The club has shown its faith in the 64-year-old by extending his deal.
Ettore Messina renews as Milan head coach until 2026
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3 Lesezeit
EA7 Emporio Armani Milan has put an end to any speculation over the future of head coach Ettore Messina by extending his contract until June 30, 2026. Milan has had another tough start to the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague season, finding itself 4-7 after 11 games, but the position of Coach Messina has never been in doubt by the club's leadership.
“Mr. Ettore Messina's contract is extended until June 30, 2026," read a statement by Milan president Leo Dell'Orco, published on the club's social media channels.
Messina at Milan
Coach Messina is currently in his fifth season in charge of Milan, during which time the team has gone 77-72 in the EuroLeague. Under his guidance, Milan has won two Italian League titles, two Italian Cups and one Italian Super Cup, while the Italian side also reached the 2021 EuroLeague Final Four after a 29-year wait.
Milan has reached the EuroLeague Playoffs in two seasons with Messina at the helm. The first came in 2020-21, when it went all the way to the Final Four before losing to FC Barcelona in the semifinals and downing CSKA Moscow in the third-place game. Then, in the 2021-22 season, it came up short against eventual champion Anadolu Efes Istanbul, losing the series 3-1.
Messina’s EuroLeague history
The 64-year-old has lifted the EuroLeague on four occasions in the past, doing so in the 1997-98 and 2000-01 seasons with Virtus Segafredo Bologna and then in the 2005-06 and 2007-08 campaigns with CSKA.
Across his 449-game career since the EuroLeague was created 23 years ago, in October 200, Messina’s coaching record stands at 303-146. He is just the second coach to have reached 300 wins, only behind his long-time friend Zeljko Obradovic.
Since the EuroLeague was formed, Messina has coached Virtus (2000-02), Benetton Treviso (2002-05), CSKA (2005-09), Real Madrid (2009-2011), CSKA again (2012-14) and then Milan (2019-present). Messina spent five years working as an assistant to legendary coach Gregg Popovich at the San Antonio Spurs in the NBA, too, between 2014 and 2019.
Messina has made it to the Final Four 11 times: twice with Virtus (2001, 2002), once with Treviso (2003), four times with CSKA (2006, 2007, 2008, 2009), once with Real (2011), another two times with CSKA (2013, 2014) and once with Milan (2021).