Italy national rugby union team

For the rugby sevens side, see Italy national rugby sevens team.
Italy
Nickname(s) Azzurri
Union Federazione Italiana Rugby
Head coach Conor O'Shea
Captain Sergio Parisse
Most caps Sergio Parisse (120)
Top scorer Diego Dominguez (983)
Top try scorer Marcello Cuttitta (25)
Home stadium Stadio Olimpico
First colours
Second colours
World Rugby ranking
Current 13 (as of 21 November 2016)
Highest 8 (2007)
Lowest 15 (2015)
First international
Spain 9–0 Italy
(20 May 1929)
Biggest win
Italy 104–8 Czech Republic
(18 May 1994)
Biggest defeat
South Africa 101–0 Italy
(19 June 1999)
World Cup
Appearances 8 (First in 1987)
Best result Pool stage, 1987, 1991, 1995, 1999, 2003, 2007, 2011, 2015
Website www.federugby.it

The Italy national rugby union team represents the nation of Italy in the sport of rugby union. The team is also known as the Azzurri (Sky-Blues).

Italy has been playing international rugby since 1929, and for decades were considered one of the best European teams outside the Five Nations Championship. Since 2000, Italy competes annually in the Six Nations Championship with England, France, Ireland, Scotland and Wales. They were the holders of the Giuseppe Garibaldi Trophy for 2013, played annually against France. Italy is ranked 14th in the world by the IRB as of 22 April 2016.

Italian rugby really came to prominence in 2000 when it was added to the Five Nations, creating the Six Nations. Initially on the end of some heavy defeats, the side has grown in competitiveness, recording a fourth-place finish in 2007 and 2013, and even in defeat, lop-sided losses are less frequent. The Azzurri have shown respectable results when playing at home in recent years: during the 2011 Six Nations, the side defeated France 22–21, and in the 2013 Six Nations, Italy won again at home against France (23–18),[1] and defeated Ireland 22–15.[2]

Italy have also competed at every Rugby World Cup since the first tournament in 1987, but have yet to progress beyond the first round. The team has developed a reputation for being a consistent middle player at the tournament. Italy's showings since 2003 have consistently followed a formula where they managed two wins and two losses during the pool stages.

The current head coach is Conor O'Shea. Number eight Sergio Parisse is their current captain.[3]

History

Early history: 1911–34

The first match played by an Italian XV was in 1911 between US Milanese and Voiron of France. On 25 July of the same year the "Propaganda Committee" was formed which in 1928 became the Federazione Italiana Rugby (FIR) (Italian Rugby Federation).

In May 1929, Italy played their first international losing 9–0 against Spain in Barcelona. After the formation of FIRA in 1934, which brought together the national teams of Italy, France, Spain, Czechoslovakia, Romania and Germany

1945–99

World War II meant an hiatus for Italian rugby union, as it did in other rugby-playing nations. Post-war, there was a desire to return to normal and Italian rugby union entered a new dimension thanks to the help of Allied troops in Italy.

The lineup of the Italy national rugby union team vs France, 1975.

In the 1970s and 1980s rugby union made enormous progress thanks to great foreign players (John Kirwan, Naas Botha, David Campese, Michael Lynagh) and coaches (Julien Saby, Roy Bish, Greenwood, Nelie Smith) in the Italian championship. Even foreign coaches were and continue to be chosen for the national team, like Bertrande Fourcade and Georges Coste. In 1973, the national team went on a tour of South Africa, coached by ex-Springbok prop Amos Du Plooey. Tours of England and Scotland followed, as well as games against Australia and New Zealand, the masters of their day.

Since 1980, the Italian National side had been pursuing the ambition of playing in an expanded Five Nations Championship. Consistently winning against nations that now play in the European Nations Cup (Romania, Spain, Georgia, etc.), and good results against the major nations such as France, Scotland, Wales and Ireland meant that they were often talked as strong candidates.[4]

The Azzurri took part in the first-ever Rugby World Cup match against New Zealand on 22 May 1987. The match proved a one-sided affair with New Zealand convincing 70–6 winners against a young Italian side. John Kirwan, later to become the Italian national coach, scored one of the tournament’s greatest-ever tries for the All Blacks. Italy did, however, manage to beat Fiji and finished third in their pool; failing to make the finals.

At the 1991 World Cup, Italy were grouped in a tough pool with the likes of England and the All Blacks. They lost both of these games but beat the USA. At the 1995 World Cup in South Africa, Italy came close to beating England; losing 20–27, but recovered to beat Argentina. They finished third in their pool again below England and Western Samoa, but above the Argentines.

The current badge on the Italy jersey

The 1990s saw the Italians build a formidable side and record Test victories over Five Nations opposition. In 1996, a deal between British Sky Broadcasting and the Rugby Football Union meant that England home games were exclusively shown on Sky. England were threatened with being expelled from the Five Nations to be replaced by Italy. This threat was never carried out as a deal was worked out.

Italy recorded two consecutive victories over Ireland in 1997; 37–29 on 4 January, at Lansdowne Road, and 37–22 on 20 December, in Bologna.[5] On 22 March 1997 they recorded their first win over France, 40–32, (in Grenoble). In January 1998, Scotland were the victims with Italy winning 25–21 (in Treviso); in the same year in the Rugby World Cup Qualifiers, they narrowly lost 23–15 against England at Huddersfield, but they argued for a try by Alessandro Troncon disallowed by the referee.[6]

At the 1999 World Cup, Italy were drawn with New Zealand for the third time and lost again. They did not win a single pool match and went home before the knock-out stage.[7]

Six Nations era: 2000–present

Italy vs All Blacks at San Siro with Record 80,000 Sold Out Crowd. (Nov. 2009)

Italy finally joined the Six Nations Championship in 2000 but their admission coincided with the departure of some of their best players. Nevertheless, they won their opening game against the reigning champions Scotland 34–20. Thereafter they struggled to compete against the other nations and their participation was called into question. The 2001 and 2002 tournaments were particularly disappointing as they did not win a single game. Coach Brad Johnstone was sacked in 2002 after an alleged show of 'player power'.

