Record number of British players featuring in Serie A this season
Twenty-one British footballers are playing in Serie A this season, the highest total on record. The group is led by English internationals including John Stones and Djed Spence, both of whom moved to Inter after the World Cup.
The presence of British players in Italy stretches back decades: Charles Adcock, a former soldier, joined Padova shortly after the second world war and later returned to England in 1953 to play for non-league Peterborough United, having never played league football at home. In the 80 years since Adcock’s move, more than 50 English players have turned out in Serie A. This season there are more English players with Italian clubs than ever before and, of the 21 British players in Italy, the majority are English, led by the internationals at Inter.
There were earlier waves of English arrivals in the 1980s and 1990s. Trevor Francis became the first £1m English player when he joined Sampdoria in 1982; Mark Hateley and Ray Wilkins both spent three seasons at Milan in the mid-1980s. Paul Gascoigne was the notable English name in Italy in the 1990s, accompanied by journeymen such as Franz Carr and Danny Dichio, and veterans say those decades featured only a handful of Englishmen compared with the 15 who are now with Italian clubs.
Coverage of Serie A for British audiences has shifted over time from Gazzetta Football Italia, hosted by James Richardson, to TNT, where commentator Adam Summerton is a leading voice. “It’s multifaceted,” says Summerton. “It starts with the trailblazers. Someone like Liam Henderson, who’s been in Italy since 2018. Chris Smalling was another in 2019.”
Summerton points to a change in perception of Scottish players in particular: “Italian sporting directors have said how they really value the hard work, professionalism and tenacity of Scottish players in particular,” he says. “They have also developed a reputation for being good in the dressing room – that’s really appealing when you’re building a team.” Examples cited in the article include Lewis Ferguson, who moved to Bologna in 2022, was voted Serie A midfielder of the season in 2023-24 and captained the side when they beat Milan in the Coppa Italia final last year, and Scott McTominay, who joined Napoli and won the Serie A player of the season award as the club won their first league title since the days of Diego Maradona.
Summerton also highlights assimilation and development as factors, noting Fikayo Tomori’s pride at Milan and his effort to learn Italian after joining the club in 2020. The article links improved technical coaching at Premier League academies to the profile of players now suited to Serie A, and cites Omari Hutchinson as an example: the former Chelsea academy player has just moved to Milan on loan from Nottingham Forest.
Economic considerations and playing opportunities are another strand. “Good players who might be on the fringes of a Premier League side see Italy as a chance to be a more important player in a big league with a big-name club,” Summerton says. Inter’s summer recruitment illustrates the trend: the club signed Curtis Jones from Liverpool this summer to join Spence and Stones, having previously signed only three English players in their history — Gerry Hitchens in 1961, Paul Ince in 1995 and Ashley Young in 2020. Stones swapped Manchester for Milan in the summer and said: “I have so many emotions. I’m really happy, proud and excited. I couldn’t imagine a better place to do it.” Summerton added: “The early signs from Jones are good,” he says. “He’s a profile of player that Cristian Chivu, the Inter coach, really wanted.” He also singled out Trevoh Chalobah: “I’m also really excited for Trevoh Chalobah,” says Summerton. “He’s walked into one of the most exciting projects in world football right now at Como. Cesc Fàbregas is doing tremendous work there. He has started the season really well and they are already strong defensively.” Chalobah said: “I remember how demanding he was with the younger players,” says the centre-back. “I know him really well.” Summerton added: “He gets to live next to Lake Como and play Champions League football too. There’s a lot to like.”
The scale of the British presence — 21 players in Serie A this season — will be visible through the ongoing campaign as clubs deploy those signings and their performances are assessed across this season.