Italy national under-21 football team facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Italy Under-21

Nickname(s)	Gli Azzurrini (The Little Blues)
Association	Italian Football Federation (Federazion Italia Giuoco Calcio – FIGC)
Head coach	Carmine Nunziata
Captain	Lorenzo Pirola
Most caps	Andrea Pirlo (46)
Top scorer	Alberto Gilardino (19)
First colours Second colours
First international
U-23: Italy 3–1 Austria (Varese, Italy; 1 November 1970) U-21: Portugal 1–0 Italy (Funchal, Italy; 23 December 1976)
Biggest win
Italy 7–0 Estonia (Catanzaro, Italy; 23 March 1995) Italy 8–1 Wales (Pavia, Italy; 5 September 2003) Italy 7–0 Liechtenstein (Casarano, Italy; 6 September 2012) San Marino 0–7 Italy (Serravale, San Marino; 16 November 2023) Italy 7–0 San Marino (Latina, Italy; 5 September 2024)
Biggest defeat
Norway 6–0 Italy (Stavanger, Norway; 5 June 1991) Records for competitive matches only.
Olympic Games
Appearances	5 (first in 1992)
Best result	Bronze medallist (2004)
UEFA U-21 Championship
Appearances	22 (first in 1978)
Best result	Champions (1992, 1994, 1996, 2000, 2004)
Medal record Italy national under-21 football team Medal record Men's Football Bronze 2004 Athens Team

The Italy national under-21 football team is a special football team for young players from Italy. It is managed by the Italian Football Federation. These players are usually under 21 years old.

The team plays in the UEFA European Under-21 Championship, which happens every two years. Italy is one of the most successful teams in this competition. They have won it five times! They won in 1992, 1994, 1996, 2000, and 2004. They also finished second twice, in 1986 and 2013.

Between 1990 and 2004, the Italian Under-21 team was super strong. They won five out of seven tournaments during that time.

The Italy Under-21 team played the very first match at the new Wembley Stadium in England. This was on March 24, 2007, against England's Under-21 team. The game ended in a 3–3 draw, with Giampaolo Pazzini scoring all three goals for Italy.

Before the 2008 Olympic Games, the Italy U-21 team won the 2008 Toulon Tournament. They beat Chile 1–0 in the final. This was their first time winning this tournament. Before that, they had finished second twice.

Team Achievements

Here are some of the big wins and achievements for the Italy Under-21 football team:

• UEFA European Under-21 Championship

• Winners: 1992, 1994, 1996, 2000, 2004
• Second place: 1986, 2013

• Summer Olympics

• Third place: 2004 (Bronze medal)

• Mediterranean Games

• Winners: 1997

• Maurice Revello Tournament (also known as Toulon Tournament)

• Winners: 2008
• Third place: 2011, 2024

UEFA European Under-21 Championship History

The rules for the Under-21 competition say that players must be 21 or younger when the two-year tournament starts. This means it's actually like an Under-23 competition. Italy's results in older Under-23 competitions are also included below.

• 1972: Did not make it. They finished second in their group.
• 1974: Lost in the quarter-finals.
• 1976: Did not make it. They finished second in their group.

UEFA U-21 Championship Results

Year	Round
1978	Quarter-finals
1980
1982
1984	Semi-finals
1986	Runners-up
1988	Quarter-finals
1990	Semi-finals
1992	Champions
1994
1996
1998	Did not qualify
2000	Champions
2002	Semi-finals
2004	Champions
2006	Group stage
2007
2009	Semi-finals
2011	Did not qualify
2013	Runners-up
2015	Group stage
2017	Semi-finals
2019	Group stage
2021	Quarter-finals
2023	Group stage
2025	Qualified
Total	22/24

*The red border means the tournament was held in Italy.

Olympic Football History

Since 1992, Olympic football has been mostly for Under-23 teams. European Under-21 teams qualify for the Olympics through the UEFA European U-21 Championship.

• Before 1992: For results, see the Italy national football team.
• 1992: Quarter-finals
• 1996: Group stage
• 2000: Quarter-finals
• 2004: Bronze medal (Third place)
• 2008: Quarter-finals
• 2012: Did not qualify
• 2016: Did not qualify
• 2020: Did not qualify
• 2024: Did not qualify

Older Players in Olympic Games

Sometimes, a few players older than 23 are allowed to play in the Olympics. Here are some of them for Italy:

Mediterranean Games History

The football tournament at the Mediterranean Games was for Under-23 teams in 1993 and 1997.

