Giovanni "Gianni" Rivera (Italian pronunciation: [ˈdʒanni riˈvɛːra]; born 18 August 1943) is an Italian politician and former footballer who played as an attacking midfielder for clubs Alessandria and AC Milan.
Dubbed Italy's "Golden Boy" by the media, he played the majority of his club career with Italian side AC Milan, after beginning his career with hometown club Alessandria in 1959. After joining Milan in 1960, he enjoyed a highly successful career in domestic and European football, winning two European Cups, three Serie A titles and four Coppa Italia titles, among several other trophies, and also serving as the team's captain for twelve seasons.
At international level, Rivera represented Italy national team 60 times between 1962 and 1974, scoring 14 goals, and took part at four World Cups (1962, 1966, 1970, and 1974). Rivera is widely remembered for scoring the decisive goal in Italy's 4–3 extra-time win over West Germany in the semi-final of the 1970 World Cup, leading the team to final, only to suffer a 4–1 defeat against Brazil, however. Rivera was also a member of the first Italian side ever to win the European Football Championship in 1968, on home soil, and represented Italy at the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome, helping the team to a fourth-place finish.
Rivera was an elegant, efficient, and creative offensive playmaker, with an eye for goal, who possessed excellent vision and technical ability. Regarded as one of the greatest Italian footballers of all time, and by some as Italy's greatest player ever, he was awarded the Ballon d'Or in 1969, and placed 19th in IFFHS's election for the World Player of the 20th Century. In 2015, he became the first Italian footballer out of 100 athletes to be inducted into Italy's sports Walk of Fame. In 2004, Pelé chose Rivera as part of the FIFA 100 greatest living footballers, and he placed 35th in the UEFA Golden Jubilee Poll.
After retiring from football in 1979, Rivera became Milan's vice-president and later went into politics in 1987. In 2013, he was appointed as President of the educational youth sector for the Italy national team by the FIGC, along with Roberto Baggio and Arrigo Sacchi, under head coach Cesare Prandelli. The Athletic The Soccer 100 listed him at 68th greatest player ever. Following the death of Denis Law in January 2025, Rivera is currently the oldest living recipient of the Ballon D'Or.
Rivera was born in Alessandria, Piedmont, to Edera and Teresio; his father was a railway worker. Gianni began playing football with local side ASD Don Bosco, where he was scouted by former Milan midfielder Franco Pedroni, who was the assistant coach at Alessandria at the time, prompting Rivera to join the local Serie A side at the age of 13.
1959–1962: Debut with Alessandria, early years with AC Milan and first scudetto
Nicknamed l'Abatino, and the Golden Boy of Italian football throughout his career, Rivera was the product of his hometown club's youth football academy; he joined the first team in 1958 and made his debut in Serie A for the Alessandria senior side against Internazionale on 2 June 1959 at the age of only fifteen years, nine months and fifteen days, in a 1–1 draw; later that year, he scored his first Serie A goal in a 2–2 home draw with Sampdoria on 25 October. He is the third youngest player in history to debut in Serie A, behind only Amedeo Amadei and Pietro Pellegri, and the second youngest goalscorer in Serie A, behind only Amadei. A year later, he was bought by AC Milan on a co-ownership deal, as an eventual replacement for the club's captain Juan Schiaffino in the playmaking role; although the club's officials were concerned about Rivera's diminutive physique during his trial, Schiaffino insisted that the talented youngster be offered a contract, and later served as a mentor to the young attacking midfielder. Rivera spent his first season at the club back on a year-long loan with Alessandria; during the season, he scored a goal in a 1–1 draw with Milan on 7 February 1960, and played 26 matches in total, in which he scored 6 goals, also earning the nickname Il Signorino (the little gentleman). Despite Alessandria's relegation, Rivera's performances throughout the season impressed Milan, who later that year signed the youngster outright from Alessandria for another 65 million Lire, making his total transfer fee at the time a notable sum of 130 million Lire; the transfer fee paid by Milan to Alessandria also included the sale of Giancarlo Migliavacca, and Sergio Bettini on loan. Rivera's final appearance with Alessandria came on 19 June 1960, in a 2–0 home defeat against FC La Chaux-de-Fonds in the first-ever edition of the Coppa delle Alpi.
Rivera made his Milan debut on 18 September 1960, in a 3–5 away win over his former club Alessandria in the Coppa Italia, under manager Giuseppe Viani, who later gave Rivera his famed nickname the Golden Boy. Rivera's Milan league debut came in a 3–0 home win against Catania on 25 September, and he later also appeared in a 5–1 win over Bologna on 9 October 1960; he scored his first goal with Milan on 6 November, the match-winning goal in a 4–3 away win over Juventus, at the age of seventeen. During his first season with Milan, he played alongside several legendary Milan players, such as Cesare Maldini, Giovanni Trapattoni, Dino Sani, Fabio Cudicini, and José Altafini, among others, immediately breaking into the starting line-up, and being handed the number 10 shirt, as Milan finished the league season in second place. After initially struggling to gain playing time under new manager Nereo Rocco during the 1961–62 season, his second at the club, also being linked with loans to Vicenza and Juventus, Rivera won his way back into the starting line-up and played a decisive role as he won his first scudetto with Milan, scoring 10 goals in the league; in the title deciding match on 8 April 1962 against Torino, Rivera scored in a 4–2 win, as Milan won the title with two matches to spare. Throughout his career, Rivera formed an important relationship with the legendary manager and catenaccio mastermind; he played a key role in the club's successes under Rocco, who subsequently built a hard-working, winning team around Rivera that complemented the midfielder's creative playing style. Due to his performances throughout the season, on 13 May 1962, aged just eighteen, Rivera played his first competitive match for the Italy national team at that year's World Cup in Chile. A precocious talent, despite his young age, Rivera soon became known for his ability to orchestrate Milan's attacking moves, as well as his leadership within the team, and he served as the club's captain for 12 of his 19 seasons with Milan after being handed the armband in 1966, at the age of 23.
1962–1970: International successes with AC Milan
Rivera's 1962 scudetto victory with Milan under Nereo Rocco enabled the team to qualify for the European Cup in 1962, and earned him a sixth-place finish in that year's Ballon d'Or. Despite missing out on the Serie A title the following season, Rivera played a key role in helping Milan finally win their first ever European Cup title in 1963, at the age of twenty, defeating Benfica 2–1 in the final. Rivera was in great form during the match, providing two notable assists for José Altafini's goals; he finished the season in double figures once again with 11 goals for Milan in all competitions, while he made 40 appearances throughout the season for both club and country. Milan suffered a defeat in the Intercontinental Cup, however, in a playoff match against Santos following a 6–6 draw on aggregate. For his performances, Rivera was awarded second place in the prestigious Ballon d'Or award that year, which was won by the Russian goalkeeper Lev Yashin. With the departure of Nereo Rocco to Torino, Milan struggled to replicate the same level of success during the next few seasons, missing out on the league title to cross-city rivals Inter in 1965; despite the club's loss of form during this period, Rivera's performances continued to be decisive, as he managed ninth, seventh, and sixteenth placements respectively in the Ballon d'Or in 1964, 1965, and 1967, while he helped Milan win the Coppa Italia during the 1966–67 season, finishing the competition as top-scorer, with 7 goals.