Paolo Maldini pays tribute as Franco Baresi dies at 66
Franco Baresi, AC Milan legend and honorary vice president, died on July 31, 2026, at 66, less than a year after a lung nodule was found in routine checks. Paolo Maldini led the tributes, calling him the strongest teammate he ever played alongside and asking how Milan will cope without its Capitano.
Key Takeaways
- Franco Baresi died on July 31, 2026, aged 66.
- On August 3, 2025, Milan said routine tests found a lung nodule; mini-invasive surgery went well, followed by immunotherapy consolidation.
- Neither the family nor Milan publicly labeled the illness as cancer, though the care path matches common lung carcinoma protocols.
- Paolo Maldini shared a personal farewell after 13 seasons and more than 450 matches together.
- Immunotherapy and low-dose CT screening are reshaping lung-cancer care, experts told Corriere della Sera.
What happened to Franco Baresi?
Italian media reported that Baresi died today at 66. Corriere della Sera recalled that on August 3, 2025, Milan’s official site said honorary vice president Franco Baresi, then 65, had a pulmonary nodule after routine assessments.
The club said surgeons removed it with a mini-invasive procedure, the operation went well, and recovery had no complications. An oncologist then indicated consolidation therapy based on an immunotherapy drug. Full context is in Corriere della Sera’s report.
The family and club did not openly speak of a tumor. Corriere noted the described pathway is often used for lung carcinoma, where immunotherapy can follow surgery to cut relapse risk.
What did Paolo Maldini say about Baresi?
Paolo Maldini’s social tribute opened: “Ciao Franco, today I feel the same way as when, for any reason, you could not take the field beside us: how will we manage without our Capitano?”
They shared 13 years at Milan from 1984 to 1997, more than 450 matches, five Serie A titles, and three Champions League crowns. The captain’s armband later passed from Baresi to Maldini. Known as “Kaiser Franz,” Baresi is ranked among football’s great defenders, alongside Franz Beckenbauer.
Maldini wrote that Baresi taught him to fight to the last breath, what club loyalty means, and how to lead by example. He added: “You protected me as a child, guided me as a boy, and inspired me as a man,” calling him the strongest player he had ever had the honor to play with. He sent love to Baresi’s wife Maura and sons Edoardo and Giannandrea.
Why does lung nodule care matter beyond football?
Aiom president Massimo Di Maio told Corriere that immunotherapy, once mainly for advanced disease, can now consolidate treatment after chemo and radiotherapy, or work before and after surgery in earlier stages. Targeted drugs have also extended survival for many patients.
Italy sees nearly 45,000 new lung-cancer diagnoses a year. Over 70% of cases are found late; five-year survival averages about 18%. Symptoms are vague—persistent cough, shortness of breath, chest pain, wheezing, hoarseness, weight loss, and frequent respiratory infections. About one in five patients never smoked.
Di Maio urged annual low-dose chest CT screening for heavy smokers and former heavy smokers, arguing early detection saves lives. For more science and breakthrough coverage, see BlasterPost’s Future Tech & AI Wonders hub.
Baresi’s death closes a Milan era and renews focus on how modern oncology—and earlier screening—can change outcomes when a lung nodule appears.