successor, Arrigo Sacchi, to take the world by storm. It also allowed Baresi to express his full potential.
“Physically, I was not a giant,” he admitted in his memoir, “and that limited me when playing man-to-man. I made up for it by being aggressive, anticipating what my opponent was going to do and then moving into tight spaces at maximum speed. These were all trademarks of Liedholm’s system in which I went from being an old-school libero — a player detached from the rest of the defensive line by a few metres, acting as cover — to a centre-back in line with the rest of the defence, participating more actively in our attacks.”
The synchronicity of Milan’s offside line and the intensity of their pressing under Sacchi changed the game forever. So did the ambitious vision of their new owner Silvio Berlusconi, who cared as much about how Milan won as winning itself. They lifted the European Cup in 1989 and retained it the following year, a feat no one repeated until 2017, when Real Madrid went back-to-back.
When Sacchi left to take over the national team, a drop-off was expected. Instead, Milan went a record 58 league games without defeat and won the European Cup again in 1994.
