Davide Ancelotti: The Champions League shaped my life, without doubt it is the most wonderful competition

Davide Ancelotti has been inseparable from the Champions League since childhood. His father Carlo's glorious achievements made the competition part of his life memories. From his childhood experiences in Milan to winning the Champions League twice with Real Madrid, he is now returning to the Champions League stage as Lille's coach. When comparing himself with his father's achievement of five Champions League titles, he said in an interview with L'Equipe that he no longer feels pressure, but instead turns this legacy into ambition, hoping to help Lille replicate recent European surprises and go further in the Champions League.

Davide Ancelotti grew up surrounded by the atmosphere of the Champions League. His father Carlo Ancelotti won the Champions League twice as a player and lifted the trophy five times as a coach, making him the manager with the most Champions League titles in history. Davide was also part of the coaching staff during Real Madrid's two most recent Champions League triumphs. Now, he is set to return to the Champions League with Lille, who will face Real Betis in the competition at 21:00 on Tuesday.

“I still clearly remember that Lille defeated my father's team at San Siro back then (on December 6, 2006, Lille beat AC Milan 2-0), and there are even photos from that time here.” On July 24, Davide Ancelotti gave his first interview with L'Equipe in his office at Lille's new training base, Domaine de Luchin. At the time, the Italian, who had been a devoted AC Milan supporter during his youth, brought up the Champions League himself, and during later conversations he repeatedly returned to the subject unconsciously.

For this young coach, that is easy to understand. The Champions League is like an elephant hidden in the drawer of his memories, impossible to ignore. “The Champions League shaped my life because it was always present in my home, just like my family.” He said with a smile and a look of anticipation, “Without doubt, it is the most wonderful competition.”

Davide was born in Parma in July 1989. When his father Carlo scored one of the finest goals of his career against Real Madrid in a Champions League semi-final and then led his team to a 4-0 victory over Steaua Bucharest to win the Champions League for the first time, Davide was still in his mother's womb. In 1990, when Carlo and AC Milan defeated Benfica 1-0 to win the Champions League again, Davide was not even one year old.

However, Davide witnessed almost every step of his father's rise on the coaching bench, until Carlo became the manager with the most Champions League titles in history—five victories in total, with AC Milan in 2003 and 2007, and Real Madrid in 2014, 2022 and 2024. “From the beginning, I remember all the important matches, because before his first great success with Milan (in 2003), he actually experienced many disappointments. For example, Parma's group-stage elimination in the 1996-97 season and Juventus' elimination in the 2000-01 season... He always coached teams that regarded the Champions League as the top priority, even seeing it as part of the club's identity.”

From growing up in Parma's dressing room alongside stars such as Thuram and Buffon, to later sitting on Del Piero's lap in Juventus' dressing room, young Davide truly felt the enormous influence of the Champions League during the years when his father coached AC Milan.

The experience of the 2005 Istanbul final left him with a wound that remains difficult to forget. In that match, AC Milan led Liverpool 3-0 at half-time, but Liverpool fought back to make it 3-3 and eventually won 3-2 on penalties. “Since that day, I have always argued with people who say penalty shootouts are a ‘lottery game’. For me, that description is completely unacceptable.”

Davide turned 37 this summer, the same age his father Carlo was when he first managed in the Champions League in 1996. But he does not want this to limit his ambitions in the competition. “The Champions League has special meaning for me because, besides my childhood and Milan, European football also shaped me through Bayern Munich and Real Madrid. At Real Madrid, I was my father's assistant coach, and there, winning is an obligation.”

“I am proud to come to Lille, a club that also has European ambitions.” Davide emphasized repeatedly.

As a member of Real Madrid's coaching staff, he won the Champions League twice—in 2022 and 2024. During the 2022 title run, he even temporarily lost the calmness inherited from his father. In the Champions League round of 16 against Paris Saint-Germain, Benzema scored a hat-trick to help Real Madrid overturn a 0-1 first-leg deficit with a 3-1 second-leg victory. After the second goal, Davide sprinted all the way to the corner flag to celebrate, unlike the usually composed Ancelotti.

“After Paris, Lille has been the French club that has participated in European competitions most frequently in recent years. Two years ago, they produced a very impressive European campaign (eventually being eliminated by Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League round of 16 after a 1-1 first leg and 1-2 second leg aggregate result). Under Genesio, they defeated or drew with many strong opponents and created many surprises, including matches against Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid and Juventus. We also have ambitions this year and hope to replicate that performance and go as far as possible. The Champions League is very difficult, but we will also be a team that is difficult to beat,” he promised.

Davide does not currently have the star-studded squads his father Carlo had when he first competed in the Champions League with Parma or Juventus, but he has experienced the mythology of this competition up close and also seen its illusions and traps. These experiences may help him find a way to handle the competition faster than his father did.

He had already expected that he would often be compared with his father's achievement of five Champions League titles in the future, but this legacy no longer makes him feel overwhelmed. After all, the Champions League itself is part of “my family.”