Former Italian soccer player Damiano Tommasi has been elected mayor of his hometown of Verona.
The 48-year-old, who played for AS Roma as a midfielder for ten years and played 25 international matches for the “Squadra Azzurra” from 1998 to 2003, won the run-off election as the top candidate of the Social Democratic Party (PD) against incumbent Federico Sboarina with 53 percent of the votes .
“Verona has been waiting for this turning point, now we face a great responsibility,” said Tommasi. He spoke of a “historic result” for centre-left forces in the traditionally more right-wing municipality of Verona, which has a population of 257,000.
The father of six Tommasi began his playing career at Hellas Verona, for whom he played in Serie B between 1993 and 1996. In 1996 he moved to Serie A in Rome, where he was under contract until 2006. From 2011 to 2020 he was head of the Italian footballers’ union AIC.