Franco Baresi

Franco Baresi (Italian pronunciation: [ˈfraŋko baˈreːzi, -eːsi]; born Franchino Baresi; 8 May 1960 – 31 July 2026) was an Italian football player and manager. He mainly played as a central defender, and spent his entire 20-year career with Serie A club AC Milan, captaining the club for 15 seasons. Widely regarded as one of the greatest defenders of all time, he was ranked 19th in World Soccer magazine's list of the 100 greatest players of the 20th century. With Milan, he won three European Cup/UEFA Champions League titles, six Serie A trophies, four Supercoppa Italiana titles, two European Super Cups, and two Intercontinental Cups.

With the Italy national team, he was a member of the squad that won the 1982 FIFA World Cup, the first in 44 years. He also played in the 1990 World Cup held on home soil, where he was named in the FIFA World Cup All-Star Team, while leading them to a third place in the tournament. At the 1994 World Cup, he was named Italy's captain and was part of the squad that reached the final, although he would miss a penalty in the resulting shoot-out as Brazil lifted the trophy. Baresi also represented Italy at two UEFA European Championships, in 1980 and 1988, and at the 1984 Olympics, reaching the semi-finals on each occasion.

The younger brother of former footballer Giuseppe Baresi, after joining the Milan senior team as a youngster, Franco was initially nicknamed "Piscinin", Milanese for "little one". Due to his skill and success, he was later known as "Kaiser Franz", a reference to fellow sweeper Franz Beckenbauer. In 1999, he was voted Milan's Player of the Century. After his final season at Milan in 1997, the club retired Baresi's shirt number 6. He was named by Pelé one of the 125 Greatest Living Footballers at the FIFA centenary awards ceremony in 2004. Baresi was inducted into the Italian Football Hall of Fame in 2013.

Franco Baresi was born Franchino Baresi on 8 May 1960 on a farm in the small north Italian town of Travagliato, near Brescia. He did not watch football on television until he was 10. In 1999, Baresi legally changed his name to Franco.

Originally an AC Milan youth product, Baresi went on to spend his entire 20-year professional career with AC Milan, making his Serie A debut at age 17 during the 1977–78 season on 23 April 1978. He had initially been rejected by the Inter Milan youth team, who chose his brother Giuseppe instead, hence the Milan youth team signed Franco Baresi. The two brothers ended up captaining their respective teams shortly after, with their image while exchanging pennants became the trademark of Milan's derby della Madonnina throughout the 80s.

The following season, he was made a member of the starting 11, playing as a sweeper or as a centreback, winning the 1978–79 Serie A title, Milan's tenth overall, playing alongside Fabio Capello and Gianni Rivera.

This success was soon followed by a dark period in the club's history, when Milan was relegated to Serie B twice during the early 1980s. Milan were relegated in 1980 for being involved in the match fixing scandal of 1980, and once again after finishing third-last in the 1981–82 season, after having just returned to Serie A the previous season, after winning the 1980–81 Serie B title.

Despite being a member of the Euro 1980 Italy squad that had finished fourth, and the 1982 World Cup-winning team, Baresi elected to stay with Milan, winning the Serie B title for the second time during the 1982–83 season and bringing Milan back to Serie A. After Aldo Maldera and Fulvio Collovati left the club in 1982, Baresi was appointed Milan's captain, at age 22; he held this position for much of his time at the club, a record 15 seasons, also becoming a symbol and a leader for the team. During this bleak period for Milan, Baresi did manage to win a Mitropa Cup in 1982 and reached the Coppa Italia final during 1984–85 season, although the team failed to dominate in Serie A.

During the end of the 1980s and the first half of the 1990s, Baresi was at the heart of a notable all-Italian defence alongside Paolo Maldini, Alessandro Costacurta, Mauro Tassotti and later Christian Panucci, under managers Arrigo Sacchi and Fabio Capello, a defence which is regarded by many as one of the greatest of all time.

