When Marco Messina woke up on Sunday mornings as a child he’d watch Serie A’s Game of the Week in hopes that one day he’d play in Italy’s top division.
The Italian-American grew up in New York City and his Azzurri ancestry made it nearly impossible to not fall in love with calcio, as the sport of football is commonly referred to in Italy.
The young entrepreneur is now the face of Italian Football TV, a project Messina launched over a decade ago in an attempt to help cover calcio and bring better awareness to Serie A in the United States and across the world.
Messina had always dreamt of becoming a professional footballer, like many in the youth ranks, and he even had the chance to compete at the prestigious Viareggio Cup in Italy as a teenager.
The list of players that have made a name for themselves at the youth competition over the years is astounding, with players like Francesco Totti, Andrea Pirlo and Gianluigi Buffon having all gone on to have incredibly successful careers for both club and country.