John Kirwan was then appointed coach. Italy won two pool games at the 2003 World Cup, defeating both Canada and Tonga, but lost to the All Blacks and Wales. They managed to get their second Six Nations win in 2003 30–22 against Wales and Italy avoided the wooden spoon. They followed up by winning two games at the World Cup, another first, though the tournament was ultimately disappointing as the Welsh gained revenge with a 27–15 success that meant that Italy were the only Six Nations country not to advance to the knock-out stage. Their third win came against Scotland in 2004.

Italy, along with other nations, had made good use of IRB rules which allowed them to select foreign born players if they had Italian ancestry or had lived in Italy for a qualifying period of 3 years. From 2004 they announced that they would only pick three such 'non-Italians' per team in order to develop their own domestic players.

In the 2005 Six Nations Italy finished bottom of the table again and failed to win a single game. Kirwan was sacked and replaced with Pierre Berbizier. Italy then went on a tour of Argentina where they surprised many by beating the Pumas 30–29 and drawing the series 1–1 (the only 2005 victory of a northern hemisphere team visiting a southern hemisphere team). However the Pumas had their revenge when they visited Genoa and beat Italy 39–22.

Italy contesting a lineout with Scotland during the 2012 Six Nations

In the 2006 Six Nations Championship the Italian team performed strongly against every team, leading against both England and France in the first half, but lost their first three games. They did, however, get a creditable 18–18 draw away to Wales, their first ever away point in the tournament, and were unlucky not to draw with Scotland in Rome in the final game, losing 10–13 courtesy of a late Scottish penalty. In the 2007 Six Nations Championship, Italy started poorly, losing to France 3–39. However, Italy's performance improved, and they held England to a 20–7 result at Twickenham. Italy followed with a stunning start to their match at Murrayfield against Scotland, scoring three quick tries to give Italy a 21–0 lead after 7 minutes, and the Azzurri went on to a 37–17 victory; their first-ever away win in the Six Nations. Italy's next match was against Wales in Rome, with Italy winning 23–20, for their first consecutive victories in the competition and help them achieve their highest-ever position in the competition. The domestic interest in rugby reached new heights with Italy's new success front page media coverage and the sport being held up as a model of fair play.[8] Media and public interest in the national team was very high during the side's newfound success,[8] despite losing their last game to Ireland. 10,000 fans later greeted the national team at Rome's Piazza del Popolo.[8]

The 2008 Six Nations Championship saw the Italians again finish in last place, albeit by only a three-point margin. They took part in close matches against Ireland, Wales England and France respectively and managed a sole victory, defeating Scotland 23–20 in Rome in the last round of matches.[9] In the summer tests they lost to South Africa but again managed to surprise 3rd ranked Argentina with a 13–12 victory. At the 2008 end of year tour Italy pushed the Wallabies in their clash in Padova, but the Australians eventually went on to win 30–20. A week later the Italians were defeated by Argentina, 14–22.

Italy's 2009 Six Nations campaign was star-crossed almost from the beginning, with both scrum-halves ruled out of the competition before a ball was kicked, and a third alternative ruled out of the opener at England due to injury. Head coach Nick Mallett tried flanker Mauro Bergamasco at scrum-half. Mallett's gamble failed in epic fashion, with Bergamasco's mistakes leading to three England tries before he was replaced at the half; England went on to win 36–11.[10] In week two Italy also put in a poor performance against Ireland losing 38-9.[11] The two poor performances were followed by another loss to Scotland. The Azzurri were competitive in their 20–15 loss at the Flaminio to a Wales side resting many of its key players for the championship decider against Ireland the next week.[12] Italy finished in last place for the second straight year after losing to France on the final weekend of the tournament.

In the 2010 Six Nations Championship, Italy were well beaten by Ireland 29-11 before narrowly losing to England and defeating Scotland.[13][14] Italy were defeated in their last two matches against France and Wales.[15]

Italian fans on their way to see Italy play Scotland at Murrayfield in the Six Nations Championship, 2013

Italy finished the 2011 Six Nations with a 1–4 record. In the opening match of the 2011 Six Nations, Italy was beaten by Ireland 11–13 at home, with Ireland scoring a drop goal less than 2 minutes before the final whistle. The Azzurri claimed a 22–21 home victory over the reigning Six Nations champions, France, gaining Italy's first ever win over France in a Six Nations game.[16] At the final whistle, the English language commentator declared it the greatest win in Italian rugby history thus far.

Italy finished the 2012 Six Nations in fifth place with a 1–4 record, following a 13–6 win over Scotland before over 72,000 fans at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome. Italy's 15–19 defeat was Italy's closest ever margin to defeating England.[17] The championship also saw Italy lose to Wales, Ireland and France.[18]

Italy played three matches in the 2012 November internationals, losing two and winning one. The Italian's lost to New Zealand and Australia 22-19, with Italian fly half Luciano Orquera missing a penalty in the last minute which would have secured Italy's first ever draw against Australia.[19] Italy did manage a win in the series, beating Tonga 28-23.[20]

Italy gained their second ever Six Nations win over France when they beat them 23-18 on their opening match of the 2013 Six Nations Championship.[21] Three defeats by Scotland, Wales and England followed.[22] On their final game of the championship Italy won against Ireland 22-15 for the first time ever in a Six Nations match in front of 75,000 fans at the Stadio Olimpico.[23][24] Overall Italy finished fourth,[25] Behind Scotland in third on points difference, to make it one of their most successful Six Nations ever.[26] In November 2013, Italy hosted Australia at Turin for a 20-50 loss, then defeated Fiji 37–31 at Cremona and was defeated by Argentina 14–19 at Rome.

