Damiano Tommasi

After a decade at Roma – winning the 2001 Serie A title – he continued his career abroad, going on to play for teams in three countries until his retirement from professional football at the age of 37. He amassed Serie A totals of 262 games and 14 goals.

On 9 May 2011, he became the president of the Italian Footballers' Association, succeeding historical founder Sergio Campana who had been in office for 43 years.

In January 2010, together with his agent Andrea Pretti and longtime friend Werner Seeber, Tommasi set up a company in China called Tommasi Pretti Seeber Sports Culture & Exchange Co., Ltd (TPS), aimed at creating a reliable bridge between Europe and the Asian country in the field of football.

After one season, 35-year-old Tommasi left Teda and decided to return to Italy, joining amateurs Sant'Anna d'Alfaedo (Seconda Categoria), where he played alongside his two brothers. He made his debut with the team on 13 December 2009; he came out of retirement nearly six years later, with S.P. La Fiorita of San Marino. He stated on his decision: "It's a challenge that La Fiorita have given me the chance to experience all over again. I've been looking forward to this Europa League draw for ages now. Let's hope it will be a beautiful adventure and that I can add another chapter to my football career", and went to feature in their campaign in the UEFA Europa League campaign against FC Vaduz.

On 10 September 2008, Tommasi agreed a one-year deal with English Football League Championship team Queens Park Rangers. On 9 January 2009, his contract was terminated by mutual consent and, after advanced talks with Chinese Super League's Tianjin Teda, he signed for the club early in the following month, citing an interest in a third experience abroad as the main reason for it.

During a summer friendly match against Stoke City in 2004, Tommasi suffered a serious knee injury caused by Gerry Taggart, and was out of action long-term. In the summer of 2005 he accepted a one-year contract extension, with youth player wages (€1,500 a month) – a contract which he instigated himself in the name of fairness. He finally returned to play on 30 October 2005, coming on as a second-half substitute for Olivier Dacourt during a league match against Ascoli Calcio 1898 and being hailed with a long standing ovation by the Roma supporters.

On 27 November 2005, Tommasi scored after just two minutes in an eventual 1–1 home draw against ACF Fiorentina, being an important first-team member as Roma finished runner-up. After ten years with the club, in July 2006 he joined Levante UD in Spain, spending two seasons with the La Liga strugglers, eventually ending in relegation in 2007–08.

Tommasi made his last appearance for Italy on 16 November 2003, in a 1–0 home victory over Romania. He scored the first of two goals for his country on 5 September 2001, in a 1–0 friendly win over Morocco.

Tommasi earned 25 caps for Italy, and was a member of the team that took part in the 2002 World Cup.

After featuring prominently during the Azzurri's 2002 FIFA World Cup qualifying campaign, Tommasi was picked by manager Giovanni Trapattoni for the squad that would take part at the finals in Japan and South Korea. He played in all four matches during the tournament, which ended in round-of-16 exit; in the decisive clash against co-hosts South Korea, he came close to scoring twice: first when Roma teammate Francesco Totti played him in only to have his shot blocked by Lee Woon-jae. During extra time, referee Byron Moreno disallowed him a goal due to a controversial offside decision, and the Italians were eventually defeated by a golden goal.

Tommasi played for the Italy under-21 team that won the 1996 UEFA European Championship, also being picked for that year's Summer Olympic Games in Atlanta where he made three appearances. He made his debut for the senior side on 18 November 1998, under Dino Zoff, in a 2–2 home draw against Spain, but did not become a regular team member until 2001.

Born in Negrar, Province of Verona, Tommasi started his professional career with local club Hellas Verona FC, in Serie B. He made his Serie A debut on 7 September 1996 with A.S. Roma in a 3–1 win over Piacenza Calcio, and would be an instrumental figure in the side's 2001 conquest of the scudetto, with manager Fabio Capello even labelling him as the team's most important player.

Damiano Tommasi (Italian pronunciation: [daˈmjaːno tomˈmaːzi] ; born 17 May 1974) is an Italian footballer who played as a defensive midfielder, and is the current president of the Italian Footballers' Association.