Italian Football Teams: Complete Guide to Serie A, Serie B, and Serie A Women Teams (2025)

The Italian football league system consists of several tiers, like the Serie A, Serie B, Serie C, and other non-professional competitions. As many as professional Italian football teams compete in three different football leagues. Italy has produced some phenomenal talents over the years and continues to produce tremendous young and promising talents each year. The Serie A has been a great platform for high-profile players to showcase their excellence, which is followed by passion and excitement from the Italian fans.

The Italian football teams like Juventus and Milan have a rich history and are some of the oldest Italian clubs that have found worldwide success over the years. After Serie A, the second tier of the Italian football league system is Serie B. Serie B also consists of several Italian football teams that cover the major part of Italy and is organised by the Lega Nazionale Professionisti B.
While the Serie A teams and Serie B teams cover the major part of Italy, there are several other Italian football teams in the Serie C and other non-professional leagues, which further cover the whole of Italy. The Women’s football league system in Italy is divided into five different non-professional leagues. The Serie A women's is the highest division of Italian football for women in Italy. 12 clubs participate in the competition, and it is the first level of the Italian football pyramid. Join us as we take a detailed look at all of the Italian football teams and the Italian football league system. 

Italian Football Clubs: History and Evolution of Football Teams in Italy

While there might be a huge debate as to which teams were the early part of the early Italian football league system, there were several football events organized by the Italian National Gymnastics Federation in the 1890s, where several Italian football teams used to play. Although the Gymnastics Federation conducted football tournaments, tournaments conducted by Federazione Italiana Giuoco Calcio (FIGC) are considered to be official. FIGC was founded in 1898 and was called Federazione Italiana del Football (FIF) at the time of its inception.

Genoa Football Club is the oldest active Italian football team and was founded in 1893. While the club had been playing unofficially since 1890, many other clubs used to play around Genoa and were founded in the late 1800s. These clubs, however, established themselves as official Italian football teams in the early 1900s and made the game popular in the country.

Italian football teams, including Genoa, Milan, and Inter Milan, started the footballing revolution in Italy and played in the Campionato Federale, which was the Italian football league initially. It further transformed into the Serie A and Serie B, with clubs like Milan, Juventus, and Inter Milan becoming lethal Italian football clubs. 

Italian Football League System

The Italian football pyramid is a hierarchically connected league system that showcases different divisions of the Italian football league. It has nine national and regional tournaments. Three leagues are professional, while the remaining six are amateur leagues, which are set up by the Italian Football Federation. The top two levels of the pyramid have one division each, and below these levels, there are several parallel decisions covering small geographic areas in Italy.

The football teams in Italy are divided into different divisions, and the Italian football league system works on the principle of promotion and relegation. The highest division of Italian football is the Serie A. It is governed by the Lega Nazionale Professionisti Serie A and consists of 20 teams. After every season, the last three Serie A teams are relegated to the second division of the Italian football league system, the Serie B. The top six Serie A teams after each season get a chance to play in the European competition.

The third tier in the Italian football league system is the Serie C, and it is run by the Lega Italiana Calcio Professionistico. It consists of three different divisions, which comprise 20 clubs based on location. Serie D is the fourth division of the Italian football league, which is a competition of nine parallel divisions. Under Serie D, there are five further levels, including Eccellenza, Promozione, Prima Categoria, Seconda Categoria, and Terza Categoria, conducted by various governing bodies. 

Italian Football Divisions

There are three professional leagues in Italy, which are Serie A, Serie B, and Serie C. Here is a full breakdown of each division and the different levels of the Italian football system. 

Italian Football Pyramid

The football teams in Italy follow the promotion and relegation rule in the Italian football league. All Italian football teams are divided into various professional and non-professional leagues. The Serie A is considered to be the highest division in Italian football, followed by Serie B, Serie C, Serie D, and other regional and provincial leagues. After each season, the bottom teams in the Serie A are relegated to Serie B. Whereas the top teams of Serie B are promoted to Serie A, with more teams qualifying through playoff matches. This system of promotion and relegation is followed by each division, hence providing a competitive platform for the teams. 

Top 10 Most Successful Italian Football Teams

Over the years, Italian clubs have achieved some magnificent trophies and accolades. They have also provided some phenomenal players from high-profile clubs, including Juventus, Milan, Roma, Internazionale, and several other top-tier Italian football clubs. Join us as we take a look at some of the best Italian football teams that have been dominant and successful over the years. 

Serie A Teams

The Serie A is the highest division of the Italian football league system and was established in the 1929-30 season after being restructured from the old Italian Football Championship, which was played since 1898. It is considered to be one of the strongest and toughest leagues globally, given the level and status of Italian football teams participating in it. The Serie A teams include some of Italy’s best, including Juventus, Milan, Internazionale, and more. Serie A is ranked second in the UEFA coefficient rankings based on performances in European competitions. Join us as we take a look at detailed look at the Serie A teams participating in the upcoming Serie A campaign. 

Serie B Teams

The Serie B is the second-highest division in the Italian football pyramid after Serie A. The Serie B has been in effect since the 1929-30 season and is organized by Lega Calcio. Genoa remains the most successful club in Serie B as the Italian giant has won the league a record six times. Join us as we take a look at the Serie B teams that will be featured in the upcoming campaign. 

Serie A Women Teams

Serie A Femminile is Italy’s top-tier women’s football league and was founded back in 1968. The league currently features 12 teams, with Torres being the most successful team in the league. Torres have won the title seven times over the years. Other dominant teams include Juventus Women, Roma Women, and several other sides. Join us as we take a look at the current Serie A Women teams, including Genoa, Inter, Lazio, and several other teams.