Italy was whitewashed at the 2014 Six Nations Championship, including a 20-21 home loss to Scotland, a 46–7 loss to Ireland and a 11–52 loss to England. In June the team made an Asia-Pacific tour, where they were defeated by Fiji, Japan and Samoa. In November they scored a home win to Samoa, a two-point loss to Argentina and another loss to South Africa.

In the 2015 Six Nations Championship, Italy took a 19–22 away win over Scotland to avoid the Wooden Spoon, but suffered heavy home losses to France and Wales. At the 2015 Rugby World Cup, they defeated Romania and Canada but lost to Ireland and France, repeating their performance of the previous three editions.

After another poor performance in 2016, losing all their Six Nations matches, Italy hired former Ireland international and Harlequin F.C. coach Conor O'Shea to coach the team; with him they also hired IRFU developmental director Stephen Aboud to direct youth programs in the country, in order to strengthen the level of rugby in the country.[27] In June, the team Italy lost to Argentina and won over the United States and Canada. On November 19, Italy achieved a famous upset victory by defeating South Africa 20-18 which was Italy's first ever win against the Springboks in 13 attempts at Stadio Artemio Franchi in Florence.[28] This victory also marked their first ever win over one of the 3 big Southern Hemisphere nations (Australia, New Zealand, South Africa).

Stadium & Attendance

Before joining the Six Nations in 2000 Italy did not have a set stadium and played their home matches in various stadiums around Italy. From 2000-2011 Italy played all of their home Six Nations matches at the Stadio Flaminio in Rome. The Italian Rugby Federation (FIR) announced, in January 2010, that the stadium would undergo an expansion, that will increase its capacity to 42,000.[29] Continued delays to the start of construction meant that the revamp could not be completed in time for the 2012 Six Nations so all of Italy's home Six Nations games were moved to the Stadio Olimpico, also in Rome.[30] The expansion of the Stadio Flaminio was originally promised to be complete by 2014. It was planned that upon completion of the renovation, the Italian team will move back to the Stadio Flaminio,[31] however little was achieved and as of September 2016 the stadium was still in a state of abandoned disrepair.[32] More Italians are coming to watch rugby union games and whereas before most of the fans at the Stadio Flaminio were away fans, now Italy has a good home crowd. Since moving to the Stadio Olimpico attendances have increased by huge numbers.[33] The Italian team has drawn large crowds since 2008, particularly for Six Nations matches and for matches against New Zealand:

The Stadio Olimpico in Rome, current home of the Italian rugby team.
Highest attended home matches
Rank Attendance Opponent Date Venue
1 80,074 New Zealand 14 Nov 2009 San Siro (Milan)
2 80,054 Ireland 16 Mar 2013 Stadio Olimpico (Rome)
3 73,526 Wales 23 Feb 2013 Stadio Olimpico (Rome)
4 73,000 New Zealand 17 Nov 2012 Stadio Olimpico (Rome)
5 72,354 Scotland 17 Mar 2012 Stadio Olimpico (Rome)
6 71,257 England 15 March 2014 Stadio Olimpico (Rome)
7 70,000 England 14 February 2016 Stadio Olimpico (Rome)
8 67,721 Scotland 27 February 2016 Stadio Olimpico (Rome)
9 67,529 France 3 Feb 2013 Stadio Olimpico (Rome)
10 67,127 France 15 March 2015 Stadio Olimpico (Rome)

Strip

Italy play in blue jerseys.

Period Kit manufacturer Shirt sponsor
1981 - 1989 Adidas No shirt sponsor
1990 - 1993 Lotto[34]
1991 Rugby World Cup
1993 - 1995 Gilbert[35]
1995 Rugby World Cup
1996 – 1997 Reebok
1997 European Nations Cup
1998 – 1999 None
1999 Cotton Oxford
2000 Six Nations - 2000 mid year international Canterbury Alliance UniChem
2000 end of year internationals - 2002 mid year tests Kappa
2002 end of year internationals – 2006 end of year internationals Jaguar
2007 Six Nations championship - 2012 mid year internationals Cariparma
2012 end of year internationals - present Adidas

Awards

Competition 1st, gold medalist(s) 2nd, silver medalist(s) 3rd, bronze medalist(s) Total
Olympic Games 0 0 0 0
Rugby World Cup 0 0 0 0
European Nations Cup 1 9 8 18
Total 1 9 8 18

Record

Top 30 rankings as of 5 December 2016[36]
RankChange*TeamPoints
1 Steady New Zealand 94.78
2 Steady England 89.84
3 Steady Australia 86.97
4 Steady Ireland 84.62
5 Increase1 Wales82.55
6 Decrease1 South Africa 81.79
7 Steady Scotland 80.67
8 Steady France 80.13
9 Steady Argentina 79.91
10 Steady Fiji 76.46
11 Steady Japan 74.22
12 Steady Georgia 74.14
13 Steady Italy 72.47
14 Increase1 Tonga 71.94
15 Decrease1 Samoa 71.25
16 Steady Romania 69.36
17 Steady United States 64.66
18 Steady Canada 63.95
19 Steady Russia 63.25
20 Steady Namibia 62.78
21 Steady Uruguay 60.66
22 Steady Spain 60.17
23 Steady Kenya 59.28
24 Steady Germany 58.99
25 Steady Portugal 56.97
26 Steady Belgium 56.87
27 Steady Hong Kong 56.50
28 Steady South Korea 55.50
29 Steady Chile 55.08
30 Steady Netherlands 54.93
*Change from the previous week
Italy's historical rankings
Source: World Rugby - Graph updated to 5 December 2016[36]

