100-year-old Inter Milan fan eagerly awaits Champions League semi-final

Enrico Vanzini, 100, an Italian military personnel during the Second World War, reads the newspaper La Gazzetta dello Sport wearing his FC Inter milan jersey in the retirement home where he resides in Padua | Photo Credit: Reuters [Claudia Greco]

FOOTBALL 100-year-old Inter Milan fan eagerly awaits Champions League semi-final

Shafic Kiyaga • 19:31 - 09.05.2023

Vanzini's passion for the team began at the age of seven, but he had never been able to attend a match until last year when he finally made it to the San Siro stadium to watch Inter play for the first time aged 99.

Enrico Vanzini, a 100-year-old Holocaust survivor and die-hard Inter Milan fan, is eagerly anticipating his beloved team's Champions League semi-final clash against their city rivals AC Milan.

Vanzini's passion for the team began at the age of seven, but he had never been able to attend a match until last year when he finally made it to the San Siro stadium to watch Inter play for the first time aged 99.

In an interview with Reuters, Vanzini spoke about his lifelong love for Inter Milan, saying, "My passion began when I was seven. I was never able to go, and I had no money."

He also expressed his hope that Inter would win the Champions League this year and revealed that he would do anything to help the team, including giving up his small pension.

"I prayed to God to give me the joy of Inter winning, and hopefully He will agree," he said, wearing an Inter t-shirt with his name inscribed on the back.

"I would do anything (for a win), including (giving up) my small pension."

Vanzini's journey to becoming an Inter Milan fan was not without its challenges. As a soldier in the Italian army during World War II, he was captured by the Germans and spent the final months of the conflict in the Dachau Nazi concentration camp.

Despite the horrors he experienced, Vanzini survived and returned home to work as a bus and truck driver.

In the early 2000s, Vanzini began testifying about his experiences during the Holocaust and received an Inter Milan t-shirt from the club to mark his 100th birthday.

Vanzini is looking forward to watching Inter's Champions League semi-final showdown against AC Milan from the comfort of his nursing home in the northern city of Padua.

He admires team manager Simone Inzaghi, saying he made "very few mistakes." However, he also had some suggestions for the team to help them defeat Milan and reach the first Champions League final since 2010.

"In the first half, we must not get too tired, everyone must be in their place," he said.