Serie A 2025/26 Guide: Napoli looks to maintain dominance amid competition

The 2025/26 Serie A season kicks off this Saturday, when defending champions Napoli host Sassuolo, the reigning second division champions. This season's Italian Championship promises to be one of the most competitive in recent years.

In addition to the country's traditional big six, teams like Atlanta, Como, Fiorentina, and Bologna are trying to continue challenging the top teams. However, they will face competition to overcome the financial might of the more established teams.

Napoli, the reigning champion, maintained its core from last season and brought in seven key reinforcements to please the controversial Antonio Conte. Among them is Belgian Kevin De Bruyne, who left Manchester City.

However, the Neapolitan team suffered a severe blow in the preseason with Romelu Lukaku's injury, which could see him out for six months. Even so, the team is unlikely to pause its transfer window and is considering signing Rasmus Hojlund from Manchester United. The goal is clear: defend the Scudetto and go far in the Champions League.

Inter Milan starting over

The 2025/26 season marks a new chapter for Inter Milan, which is looking to bounce back after a year without any major achievements, marked by a tough defeat to PSG in the Champions League final. Simone Inzaghi's departure to Al-Hilal heightened the impact of the end of the cycle, leading the club to turn to an old acquaintance: Cristian Chivu, a former player and youth coach, who took over.

In the transfer market, Inter adopted a selective and strategic approach to strengthening the squad. As a result, Petar Sucic, former Botafogo player Luis Henrique, and striker Ange-Yoan Bonny arrived at the club. This maintained the core of recent seasons with additions of young players or those returning from loan spells.

Milan bets on an old acquaintance

After a campaign that underperformed, ending in 8th place in Serie A, Milan opted for a significant change: they dismissed Sérgio Conceição and brought back Massimiliano Allegri. With a full focus on domestic competitions—as the Rossoneri were ultimately left out of European competitions in 2025/26—Allegri will be tasked with restoring the club's winning identity.

To that end, Milan has already begun strengthening its ranks, and the most notable signing so far is experienced midfielder Luka Modric. Estupiñán arrives after excelling at Brighton, along with other key signings such as Samuele Ricci, De Winter, and Boniface.

On the other hand, the Rossoneri lost key players like Tijjani Reijnders and Theo Hernández. However, they managed to secure the stays of Rafael Leão and Christian Pulisic.

Juventus opts for continuity

Unlike most other teams, Juventus is betting on continuity by confirming Igor Tudor as manager for the 2025/26 season. After replacing Thiago Motta, who underperformed, the Croatian performed well and secured a Champions League spot. After participating in the Club World Cup, the club conducted a detailed evaluation of the squad, separating key players, supporting players, and potential players—such as Douglas Luiz, who signed with Nottingham Forest after a year without establishing himself.

With finances still impacted by the heavy spending in the summer of 2024, Juve has been more cautious this summer. Specific reinforcements include Jonathan David, signed on a free transfer from Lille, and the arrival of João Mário in a swap deal with Porto.

Atalanta in a new era

With the departure of Gian Piero Gasperini—the most remarkable coach in Atalanta's recent history and the 2023/24 Europa League champion—the club begins a new era under Ivan Juric. The Croatian is coming off disappointing stints at Roma and Southampton. He takes on the challenge of maintaining the team's competitiveness, building on the strong legacy left by Gasperini.

In the transfer market, La Dea strengthened its squad with the arrival of Kamaldeen Sulemana, Nicola Zalewski, and the promising defender Honest Ahanor. It also officially acquired Odilon Kossounou, Marco Brescianini, and Lazar Samardžić, standouts from last season. On the other hand, the loss of Mateo Retegui—Serie A's top scorer, now at Al-Qadisiah—will be felt. Ademola Lookman and Éderson are also attracting interest from major clubs, such as Inter.

Gasperini takes over at Roma

Roma begins a new era with Gian Piero Gasperini taking over as coach this season, following a successful stint at Atalanta. The board is banking on the experienced coach to restore the team's competitiveness and secure a return to the Champions League, something that hasn't happened since 2019. To this end, the Giallorossi have opted for a more strategic and targeted transfer window.

With that, the capital team brought in young talent like Wesley, formerly of Flamengo , and defender Ghilardi, who was at Hellas Verona. In midfield, El Aynaoui arrived after excelling at Lens. Leon Bailey arrives to bring creativity, and up front, Evan Ferguson tries to rediscover his goalscoring form.

Sarri returns to Lazio during a period of uncertainty

The 2025/26 season marks Maurizio Sarri's return to the helm of Lazio after a year away following his resignation. However, he will face an additional challenge: due to sanctions from the Italian Federation for irregularities, the club has been banned from signing new players, forcing Sarri to work with the squad he has in his hands in an attempt to lead the Biancocelesti back to European competition.

Fiorentina counts on the return of Pioli

Fiorentina is in a period of transition with the return of Stefano Pioli to the helm, taking over after leaving Al-Nassr. The former Milan coach replaces Raffaele Palladino, who led the Viola to the Conference League but resigned after the season.

In the transfer market, the club retained its key players, notably Moise Kean, and made specific moves, acquiring Nicolò Fagioli, Albert Gudmundsson, and Robin Gosens permanently. Furthermore, it brought in Jacopo Fazzini and Edin Džeko. The Viola's goal is to explore the Conference and compete for a spot in European competitions in Serie A.

Bologna

A Serie A standout in recent seasons, Bologna is coming off a historic season after winning the Coppa Italia last season. With this, they bolstered their squad with experience following the departures of Beukema and Ndoye. This brought in veterans Federico Bernardeschi and Ciro Immobile, alongside Pobega, Vitik, Heggem, and Zortea.

Who else can we keep an eye on?

Como, led by Cesc Fabregas, who was one of last season's surprises, has managed to retain its core. On the other hand, it has made important signings, such as Nicolas Kühn, formerly of Celtic, Martin Baturina, who was excelling at Dinamo Zagreb, and Jesús Rodríguez, a standout from Real Betis.

It's also worth keeping an eye on Sassuolo, who have been building a very strong team in their return to Serie A after relegation. To that end, the team led by former full-back Fábio Grosso has maintained the same core squad in recent years and made specific signings, such as Ismael Koné and Vranckx.

Finally, another team worth keeping an eye on is Torino, led by Marco Baroni, who managed Lazio last season. The Turin team is rebuilding its squad after losing most of its key players. As a result, it brought in players like forwards Zakaria Aboukhlal, Cril Ngonge, and goalkeeper Franco Israel.