Overall

Below is table of the representative rugby matches played by an Italy national XV at test level up until 26 November 2016.[37]

Opponent Played Won Lost Drawn Win % For Aga Diff
 Argentina 21 5 15 1 23.81% 368 526 -152
 Australia 16 0 16 0 0.00% 217 565 -348
 Australia XV 2 0 2 0 0.00% 36 75 -39
 Belgium 2 2 0 0 100.00% 75 0 +75
 Border Bulldogs 1 0 1 0 0.00% 12 25 -13
 Bulgaria 1 1 0 0 100.00% 17 0 +17
 Canada 9 7 2 0 77.78% 246 128 +118
Catalonia Catalonia 2 1 0 1 50% 10 8 +2
 Cook Islands 1 0 1 0 0.00% 6 15 -9
 Croatia 1 1 0 0 100.00% 76 11 +65
 Czech Republic 1 1 0 0 100.00% 104 8 +96
 Czechoslovakia 11 9 1 1 81.82% 162 54 +108
 England 22 0 22 0 0.00% 275 882 -607
 England XV 1 0 0 1 0.00% 15 15 +0
England England B 1 0 1 0 0.00% 9 21 -12
England England U23 3 1 1 1 33.33% 31 42 -11
 Fiji 10 5 5 0 50.00% 244 243 +1
 France 38 3 35 0 7.89% 413 1124 -711
 France XV 30 1 28 1 3.33% 289 751 -462
France France Espoirs 1 0 1 0 0.00% 18 21 -3
 Georgia 1 1 0 0 100.00% 31 22 +9
 Germany 6 2 4 0 33.33% 27 54 -27
 Ireland 26 4 22 0 15.38% 406 846 -440
 Japan 6 5 1 0 83.33% 199 90 +109
 Leopards 3 2 1 0 66.66% 55 46 +9
 Madagascar 2 2 0 0 100.00% 26 15 +11
 Middlesex 1 0 1 0 0.00% 12 28 -16
 Morocco 8 6 2 0 75.00% 184 52 +132
 Golden Lions 1 0 1 0 0.00% 24 28 -4
 Namibia 3 1 2 0 33.00% 75 74 +1
  Sharks 1 0 1 0 0.00% 3 23 -20
 Netherlands 4 4 0 0 100.00% 178 27 +151
 New Zealand 13 0 13 0 0.00% 128 754 -626
 New Zealand XV 1 0 1 0 0.00% 12 18 -6
New Zealand Junior All Blacks 1 0 1 0 0.00% 13 30 -17
 North-Eastern Cape 1 0 1 0 0.00% 12 31 -19
 Northern Free State 1 0 1 0 0.00% 11 12 -1
 Oxfordshire 1 0 1 0 0.00% 6 30 -24
 Pacific Islanders 1 0 1 0 0.00% 17 25 -8
 Poland 7 6 1 0 85.71% 165 49 +116
 Portugal 12 10 1 1 83.33% 333 71 +262
 Romania 42 23 16 3 54.76% 609 634 -25
 Russia 4 4 0 0 100.00% 198 61 +137
 Samoa 7 2 5 0 28.57% 109 175 -66
 Scotland 26 8 18 0 30.77% 455 624 -169
 Scotland A 3 1 2 0 33.33% 51 55 -4
 Serbia and Montenegro 3 3 0 0 100.00% 60 22 +38
 South Africa 13 1 12 0 7.69% 165 617 -452
 Soviet Union 14 4 9 1 28.57% 171 165 +6
 Spain 27 23 3 1 85.19% 581 187 +394
 Steval Pumas 1 0 1 0 0.00% 12 39 -27
 Sussex 1 0 1 0 0.00% 7 16 -9
 Tonga 5 3 2 0 60.00% 154 82 +72
 Tunisia 3 3 0 0 100.00% 60 19 +41
 United States 5 5 0 0 100.00% 154 74 +80
 Uruguay 3 3 0 0 100.00% 92 25 +67
 Wales 24 2 21 1 8.33% 400 815 -415
 West Germany 14 13 0 1 92.86% 226 69 +157
 Zimbabwe 4 3 1 0 75.00% 74 67 +7
Total 473 181 278 14 38.27% 8118 10585 -2467

Six Nations

Since entering the Six Nations Championship in 2000, Italy have yet to win the tournament. Italy got off to a positive start to the Six Nations in their first year; defeating Scotland in their first match of competition. Italy finished fifth in the 2003 competition above Wales. The following year Italy managed to finish fifth again, above Scotland in the final standings. In the 2007 Six Nations Italy defeated Scotland at Murrayfield for their first win away from home (Rome) in the competition. Two weeks later Italy defeated Wales for the second time in the history of the tournament in Rome: it was the first time the team won two games in the championship, and finished in 4th place. The winner of the Italy-France game is also awarded the Giuseppe Garibaldi Trophy. Italy recorded their first Giuseppe Garibaldi Trophy victory on 12 March 2011 with a thrilling 22–21 win, and recorded their second on 3 February 2013 23–18. In the 2013 Championship, they also recorded a first Six Nations victory over Ireland, leaving England as the only nation they are yet to beat in the championship, and equalled their best finish of 4th.

