Franco Baresi, historic Milan captain and icon of Italian football, received a final emotional farewell on Tuesday, August 4, as thousands of fans and football figures gathered at the basilica of San Ambrosio in Milan.
The world of football and crowds of supporters attended the funeral ceremony at the Sant’Ambrogio basilica to pay tribute to Franco Baresi, who passed away at age of 66 on July 31, following a pulmonary condition first detected in 2025.
The coffin arrived to a standing ovation lasting more than six minutes, accompanied by chants and banners remembering the man who became the great captain of Milan.
RELATED: Franco Baresi dies at 66, AC Milan and Italy Football Legend
Many fans wore the number six jersey, the shirt number retired in his honor when he ended his career, an unprecedented gesture in Italian football that became a tribute to a figure who embodied the club.
During the homily, Abbot Carlo Faccendini praised the virtues of the former defender: “Franco was a champion. We all recognize his class, tenacity and strength: the Maradona of defense, the best defender of all times, as we have read in recent days. We recognize his leadership, the captain par excellence. The champion and his trophies, so many, but also his defeats and bitter tears.”
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The ceremony brought together prominent figures of Italian football. Claudio Ranieri, new technical director of the Italian Football Federation, entered amid ovations alongside former player Roberto Baggio. Ezio Simonelli, president of Serie A, also attended.
The tribute transcended Italy’s borders: FIFA, Gianni Infantino, Real Madrid, Inter de Milán, and Roma sent floral wreaths, as did the city of Milan and the Lombardy region. Historical teammates participated, including Daniele Massaro, Roberto Donadoni, Filippo Galli, Marco van Basten, Giovanni Galli, Angelo Colombo, Paolo Maldini, and Alessandro Costacurta. Real Madrid and Barcelona also sent representatives.
Marco Van Basten, Roberto Donadoni, Demetrio Albertini, Massimo Ambrosini y Alessandro Costacurta cargando el féretro de Franco Baresi en su último adiós.
Un gran acto de amor y respeto para el que fue su Capitano durante tantos años.
pic.twitter.com/yDFTgLugAn
— Milan Argentina
(@MilanArg__) August 4, 2026
Text reads: “Marco Van Basten, Roberto Donadoni, Demetrio Albertini, Massimo Ambrosini and Alessandro Costacurta carrying the rear of Franco Baresi in his last days. A great act of love and respect for the one who was their Captain for so many years.”
“He was a great man. He always tried to combine class and style with simplicity in his behavior,” said Italian Sports Minister Andrea Abodi upon arriving at the basilica.
Baresi spent his entire professional career at Milan, where he debuted in 1978 and retired in 1997. During that period he lifted three European Cups, two Intercontinental Cups, three European Super Cups, six Italian Leagues, and four Italian Super Cups. In 2025, doctors detected a pulmonary nodule during a medical checkup. Although he underwent surgery, he never fully recovered. His last public appearance took place at San Siro stadium during the opening ceremony of the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics.
With the Italian national team, Baresi played 82 matches and participated in three World Cups. He became world champion in Spain 1982 and runner-up in the United States 1994, in a career that consolidated him as one of the most outstanding defenders of all time. The farewell ceremony in Milan sealed the legacy of a captain whose number six will remain permanently associated with the red and black colors, in a farewell worthy of one of football’s greatest legends.
Franco Baresi
#UCL pic.twitter.com/1HUz1JZPr4
— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) July 31, 2026
The funeral in Milan confirmed the place of Baresi in the collective memory of football: a defender who marked an era, a leader who defined a generation, and a captain whose legacy transcends statistics.
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