• 1993: 4th place
• 1997: Winners
• 2001: This was an Under-20 event.
• 2005: A "B team" (reserve team) played.

Team Coaches

Here are the coaches who have led the Italy Under-21 team over the years:

• 1976–1986: Azeglio Vicini
• 1986–1996: Cesare Maldini
• 1996–1997: Rossano Giampaglia
• 1997–2000: Marco Tardelli
• 2000–2006: Claudio Gentile
• 2006–2010: Pierluigi Casiraghi
• 2010–2012: Ciro Ferrara
• 2012–2013: Devis Mangia
• 2013–2019: Luigi Di Biagio
• 2019–2023: Paolo Nicolato
• 2023–present: Carmine Nunziata

Current Players

Players born in 2002 or later can play in the 2025 UEFA European Under-21 Championship. Players whose names are in bold have also played for the main senior team.

Current Squad

These players were called up for friendly matches in November 2024. Numbers for games played (caps) and goals scored are correct as of November 19, 2024.

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
	1GK	Sebastiano Desplanches	(2003-03-11) 11 March 2003 (age 22)	11	0	Palermo
	1GK	Gioele Zacchi	(2003-07-10) 10 July 2003 (age 21)	5	0	Latina
	1GK	Jacopo Sassi	(2003-07-24) 24 July 2003 (age 21)	2	0	Modena
	2DF	Lorenzo Pirola (captain)	(2002-02-20) 20 February 2002 (age 23)	20	3	Olympiacos
	2DF	Mattia Zanotti	(2003-02-11) 11 February 2003 (age 22)	13	0	Lugano
	2DF	Matteo Ruggeri	(2002-07-11) 11 July 2002 (age 22)	12	0	Atalanta
	2DF	Daniele Ghilardi	(2003-01-06) 6 January 2003 (age 22)	11	1	Hellas Verona
	2DF	Riccardo Turicchia	(2003-02-05) 5 February 2003 (age 22)	8	0	Catanzaro
	2DF	Diego Coppola	(2003-12-28) 28 December 2003 (age 21)	7	0	Hellas Verona
	2DF	Nicolò Bertola	(2003-03-23) 23 March 2003 (age 22)	6	0	Spezia
	2DF	Giovanni Bonfanti	(2003-01-17) 17 January 2003 (age 22)	4	0	Pisa
	2DF	Michael Kayode	(2004-07-10) 10 July 2004 (age 20)	4	0	Fiorentina
	2DF	Gabriele Guarino	(2004-04-14) 14 April 2004 (age 21)	1	0	Carrarese
	2DF	Marco Palestra	(2005-03-03) 3 March 2005 (age 20)	1	0	Atalanta
	3MF	Cher Ndour	(2004-07-27) 27 July 2004 (age 20)	15	2	Beşiktaş
	3MF	Cesare Casadei	(2003-01-10) 10 January 2003 (age 22)	12	3	Chelsea
	3MF	Giovanni Fabbian	(2003-01-14) 14 January 2003 (age 22)	12	4	Bologna
	3MF	Fabio Miretti	(2003-08-03) 3 August 2003 (age 21)	11	1	Genoa
	3MF	Matteo Prati	(2003-12-28) 28 December 2003 (age 21)	10	0	Cagliari
	4FW	Wilfried Gnonto	(2003-11-05) 5 November 2003 (age 21)	12	5	Leeds United
	4FW	Francesco Pio Esposito	(2005-06-28) 28 June 2005 (age 19)	11	7	Spezia
	4FW	Cristian Volpato	(2003-11-15) 15 November 2003 (age 21)	8	1	Sassuolo
	4FW	Giuseppe Ambrosino	(2003-09-10) 10 September 2003 (age 21)	5	1	Frosinone
	4FW	Simone Pafundi	(2006-03-14) 14 March 2006 (age 19)	1	0	Lausanne

Team Records

These tables show the players with the most games played and most goals scored for the Italy Under-21 team. Players in bold can still play for the Under-21 team. Games and goals from the Olympic team are included.

Most Games Played

Here are the top 10 players with the most appearances for the Under-21 team:

Top Goal Scorers

Here are the top 10 players who have scored the most goals for the Under-21 team:

Images for kids

• 

  Badge of the Italy Under-21 team.

• 

  A bronze medal, like the one won by Italy at the 2004 Summer Olympics.

See also

In Spanish: Selección de fútbol sub-21 de Italia para niños

• Italy national football team
• Italy national under-20 football team
• UEFA European Under-21 Championship
• Football at the Summer Olympics