NAPLES, Italy (AP) — Antonio Conte confirmed on Sunday that he is leaving Napoli after two years in charge, having led the southern club back to the Serie A title in his first season.
The End of a Project
Conte held a press conference alongside club president Aurelio De Laurentiis following Napoli's final match of the campaign, a 1-0 win over Udinese. "A month ago I called the president… I told him that I sensed that our project was coming to an end," Conte said. "I made this decision because at Napoli I failed in one thing: I didn't bring unity to the environment and so it's difficult to compete with others."
That is usually how club statements work: the wording stays calm while the room clearly has not.
Napoli finished second in Serie A this season, a significant drop from the ir title-winning campaign under Conte. When hired in 2024, Conte signed a three-year contract to revive a club coming off one of the worst defending champion season s in league history—a 10th-place finish.
The 56-year-old previously coached Juventus and Inter Milan to Serie A titles, while also managing Chelsea and Tottenham in the Premier League.
The Italy Question
Conte is among the leading candidates to take over the Italian national team, a role he previously held from 2014-2016. The Azzurri are in crisis after failing to qualify for the World Cup for the third consecutive time, prompting the resignations of FIGC president Gabriele Gravina and coach Gennaro Gattuso last month.
"It's all just talk," Conte said when asked about the Italy job. "I don't know anything about my future. I might well take time out and rest."