Napoli’s Return to the Champions League – Will They Go Further Than Their Italian Counterparts? | OneFootball

SSC Napoli are back in the Champions League. It’s a competition that will get the fanbase excited, but also a tournament they are yet to leave their mark on in their storied and romantic history.

The last time Napoli were in the Champions League was for the 2023-24 tournament. They didn’t make it further than the round of 16, suffering three losses and two draws, concluding a terrible year for the team. Their Serie A season performance was no better, finishing 10th in the league.

The 2024-25 Serie A campaign saw Napoli turn a corner. What an incredible season they had. Crowned champions in the final match of the season with a 2-0 win against Cagliari, it couldn’t have been more dramatic. What a way for them to win their fourth Scudetto.

Now, all eyes are on the Champions League. Will they outperform their Italian counterparts? Let’s explore.

Napoli’s Return to the Champions League

FLORENCE, ITALY – SEPTEMBER 13: Antonio Conte manager of SSC Napoli gestures during the Serie A match between ACF Fiorentina and SSC Napoli at Artemio Franchi on September 13, 2025 in Florence, Italy. (Photo by Gabriele Maltinti/Getty Images)

Napoli would have returned to the Champions League with or without their final match of the season’s iconic win, but what a way to do it.

Their return to the Champions League probably wouldn’t have been possible without Antonio Conte, the new coach since the beginning of the 2024 campaign. And the 2025-26 season should be no different. FourFourTwo always releases Champions League power rankings, and this year they’re putting Napoli at 9th favourite, ahead of Inter. And we understand why. Ahead of them are clubs like Barcelona, Real Madrid, Liverpool, Bayern, Arsenal and Manchester City. Those are massive clubs with massive signings who, we’re sorry to say, are likely to do better than Napoli.

Then again, who are we to talk; Napoli has signed Kevin De Bruyne on a free transfer, Rasmus Højlund, and Sam Beukema? Three big names to reinforce the defensive and attacking power that Napoli proved they have in 2024-25. They’ve spent a lot this summer, and it should show.

Their Italian Competition

Now, sign who you want, Napoli. But when your Italian competition is Juventus, Inter, and Atalanta, winning the league in the last minute is nothing. Well, Atalanta could be an easy win, but Juventus and Inter are true Italian powerhouses, and both always put in incredible Champions League performances. Well, Juventus didn’t last year, but that’s a story for another article. Inter most definitely did, but their 5-0 loss to PSG in the final was embarrassing.

So, for now, it’s difficult to tell whether Napoli will do better than their Italian counterparts. If we look at the Champions League betting odds, Inter are actually a little ahead of Napoli, with the Nerazzurri achieving two finals in three years, losing both. Inzaghi’s resignation after their demolition by PSG in the 24-25 final means Christian Chivu is tasked with continuing their fine Champions League form in a competition in which Napoli coach Conte has never performed well.

That being said, with signings like De Bruyne and Højlund, they have a stronger team than ever. They won 3/3 of their league games so far with solid performances, so let’s see what happens.

Their International Competition

FLORENCE, ITALY – SEPTEMBER 13: Sam Beukema of SSC Napoli celebrates after scoring a goal with Scott McTominay of SSC Napoli during the Serie A match between ACF Fiorentina and SSC Napoli at Artemio Franchi on September 13, 2025 in Florence, Italy. (Photo by Gabriele Maltinti/Getty Images)

It isn’t necessarily their Italian counterparts that Napoli have to worry about; it’s everyone else.

As we said earlier, Napoli are against teams like Real Madrid, Barcelona, Liverpool, PSG, Manchester City, and all the big names you’d expect to see in the Champions League are in the Champions League. And we’ll quickly see how well they perform against this team, as their first Champions League debut return game is against none other than Manchester City.

The 2025-26 Champions League Draw For Napoli

Napoli got placed in Pot 3 – the new Champions League classification system – which could have been better or worse.

Napoli will face Manchester City on September 18, which could have been better for Napoli. But no matter what pot they were placed in, they’d still have a big name to face. After that, they’ve got Sporting CP, PSV, Frankfurt, Qarabağ, Benfica, Copenhagen, and Chelsea.

We’d say all the teams between City and Chelsea will be breezy if they put in performances like they did during the 2024-25 Serie A season. Chelsea will definitely be rough, especially with Cole Palmer absolutely annihilating defences.

To give a deciding answer, we think Napoli will go further than most of their Italian counterparts, but not Inter. That’s the harsh truth. But who knows? Let’s see if Napoli proves us wrong.