AC Milan and Italy great Franco Baresi dies aged 66 | OneFootball

Franco Baresi, the elegant Italian libero and symbol of AC Milan’s late 1980s greatness, has died aged 66, the club said on Friday.

A one-club man, he came through at Milan and made 716 appearances with 33 goals between 1977 and his 1997 retirement. Born in Travagliato, he was part of Italy’s 1982 World Cup winners, though he did not play.

Runner-up for the Ballon d’Or in 1989, he was named in FIFA 100 in 2004 and entered the Italian Football Hall of Fame in 2013. Nicknamed "Il Capitano" for a long spell as skipper, he won six Serie A titles in 1979, 1988, 1992, 1993, 1994 and 1996, plus three European titles in 1989, 1990 and 1994.

He returned to play the 1994 World Cup final against Brazil, which ended 0-0 before Italy lost 3-2 on penalties. He won 81 caps, scoring one goal, and helped reshape the libero role.

Comfortable on the ball and a regular penalty taker, he was rejected at 14 by Inter Milan and Atalanta before convincing Milan. He stayed through relegations to Serie B in 1980 after the Totonero scandal and again in 1982, then rose to glory in the Berlusconi-Sacchi era. Milan later retired his number six, and his style influenced Paolo Maldini.

He underwent surgery in August 2025 to remove a lung nodule, followed by immunotherapy, and reappeared publicly in the autumn to warm acclaim at San Siro. Briefly Fulham’s director of football from May to September 2002, he later held several roles at Milan, from coaching the Primavera to becoming honorary vice-president in 2020.

Source: L'Équipe