At age 20, while still playing in the Italy under-21 side, Baresi was named in Italy's 22-man squad for the 1980 European Championship (along with his older brother Giuseppe) by manager Enzo Bearzot. The tournament was held on home soil and Italy finished fourth. However, unlike his brother, Franco Baresi did not play a single match in the tournament. Euro 1980 would be the only time the two brothers were on the Italy squad together at a major tournament. At age 22, Baresi was named in Italy's squad for the 1982 FIFA World Cup. The Azzurri won their third World Cup, defeating West Germany 3–1 in the final, but Baresi, once again, was not selected to play a match throughout the tournament. Baresi was also a member of the Italy squad that took part in the 1984 Olympics. Italy finished in fourth place after a 2–1 semi-final defeat to Brazil, and after losing the bronze medal match 2–1 to Yugoslavia.

Baresi won his first senior international cap in a 1984 UEFA Championship qualifying match against Romania in Florence, on 14 December 1982, a 0–0 draw. Italy, however, ultimately failed to qualify for the final tournament.

Baresi was not included in Italy's squad for the 1986 World Cup by coach Enzo Bearzot, who saw him as being more of a midfielder than a defender (although his brother Giuseppe was selected as a defender for the World Cup, as well as Roberto Tricella). He returned to the team for the 1988 European Championship, playing as a sweeper and becoming an undisputed first team member and playing in every match under Azeglio Vicini; Italy reached the semi-finals, losing 2–0 to the Soviet Union. Prior to the tournament, he scored his only international goal from a penalty in a 4–1 friendly home win against the same opponent on 20 February 1988. He made his first appearance in a World Cup finals match in the 1990 tournament, which was held on home soil, and he played in every match as one of the starting centre-backs, as Italy finished in third-place, defeating England 2–1 in the third-place play-off, after being eliminated by defending champions Argentina in a penalty shootout following a 1–1 draw in the semi-finals. Baresi helped the Italian defence to keep five consecutive clean sheets, only conceding two goals, and going unbeaten for a World Cup record of 518 minutes, until they were beaten by an Claudio Caniggia's equaliser in the semi-final against Argentina. His performances earned him a spot on the 1990 World Cup Team of the tournament.

After replacing Giuseppe Bergomi as captain for the 1994 World Cup under his former manager at Milan, Arrigo Sacchi, Baresi sustained an injury to his meniscus in Italy's second group match, a 1–0 win against Norway, and missed most of the tournament. He returned to the squad 25 days later, in time for the final, with a dominant defensive performance, helping Italy to keep a clean sheet against Brazil, despite the key defensive absences of his Milan teammates Alessandro Costacurta and Mauro Tassotti. After a 0–0 deadlock following extra time, the match went to a penalty shootout, and Baresi subsequently missed his penalty, suffering from severe cramps and fatigue. Following misses by Daniele Massaro and Roberto Baggio, Italy were defeated by Brazil in the penalty shootout.

Following the World Cup defeat, Baresi made one more appearance for Italy, in an away UEFA Euro 1996 qualifying match against Slovenia on 7 September 1994, which ended in a 1–1 draw. Baresi subsequently retired from the national side at age 34, passing the captain's armband to his Milan teammate Paolo Maldini. Baresi amassed 81 caps for Italy, and he is one of seven players to have achieved the rare feat of winning Gold, Silver, and Bronze FIFA World Cup medals during his international career.

Baresi was known for his consistency and all-around defensive ability, combining physical strength with technical composure. He possessed notable attributes including pace, strength, concentration, and stamina, which contributed to his effectiveness in aerial situations despite not having the typical height for a centre-back.

Although Baresi was capable of playing anywhere along the backline, he mostly played in the four-man defense, usually positioned as a left centre back (although his stronger foot was right, he was good on the ball with both of his feet), and was often assigned the role of libero, where he combined his defensive attributes and his ability to read the game with his excellent vision, technique, distribution and ball skills. These qualities also enabled him to excel in a zonal marking system, maintain a high defensive line, and play the offside trap, in particular during his time at Milan under Sacchi; indeed, Baresi came to be known for often raising his arm towards the linesman whenever his team attempted to play the offside trap. Baresi's passing range, technical ability and ball control allowed him to advance forward into the midfield to start attacking plays from the back, enabling him to function as a secondary playmaker for his team, and also play as a defensive or central midfielder when necessary. Despite being a defender, he was also an accurate penalty kick taker. Baresi was known for being a strong and accurate tackler, who was very good at winning back possession, and at anticipating and intercepting plays, due to his acute tactical intelligence, speed of thought, marking ability and positional sense. A precocious talent in his youth, throughout the course of his career, he also stood out for his professionalism, athleticism, longevity, and discipline in training, as well as his outstanding leadership, commanding presence on the pitch and his organisational skills; indeed, he captained both Milan and the Italy national team.