 
England

France

Ireland

Italy

Scotland

Wales
Tournaments 120 87 122 17 122 122
Outright Wins (Shared Wins)
Home Nations 5 (4) NA 4 (4) NA 10 (3) 7 (4)
Five Nations 17 (6) 12 (8) 6 (5) NA 5 (6) 15 (8)
Six Nations 5 5 3 0 0 4
Overall 27 (10) 17 (8) 13 (9) 0 (0) 15 (9) 26 (12)
Grand Slams
Home Nations 0 NA 0 NA 0 2
Five Nations 11 6 1 NA 3 6
Six Nations 2 3 1 0 0 3
Overall 13 9 2 0 3 11
Triple Crowns
Home Nations 5 NA 2 NA 7 6
Five Nations 16 NA 4 NA 3 11
Six Nations 4 NA 4 NA 0 3
Overall 25 NA 10 NA 10 20
Wooden Spoons
Home Nations 11 NA 15 NA 8 8
Five Nations 14 17 21 NA 21 12
Six Nations 0 1 0 11 4 1
Overall 25 18 36 11 33 21

Rugby World Cup

World Cup record World Cup Qualification record
Year Round P W D L F A P W D L F A
AustraliaNew Zealand 1987Pool Stage310240110Automatically qualified
United KingdomRepublic of IrelandFrance 1991Pool Stage3102577633008338
South Africa 1995Pool Stage31026994430121052
Wales 1999Pool Stage300335196650130292
Australia 2003Pool Stage42027712322007520
France 2007Pool Stage42028511722001507
New Zealand 2011Pool Stage42029295Automatically qualified
England 2015Pool Stage42027488
Total 8/8 28 11 0 17 529 899 17 15 0 2 820 209

Italy have competed at every Rugby World Cup since the competition's inception in 1987. Italy finished third in their pool at their first World Cup, defeating Fiji, but not making the finals. They did not make the finals in 1991, grouped in a tough pool with England and the All Blacks. At the 1995 Rugby World Cup in South Africa, they finished behind England and Western Samoa, but above Argentina in their pool.

In 1999 they did not make the finals, with their defeats by the All Blacks and Tonga. Italy won two pool games at the 2003 World Cup, defeating both Canada and Tonga, but lost to the All Blacks and Wales. Italy played the 2007 Rugby World Cup in Pool C, against New Zealand, Scotland, Romania and Portugal (who had been beaten 83–0 by Italy in the qualifiers), with the goal of reaching the quarter finals for the first time. However, in the crucial group match against Scotland, Italy were undone by indiscipline. Chris Paterson kicked all of Scotland's points in an 18–16 victory, despite Italy crossing the line for the game's only try.

European championships

Before 2000, Italy was one of the leading European teams outside the Five Nations, along with Romania, and for a while the USSR.

Italy competed in the original European Championships from 1936–38, but World War II meant that the tournament would not resume until 1952. Italy then competed in these tournaments from 1952–2000. Italy achieved only one the victory in 1995–97 FIRA Trophy.

TeamFirst placeSecond placeThird place
 Italy198

Thirties wins

Year Host city Winner Second place Third place
1936 Berlin
France

Germany

Italy
1937 Paris
France

Italy

Germany

The fifties: the European Cup, Italian positions

Year Winner Second place Third place
1952
France

Italy

West Germany
1954
France

Italy

Spain

The Nations Cup 1966–73

Year Winner Second place Third place
1965/1966
France

Italy

Romania
1966/1967
France

Romania

Italy
1969/1970
France

Romania

Italy

The FIRA Trophy 1974–97

Year Winner Second place Third place
1974/1975
Romania

France

Italy
1975/1976
France

Italy

Romania
1976/1977
Romania

France

Italy
1979/1980
France

Romania

Italy
1981/1982
France

Italy

Romania
1982/1983
Romania

Italy

Soviet Union
1983/1984
France

Romania

Italy
1984/1985
France

Soviet Union

Italy
1990/1992
France

Italy

Romania
1992/1994
France

Italy

Romania
1995/1997
Italy

France

Romania

Players and Coaches

Current squad

On 11 October 2016, head coach Conor O'Shea named a 30-man squad ahead of their 2016 end-of-year tests against New Zealand (12 November), South Africa (19 November), and Tonga (26 November).[38]

On 14 November, Marco Barbini, Tommaso D'Apice and Nicola Quaglio were called up to the squad as injury cover for Mata Maxime Mbanda, Leonardo Ghiraldini and drea Lovotti.[39] Giovanbattista Venditti was also called up as an injury replacement for Leonardo Sarto, while Braam Steyn also came in as cover in the backrow.

Head Coach: Ireland Conor O'Shea

Note: Flags indicate national union for the club/province as defined by World Rugby.

