AC Milan is today famous as a prominent football club that plays in Italy’s top-tier Serie A league. So it might come as a surprise to many that the Rossoneri’s history is connected with cricket too.

AC Milan was founded on December 16, 1899, as ‘Milan Foot-ball and Cricket Club’. In less than two years, AC Milan were the champions of Italy for the first time as they defeated Genoa, the oldest football club of Italy, 3-0 on May 5, 1901.

Genoa also had a connection with cricket; they were founded as the ‘Genoa Cricket & Football Club’ in 1893.

“The game of cricket in Italy dates back to 1793 when Admiral Horatio Nelson organised the first-ever recorded game in Naples,” writes the International Cricket Council (ICC). “Exactly 100 years later, Sir James Edward Spensley founded the Genoa Cricket & Football Club to be followed shortly afterwards by similar entities in Milan and Turin.”

Though Italy saw cricket very early, the game is not as popular as football in the country of late. But the Azzurri have never left playing cricket on a regular basis.

“To help the game of cricket grow in the country is our main goal,” said Wayne Madsen, the skipper who led Italy to their maiden berth at the 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup.

Speaking to journalists at Italy’s pre-match conference before their training commenced at the DY Patil Stadium in Mumbai on Wednesday, Madsen said that the team was proud to have made it to the World Cup and intended to do more with their performance.

Supporting Madsen, Italy’s head coach John Davison said that the team was at the T20 World Cup to leave a mark.

“We have had great games and results before beginning our T20 World Cup campaign,” Davison said. “And when we face Nepal, we are going to look for a win, as it matters a lot for us.”

Italy are in Group C alongside Nepal, England, the West Indies and Scotland. They lost to the Scottish side in their World Cup opener on February 9.

When asked how Italy were preparing before facing Nepal on Thursday, Madsen said, “We defeated the UAE convincingly in the warmup. The UAE rank higher than Nepal in T20Is, so we are pretty confident.”

Italy had defeated the UAE by 112 runs at the official warmup of the T20 World Cup. They also had a win over Canada.

Similarly, when asked if Nepal’s loud fan support was going to be a challenge, Madsen said that his players were used to playing in front of a large crowd.

“The Nepali fans are passionate, we saw it in the match against England,” said Madsen. “We are going to embrace it, enjoy the moments, and, obviously, concentrate on the game.”

Likewise, Davison, who is a former captain of Canada and a state-level cricketer from Australia, said that his team was ready for the ‘challenge’ against Nepal.

“In T20 cricket, a good day for a couple of players will suffice,” Davison said. “We hope to have that day against Nepal.”

Madsen got injured in the match against Scotland. There were concerns regarding his fitness for the match against Nepal as he is the key player for Italy. And in the pre-match conference on Wednesday, he looked fit, showing signs that he might start on Thursday.

Nonetheless, Nepal will not make it easy for Italy. The Rhinos will head to the match as the favourites, and the team is also on a high after taking England to the edge in their first match of the ongoing World Cup.

As Nepal’s skipper Rohit Kumar Paudel said during the team’s pre-match conference at Wankhede Stadium on Tuesday, “We have our plans, and we will execute them.”

Photo: Screengrab from ICC-CRICKET.COM

Italy’s captain Wayne Madsen (left) and head coach John Davison during their pre-match press conference at DY Patil Cricket Stadium in Mumbai on Wednesday.