Conte wins 2025 Mazzone Award for career and bond with Carletto | OneFootball

The Carlo Mazzone Award 2025 goes to Antonio Conte, the current coach of Napoli, the Italian Champion. The decision, announced today by the Mazzone family, comes on the occasion of the second anniversary of the passing of the historic Roman coach, which occurred on August 19, 2023, in Ascoli Piceno.

Napoli, Conte wins the Mazzone Award 2025: a recognition of his career and his bond with “Carletto”

The recognition is not coincidental: Conte, as a young player, had a crucial development phase under the guidance of Carlo Mazzone at Lecce. It was a decisive step for his career, which later led him to wear the jersey of Juventus and the Italian National team.

Massimo Mazzone, son of the late coach, explained to ANSA the reasons for the choice:

“After the passing of my father, we decided to establish an award in his memory. Last year we awarded it to Pep Guardiola and Claudio Ranieri. This year we are giving it to Antonio Conte for his great journey as a player and coach, with particular attention to the development of young talents, a value my father held very dear.”

The memory of Carlo Mazzone

Carlo Mazzone, who passed away at the age of 86, remains one of the most beloved and respected figures in Italian football. His coaching career began in Ascoli at the end of the 1960s, after an injury had ended his playing career. With the black-and-white team, he achieved historic results: from Serie C to Serie B and, finally, the club's first Serie A championship in the 1974/75 season.

Throughout his long career, “Carletto” led numerous teams, including Fiorentina, Bologna, Lecce, Roma, Napoli, Brescia, and Cagliari, leaving an indelible mark everywhere. In 2019, he was inducted into the Italian Football Hall of Fame, and the Municipality of Ascoli Piceno awarded him honorary citizenship.

A living memory

Today, two years after his passing, Carlo Mazzone will be remembered with a mass celebrated at 7 PM at the Church of Santa Maria Goretti in Ascoli Piceno.

The award to Conte not only represents recognition of his brilliant career but also a way to celebrate the human and sporting bond between two figures who shared values, passion, and a vision of football made of sacrifice and daily work.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇮🇹 here.