Player Position Date of Birth (Age) Caps Club/province
D'Apice, TommasoTommaso D'Apice Hooker (1988-06-30) 30 June 1988 11 Italy Zebre
Gega, OrnelOrnel Gega Hooker (1990-03-24) 24 March 1990 8 Italy Benetton Treviso
Ghiraldini, LeonardoLeonardo Ghiraldini Hooker (1984-12-26) 26 December 1984 82 France Toulouse
Ceccarelli, PietroPietro Ceccarelli Prop (1992-02-16) 16 February 1992 5 Italy Zebre
Cittadini, LorenzoLorenzo Cittadini Prop (1982-12-17) 17 December 1982 53 France Bayonne
Ferrari, SimoneSimone Ferrari Prop (1994-03-28) 28 March 1994 2 Italy Benetton Treviso
Lovotti, AndreaAndrea Lovotti Prop (1989-07-28) 28 July 1989 9 Italy Zebre
Panico, SamiSami Panico Prop (1993-06-04) 4 June 1993 6 Italy Calvisano
Quaglio, NicolaNicola Quaglio Prop (1991-03-09) 9 March 1991 2 Italy Benetton Treviso
Biagi, GeorgeGeorge Biagi Lock (1985-10-04) 4 October 1985 14 Italy Zebre
Furno, JoshuaJoshua Furno Lock (1989-10-21) 21 October 1989 36 Italy Zebre
Fuser, MarcoMarco Fuser Lock (1991-03-09) 9 March 1991 16 Italy Benetton Treviso
Geldenhuys, QuintinQuintin Geldenhuys Lock (1981-06-19) 19 June 1981 67 Italy Zebre
Barbini, MarcoMarco Barbini Flanker (1990-10-16) 16 October 1990 2 Italy Benetton Treviso
Favaro, SimoneSimone Favaro Flanker (1988-11-07) 7 November 1988 33 Scotland Glasgow Warriors
Mbanda, Mata MaximeMata Maxime Mbanda Flanker (1993-04-10) 10 April 1993 3 Italy Zebre
Minto, FrancescoFrancesco Minto Flanker (1987-05-20) 20 May 1987 31 Italy Benetton Treviso
van Schalkwyk, DriesDries van Schalkwyk Flanker (1984-12-21) 21 December 1984 8 Italy Zebre
Zanni, AlessandroAlessandro Zanni Flanker (1984-01-31) 31 January 1984 99 Italy Benetton Treviso
Parisse, SergioSergio Parisse (c) Number 8 (1983-09-12) 12 September 1983 121 France Stade Français
Steyn, BraamBraam Steyn Number 8 (1992-05-02) 2 May 1992 6 Italy Benetton Treviso
Bronzini, GiorgioGiorgio Bronzini Scrum-half (1990-04-20) 20 April 1990 3 Italy Benetton Treviso
Gori, EdoardoEdoardo Gori Scrum-half (1990-03-05) 5 March 1990 56 Italy Benetton Treviso
Violi, MarcelloMarcello Violi Scrum-half (1993-10-11) 11 October 1993 2 Italy Zebre
Allan, TommasoTommaso Allan Fly-half (1993-04-26) 26 April 1993 27 Italy Benetton Treviso
Canna, CarloCarlo Canna Fly-half (1992-08-25) 25 August 1992 15 Italy Zebre
Benvenuti, TommasoTommaso Benvenuti Centre (1990-12-12) 12 December 1990 37 Italy Benetton Treviso
Boni, TommasoTommaso Boni Centre (1993-01-15) 15 January 1993 2 Italy Zebre
Campagnaro, MicheleMichele Campagnaro Centre (1993-03-13) 13 March 1993 25 England Exeter Chiefs
Padovani, EdoardoEdoardo Padovani Centre (1993-05-15) 15 May 1993 6 Italy Zebre
Bisegni, GiulioGiulio Bisegni Wing (1992-04-04) 4 April 1992 5 Italy Zebre
Buondonno, AndreaAndrea Buondonno Wing (1992-11-21) 21 November 1992 0 Italy Benetton Treviso
Esposito, AngeloAngelo Esposito Wing (1993-06-14) 14 June 1993 8 Italy Benetton Treviso
Sarto, LeonardoLeonardo Sarto Wing (1992-01-15) 15 January 1992 30 Scotland Glasgow Warriors
Venditti, GiovanbattistaGiovanbattista Venditti Wing (1990-03-27) 27 March 1990 38 England Newcastle Falcons
McLean, LukeLuke McLean Fullback (1987-06-29) 29 June 1987 84 Italy Benetton Treviso

Coaches

Name From To P W D L % W/P
Italy Arnaldo Cortese
England John Thomas
20 May 1929 1 0 0 1 0
Italy Arturo Cameroni
Italy Luigi Bricchi
29 May 1930 1 1 0 0 100
Italy Luigi Bricchi 1 November 1932 26 December 1934 4 3 0 1 75
Italy Luigi Bricchi
France Julien Saby
26 December 1934 7 April 1935 1 1 0 0 100
France Julien Saby 7 April 1935 14 May 1936 2 0 0 2 0
Italy Luigi Bricchi
France Michel Boucheron
14 May 1936 16 May 1936 2 1 0 1 50
Italy Luigi Bricchi
France Julien Saby
1 January 1937 17 October 1937 5 2 1 2 40
Italy Luigi Bricchi 6 March 1938 20 November 1938 1 0 0 1 0
Italy Luigi Bricchi
Italy Giuseppe Sessa
20 November 1938 19 March 1940 2 1 0 1 50
Italy Romano Bonifazi 19 March 1940 9 February 1941 2 1 0 1 50
Italy Luigi Bricchi
Italy Franco Chiaserotti
9 February 1941 2 May 1942
Italy Luigi Bricchi
Italy Franco Chiaserotti
2 May 1942 1 1 0 0 100
Italy Tommaso Fattori 18 May 1947 27 March 1949 2 1 0 1 50
Italy Giorgio Briasco
Italy Antonio Radicini
27 March 1949 26 February 1950 2 0 0 2 0
Italy Romano Bonifazi 26 February 1950 29 July 1950
Italy Francesco Vinci 29 July 1950 4 October 1950
Italy Renzo Maffioli 4 October 1950 25 February 1951
Italy Renzo Maffioli
France Julien Saby
25 February 1951 1 August 1954 9 6 0 3 66.7
Italy Piermarcello Farinelli
Italy Aldo Invernici
Italy Umberto Silvestri
1 August 1954 22 December 1956 8 5 0 3 62.5
Italy Giulio Fereoli
Italy Aldo Invernici
Italy Umberto Silvestri
22 December 1956 8 December 1957 2 1 0 1 50
Italy Sergio Barilari
Italy Aldo Invernici
Italy Umberto Silvestri
8 December 1957 19 July 1958 1 0 0 1 0
Italy Sergio Barilari
Italy Mario Battaglini
Italy Aldo Invernici
19 July 1958 10 April 1960 2 1 0 1 50
Italy Sergio Barilari
Italy Romano Bonifazi
10 April 1960 22 April 1962 4 2 0 2 50
Italy Aldo Invernici 22 April 1962 8 December 1965 7 2 0 5 28.5
Italy Sergio Barilari
Italy Mario Martone
8 December 1965 28 October 1967 7 3 1 3 42.8
Italy Aldo Invernici 28 October 1967 24 May 1970 8 7 0 1 87.5
Italy Giordano Campice 24 May 1970 25 October 1970 2 2 0 0 100
Italy Sergio Barilari 25 October 1970 10 April 1971 3 0 0 3 0
Italy Guglielmo Geremia 11 April 1971 27 May 1971 1 0 0 1 0
Italy Aldo Invernici 28 May 1971 19 February 1972
Italy Umberto Levorato 20 February 1972 25 November 1972 4 1 2 1 25
Italy Gianni Villa 26 November 1972 14 February 1975 20 6 1 13 30
Wales Roy Bish 15 February 1975 1º April 1977 15 8 1 6 53.3
Italy Isidoro Quaglio 2 April 1977 1º May 1977 2 1 0 1 50
Wales Gwyn Evans 23 October 1977 23 October 1978 5 1 1 3 20
France Pierre Villepreux 24 October 1978 24 October 1981 24 10 1 13 41.6
Italy Paolo Paladini
Italy Marco Pulli
25 October 1981 9 November 1985 28 16 2 10 57.14
Italy Marco Bollesan 10 November 1985 4 November 1988 19 7 1 11 36.8
Italy Loreto Cucchiarelli 5 November 1988 29 September 1989 7 1 0 6 14.3
Italy Loreto Cucchiarelli
France Bertrand Fourcade
29 September 1989 31 December 1989 2 1 0 1 50
France Bertrand Fourcade 1 January 1990 30 August 1993 27 16 0 11 59.3
France Georges Coste 31 August 1993 19 June 1999 48 19 1 28 39.6
Italy Massimo Mascioletti 20 June 1999 19 November 1999 5 2 0 3 40
New Zealand Brad Johnstone 20 November 1999 26 April 2002 27 5 0 22 18.5
New Zealand John Kirwan 27 April 2002 18 April 2005 32 10 0 22 31.3
France Pierre Berbizier 19 April 2005 30 September 2007 30 12 1 17 40
South Africa Nick Mallett 3 October 2007 30 October 2011 42 9 0 33 21.4
France Jacques Brunel 1 November 2011 31 May 2016 50 11 0 39 22.0
Ireland Conor O'Shea 1 June 2016 6 3 0 3 50.0

