The Return of Serie A: How Italian Club Football Found Its Way Back | OneFootball

If you’re not watching Serie A right now, you’re missing one of the best comeback stories in modern football. Long labeled as slow and defensive, Italy’s top flight has reinvented itself, blending attacking intent, tactical depth, and smart squad building into a league that feels relevant, competitive, and genuinely fun again.

From the late 1980s through the early 2000s, Serie A stood alone at the top of the footballing world. No other league could match its combination of tactical sophistication, elite defenders, superstar attackers, and sheer depth of quality.

Even mid-table sides were stacked. Fiorentina and Cagliari weren’t title contenders, yet they fielded players like Rui Costa, Gabriel Batistuta, and Enzo Francescoli. At its peak, Serie A was home to Diego Maradona, Ronaldo Nazário, George Weah, Roberto Baggio, Alessandro Del Piero, Zinedine Zidane, and Pavel Nedvěd — many of them playing at the same time. It was the global center of the sport.

But by the early 2000s, the foundation began to crack. The Premier League, initially riding the global popularity of Manchester United, marketed itself aggressively as fast, exciting, and attack-driven. Over time, and with growing financial muscle, it truly did become the world’s strongest league. La Liga would soon follow, perfectly timed with the rise of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.

Serie A, meanwhile, was caught on the wrong side of money, structure, and timing.

While other leagues invested in new stadiums, modern broadcasting deals, and global branding, Italian football clung to outdated systems and slow bureaucracy. Clubs overspent without long-term planning, infrastructure aged badly, and repeated scandals eroded trust among fans and sponsors alike. All of this led to many clubs having major financial issues over the years.

The most damaging moment came in 2006 with Calciopoli. Senior executives from major clubs were exposed for influencing referee appointments to tilt matches before kickoff. Juventus sat at the center of the scandal, and authorities ruled that several titles had been won under unfair conditions.

The punishment was severe. Juve were stripped of championships and relegated, and the entire league took a reputational hit. International credibility collapsed, star players left, and Serie A suddenly felt smaller, poorer, and less relevant.

Even as Inter won a treble and Juventus rebounded to win nine straight scudettos in the 2010s, the league as a whole never resembled its former self, aside from the occasional standout player.

How Serie A Turned the Corner

Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images

Rather than trying to outspend and directly compete with the financial giants in the Premier League and La Liga, Serie A chose a different path. Clubs shifted toward smarter recruitment, sustainable budgets, and long-term planning. Instead of chasing headline signings, they focused on building coherent projects.

That strategy is visible across the league today. Players like Lautaro Martínez (Inter), Christian Pulisic (Milan), Nico Paz (Como), Scott McTominay (Napoli), and Dušan Vlahović (Juventus) were signed as cornerstones, not short-term fixes, within defined sporting plans. Some had huge success, while others had their hiccups.

Just as important, competitiveness returned. Serie A is no longer a one-team league. Napoli, Inter, Milan, Juventus, Roma, Lazio, and Atalanta all begin seasons with real belief, restoring tension and unpredictability to the title race. The league has become one of the most bet on in the world, and some sites will even let you wager without ID checks.

Italian clubs have also reasserted themselves in European competition. Deeper runs in continental tournaments have boosted confidence, raised revenues, and earned the league additional Champions League spots. Financially, Serie A is healthier too, driven by better governance, new investors, improved commercial strategies, and fairer revenue distribution.

The results speak for themselves. Over the last five seasons, Serie A has seen three different champions: Napoli and Inter both have two titles, while Milan has one. For comparison, the league saw three different winners over the previous 19-season span between 2001-2020.

The 2025-26 campaign has only reinforced the trend. Fans are witnessing one of Europe’s tightest title races, with Inter, Milan, Napoli, Roma, and Juventus separated by 10 points or fewer. Beyond the usual contenders, clubs like Lazio, Como, and Atalanta have made the mid-table battle must-watch viewing.

And perhaps most importantly, the football itself has changed. The era of rigid, defensive “bunker ball” is largely gone. While Italian teams remain tactically disciplined, today’s Serie A is quicker, braver, and far more attacking than its reputation suggests.

Defensive organization still matters, but teams press higher, circulate the ball faster, and commit more bodies forward. Flexible systems like 3-5-2 and 4-3-3 shift fluidly during matches. Playing out from the back is standard, wing-backs are vital attacking outlets, and transitions are sharper and more aggressive.

Steady Growth, with an Eye Overseas

Serie A’s international profile is rising again, even if it still trails the Premier League in raw reach. Improved TV deals, particularly in North America, the Middle East, and parts of Asia, have increased visibility and stabilized broadcast income.

Clubs like Inter, Milan, Juventus, and Napoli drive much of this momentum through global fanbases, strong digital engagement, and consistent European appearances.

The league has also experimented creatively, partnering with the NHL to expand its footprint in the U.S. and Canada, featuring cultural figures like Spike Lee in Inter campaigns, and continuing to lean on South American stars such as Martínez to maintain relevance in traditional football markets.

Serie A has also tapped into Italy’s vast global diaspora, using shared heritage and identity to reconnect with fans abroad and strengthen brand recognition.

Behind the scenes, the league is pushing for further growth. International media rights remain a priority, and Serie A appointed U.S. investment bank JP Morgan as an advisor for global development in September, signaling a more ambitious commercial outlook.

Not Perfect, But Clearly Moving Forward

Serie A still has issues to solve. Like many European leagues, it relies heavily on foreign talent, and Italian players are increasingly absent from starting lineups at top clubs. Traditionalists aren’t thrilled to see fewer Italians at Juventus, Milan, or Inter, but this reflects the broader globalization of modern football.

The national team’s struggles haven’t helped either. Italy is still fighting to return to the World Cup in 2026, and a successful qualification would give the domestic league a major boost after missing the previous two tournaments.

While the biggest global superstars continue to gravitate toward the Premier League and La Liga, Serie A’s upward trajectory suggests that elite names could once again see Italy as a destination, not just a stepping stone.

Tradition matters deeply in Italy. Calcio is woven into the country’s identity, and excellence on the pitch has long been part of that tradition. Today, investment is flowing back into clubs at unprecedented levels, with six teams now under full American ownership: Roma, Hellas Verona, Inter, Milan, Parma, and Pisa.

That influx of capital doesn’t always come with a deep understanding of club culture, and tensions can arise when historic institutions are treated like portfolio assets. But this is the reality of modern football, and Serie A is learning to navigate it.

The league isn’t flawless, but it is unmistakably back. Once again, it belongs firmly in the conversation as a must-watch league for football fans everywhere.