Baresi played his entire 20-year career with Milan, becoming a central figure and a legend in the club's history. He captained the team for a record 15 seasons. During his time at Milan, he formed one of the most formidable defensive units of all time, alongside Paolo Maldini, Alessandro Costacurta, Mauro Tassotti, Filippo Galli, and later Christian Panucci. The defensive unit achieved a 929-minute unbeaten streak during the 1993–94 Serie A season, an Italian league record at the time, and also only conceded a Serie A record 15 goals in 34 league matches. Baresi also shares the record of most own goals scored in Serie A history (eight, along with Riccardo Ferri). At the 1990 World Cup, Baresi helped the Italy national team defence keep five consecutive clean sheets, only conceding two goals, and going unbeaten for a World Cup record of 518 minutes.

Baresi is widely regarded by many pundits, players, and managers as one of the greatest defenders and sweepers of all time; he was ranked 19th in World Soccer magazine's list of the 100 greatest players of the 20th century. He was nicknamed "Kaiser Franz" throughout his career, a reference to fellow sweeper Franz Beckenbauer. In 1999, he was voted Milan's Player of the Century. After his final season at Milan in 1997, the club retired Baresi's shirt number 6. He was named by Pelé one of the 125 Greatest Living Footballers at the FIFA centenary awards ceremony in 2004. Baresi was inducted into the Italian Football Hall of Fame in 2013.

On 1 June 2002, Baresi was officially appointed director of football at Fulham, but tensions between Baresi and then Fulham manager Jean Tigana led to his resignation from the club in August. He was then appointed head coach of Milan's Primavera Under-20 squad until 2004. In 2006, he was moved by the club to coach the Berretti Under-19 squad, with his former teammate Filippo Galli replacing him at the helm of the Primavera squad.

On 4 August 2008, Baresi joined Milan's marketing team as one of the directors. Following the conclusion of Silvio Berlusconi's presidency with the club, he became a brand ambassador for the club on 18 May 2017. On 28 October 2020, Baresi was named an honorary vice-president of the club.

Franco Baresi was the younger brother of Inter Milan defender Giuseppe Baresi. As youngsters, both players had trials for Inter, but Franco was rejected and signed by local rivals Milan. As he was the younger player, Franco was initially known as "Baresi 2". However, due to Franco's eventual great success and popularity throughout his career, which surpassed even that of his older brother's, Giuseppe later became known as "the other Baresi", despite also achieving notable success.

In 2004, Baresi was investigated for usury and money laundering related to fraud involving the sale of paintings. In October 2005, he accepted a plea bargain in which he received a five-month sentence reduced to a €5,900 fine.

In 1981, Baresi suffered from a blood infection that forced him out of play for nearly four months and worsened his health to the point of him needing a wheelchair. While in treatment, he participated in medical research for the disease.

In August 2025, Baresi had lung surgery to remove a pulmonary nodule. He then began a course of immunotherapy as a means of cancer prevention.

On 29 July 2026, Baresi was prematurely reported to have died by Tuttosport, with the unconfirmed information quickly spreading through Italian media and prompting tributes from fans and celebrities, including the country's deputy prime minister Matteo Salvini, a well-known Milan fan. In response, AC Milan urgently issued the official statement refuting the false claim that Baresi had died, yet hinting at him experiencing a major setback with his health. Baresi died two days later in hospital in Rozzano, Milan, at the age of 66. A day of city-wide mourning was declared on 4 August in Milan, and his funeral was held at the Basilica di Sant'Ambrogio with huge crowd of fans, former teammates, and opponents gathered to pay their respects.

Baresi is featured in the EA Sports football video game series FIFA 14's Classic XI – a multi-national all-star team, along with compatriots Bruno Conti, Gianni Rivera and Giacinto Facchetti. He was also named in the Ultimate Team Legends in FIFA 15.

Serie A: 1978–79, 1987–88, 1991–92, 1992–93, 1993–94, 1995–96

Supercoppa Italiana: 1988, 1992, 1993, 1994

European Cup/UEFA Champions League: 1988–89, 1989–90, 1993–94

FIFA World Cup: 1982; runner-up: 1994; third place: 1990

Serie A Team of The Year: 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1992