Individual all-time records

Most caps

# Player Pos Span Mat Start Sub Pts Tries Won Lost Draw %
1 Sergio Parisse Number 8 2002– 120 117 3 73 14 31 88 1 25.83
2 Martin Castrogiovanni Prop 2002–2016 119 91 28 60 12 30 88 1 25.63
3 Marco Bortolami Lock 2001–2015 112 92 20 35 7 29 82 1 26.33
4 Mauro Bergamasco Flanker 1998–2015 106 90 16 75 15 30 76 0 28.30
5 Andrea Lo Cicero Prop 2000–2013 103 79 24 40 8 32 70 1 31.55
6 Alessandro Troncon Scrum-half 1994–2007 101 94 7 95 19 33 67 1 33.16
7 Alessandro Zanni Flanker 2005– 99 78 21 20 4 27 71 1 27.77
8 Andrea Masi Fullback 2000–2015 95 82 13 65 13 23 72 0 24.21
9 Mirco Bergamasco Wing 2002–2012 89 82 7 256 17 22 66 1 25.28
10 Gonzalo Canale Centre 2003–2014 86 76 10 35 7 27 58 1 31.97

Last updated: 25 June 2016. Statistics include officially capped matches only.[40]

Most tries

# Player Pos Span Mat Start Sub Pts Tries Conv Pens Drop
1 Marcello Cuttitta Wing 1987–99 54 54 0 110 25 0 0 0
2 Paolo Vaccari Wing 1991–2003 64 63 1 107 22 0 0 0
3 Carlo Checchinato Number 8 1990–2004 83 73 10 105 21 0 0 0
Manrico Marchetto Wing 1972–81 43 39 4 84 21 0 0 0
5 Alessandro Troncon Scrum-half 1994–2007 101 94 7 95 19 0 0 0
6 Mirco Bergamasco Wing 2002–12 89 82 7 256 17 12 49 0
Serafino Ghizzoni Wing 1977–87 60 59 1 77 17 0 0 3
Massimo Mascioletti Wing 1977–90 54 54 0 68 17 0 0 0
9 Ivan Francescato Centre 1990–97 38 38 0 77 16 0 0 0
10 Mauro Bergamasco Flanker 1998–2015 106 90 16 75 15 0 0 0

Last updated: Italy vs Ireland, 4 October 2015. Statistics include officially capped matches only.

Most points

# Player Pos Span Mat Start Sub Pts Tries Conv Pens Drop
1. Diego Domínguez Fly-half 1991–2003 74 73 1 983 9 127 208 20
2. Stefano Bettarello Fly-half 1979–88 55 54 1 483 7 46 104 17
3. Luigi Troiani Fullback 1985–95 47 47 0 294 2 57 57 0
4. Ramiro Pez Fly-half 2000–07 40 33 7 260 4 33 52 6
5. Mirco Bergamasco Wing 2002–12 89 82 7 256 17 12 49 0
6.Luciano Orquera Fly-half 2004-2015 48 27 21 154 3 20 31 2
7. David Bortolussi Fullback 2006–08 16 15 1 147 1 32 25 1
8.Ennio Ponzi Fly-half 1973–77 20 20 0 133 0 17 31 2
9. Tommaso Allan Fly-half 2013- 24 15 9 116 3 13 25 0
10. Marcello Cuttitta Wing 1987–99 54 54 0 110 25 0 0 0

Last updated: 26 June 2016. Statistics include officially capped matches only. [40]

Most points in a match

# Player Pos Pts Tries Conv Pens Drop Opposition Venue Date
1. Stefano Bettarello Fly-half 29 1 2 5 2  Canada Canada Toronto 1 July 1982
Diego Domínguez Fly-half 29 0 1 6 3  Scotland Italy Rome 5 February 2000
Diego Domínguez Fly-half 29 0 4 7 0  Fiji Italy Treviso 10 November 2001
4. Diego Domínguez Fly-half 28 1 7 3 0  Netherlands Italy Calvisano 21 May 1994
5. Diego Domínguez Fly-half 27 1 2 6 0  Ireland Italy Bologna 20 December 1997
6. Diego Domínguez Fly-half 25 0 5 5 0  Romania France Tarbes 26 October 1997
7. Luigi Troiani Fly-half 24 0 12 0 0  Czech Republic Italy Viadana 18 May 1994
Diego Domínguez Fly-half 24 0 0 8 0  Romania Italy Catania 1 October 1994
Mirco Bergamasco Wing 24 0 0 8 0  Fiji Italy Modena 27 November 2010
10. 3 players on 23 points

Last updated: Italy vs Scotland, 22 June 2013. Statistics include officially capped matches only.

Most tries in a match

# Player Pos Pts Tries Conv Pens Drop Opposition Venue Date
1. Renzo Cova Wing 12 4 0 0 0  Belgium France Paris 10 October 1937
Ivan Francescato Centre 20 4 0 0 0  Morocco France Carcassonne 19 June 1993
3. 14 players on 3 tries

Last updated: Italy vs Scotland, 22 June 2013. Statistics include officially capped matches only.

Most matches as captain

# Player Pos Span Mat Won Lost Draw % Pts Tries Conv Pens Drop
1. Sergio Parisse Number 8 2008– 50 11 39 0 22.00 38 7 0 0 1
2. Marco Bortolami Lock 2002–12 38 14 23 1 38.15 35 7 0 0 0
3. Marco Bollesan Number 8 1968–75 37 15 20 2 43.24 21 6 0 0 0
Massimo Giovanelli Flanker 1992–99 37 14 22 1 39.18 15 3 0 0 0
5. Massimo Cuttitta Prop 1993–99 22 10 12 0 45.45 15 3 0 0 0
6. Alessandro Troncon Scrum-half 2000–07 21 7 14 0 33.33 25 5 0 0 0
7. Marzio Innocenti Flanker 1985–88 20 7 12 1 37.50 8 2 0 0 0
8. Alessandro Moscardi Hooker 2000–02 19 4 15 0 21.05 5 1 0 0 0
9. Ambrogio Bona Prop 1978–81 18 9 9 0 50.00 4 1 0 0 0
10. Fabrizio Gaetaniello Fullback 1982–83 11 7 3 1 68.18 4 1 0 0 0

Last updated: Italy vs Scotland, 22 June 2013. Statistics include officially capped matches only.

Youngest players

# Player Pos Age Opposition Venue Date
1. Pietro Vinci IV Fly-half 16 years and 176 days  Spain Spain Barcelona 20 May 1929
2. Andrea Masi Fullback 18 years and 149 days  Spain Italy L'Aquila 26 August 1999
3. Sergio Parisse Number 8 18 years and 269 days  New Zealand New Zealand Hamilton 8 June 2002
4. Gianluca Limone Centre 18 years and 318 days England England U23 Italy Brescia 16 May 1979
5. Massimo Trippitelli Lock 18 years and 338 days  Poland Poland Sochacewz 30 September 1979
6. Mirco Bergamasco (Fullback) 18 years and 344 days  France France Stade de France 2 February 2002
7. Rino Francescato Centre 18 years and 362 days  Spain Italy Rome 27 November 1976
8. Massimo Mascioletti Wing 19 years and 2 days  Morocco Morocco Casablanca 6 March 1977
9. Francesco Vinci III Wing 19 years and 18 days  Spain Spain Barcelona 20 May 1929
10. Stefano Boccazzi Scrum-half 19 years and 27 days  Zimbabwe Zimbabwe Bulawayo 22 June 1985

Last updated: Italy vs Scotland, 22 June 2013. Statistics include officially capped matches only.

Oldest players

# Player Pos Age Opposition Venue Date
1. Sergio Lanfranchi Prop 38 years and 184 days  France Italy Parma 29 March 1964
2. Alessandro Bottacchiari Flanker 36 years and 328 days  Romania Italy Rome 1 October 1992
3. Andrea Lo Cicero Prop 36 years and 313 days  Ireland Italy Rome 16 March 2013
4. Diego Domínguez Fly-half 36 years and 303 days  Ireland Italy Rome 22 February 2003
5. Pietro Stievano Wing 36 years and 66 days  Germany Italy Milan 13 March 1955
6. Francesco Battaglini Flanker 36 years and 14 days  France Italy Rovigo 28 March 1948
7. Giancarlo Pivetta Hooker 36 years and 3 days  Spain France Perpignan 21 June 1993
8. Vincenzo Bertolotto Lock 35 years and 339 days  France Italy Rovigo 28 March 1948
9. Walter Cristofoletto Flanker 35 years and 304 days  France France Stade de France 1 April 2000
10. Franco Properzi Prop 35 years and 155 days  Wales Italy Rome 8 April 2001

Last updated: Italy vs Scotland, 22 June 2013. Statistics include officially capped matches only.

See also

References

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  11. http://www.rbs6nations.com/en/matchcentre/12903.php
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  38. NAZIONALE, PER I TEST DI NOVEMBRE TORNANO PARISSE, GHIRALDINI E ZANNI
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