Patrizio Billio (19 April 1974 – 23 January 2023) was an Italian

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who played as a

midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in t ...

Biography

Billio was born in

Treviso, Italy Treviso ( ; ; ) is a city and (municipality) in the Veneto region of northern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Treviso and the municipality has 87.322 inhabitants (as of December 2024). Some 3,000 live within the Venetian wall ...

on 19 April 1974. He had a degree in Sports Management from the

Catholic University of Milan The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

Career

Billio started his professional career at

A.C. Milan (), commonly referred to as Milan or AC Milan () mainly outside of Italy, is an Italian professional Football club (association football), football club based in Milan, Lombardy. Founded in 1899, the club competes in the Serie A, the top tie ...

, playing with the

youth academy In sporting terminology, a youth system (or youth academy) is a youth investment program within a particular team or league, which develops and nurtures young talent in farm teams, with the vision of using them in the first team if they show en ...

before being promoted to the senior squad. He then played for

Ravenna Ravenna ( ; , also ; ) is the capital city of the Province of Ravenna, in the Emilia-Romagna region of Northern Italy. It was the capital city of the Western Roman Empire during the 5th century until its Fall of Rome, collapse in 476, after which ...

Verona Verona ( ; ; or ) is a city on the Adige, River Adige in Veneto, Italy, with 255,131 inhabitants. It is one of the seven provincial capitals of the region, and is the largest city Comune, municipality in the region and in Northeast Italy, nor ...

(both Serie B),

Casarano Casarano (Salentino: ) is a town and sixth most populous ''comune'' in the Italian province of Lecce, in the Apulia region of South-East Italy. The town's economy is mostly agriculture-based, with olive oil being the main product. The Church of S ...

(Serie C1),

Ternana Ternana Calcio, commonly referred to as Ternana, is an Italian football club based in Terni, Umbria and currently compete in the Serie C. The club was founded in 1925 and refounded in 1993. In its history, Ternana has twice played in Serie A ...

(Serie C2),

Ancona Ancona (, also ; ) is a city and a seaport in the Marche region of central Italy, with a population of around 101,997 . Ancona is the capital of the province of Ancona, homonymous province and of the region. The city is located northeast of Ro ...

. In January 1998, he joined

Crystal Palace Crystal Palace may refer to: Places Canada * Crystal Palace Complex (Dieppe), a former amusement park now a shopping complex in Dieppe, New Brunswick * Crystal Palace Barracks, London, Ontario * Crystal Palace (Montreal), an exhibition buildin ...

in the

Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...

, making his debut as a substitute in a win against

Newcastle United Newcastle United Football Club is a professional association football club based in Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear, England. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football league system, English football. Since th ...

St James' Park St James' Park is a Association football, football stadium in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. It is the home of Newcastle United F.C., Newcastle United. With a seating capacity of 52,305, it is the List of football stadiums in England, 8th la ...

. Billio then played for

for a short period of time before signing with

Dundee Dundee (; ; or , ) is the List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, fourth-largest city in Scotland. The mid-year population estimate for the locality was . It lies within the eastern central Lowlands on the north bank of the Firt ...

in October 1999. After excellent performances, the club renewed for three more seasons. Not long after, however, he and fellow Italian player

Marco De Marchi Marco Antonio De Marchi (born 8 September 1966) is an Italian association football agent and former defender, who played as a centre-back. Career Born in Milan, De Marchi started his career with the Como youth system, and was successively so ...

had major conflicts with the new management, most notably manager

Ivano Bonetti Ivano Bonetti (born 1 August 1964) is an Italian football manager, club director and former professional footballer, the current CEO and president & owner of Mobisafe. As a player he was a midfielder from 1981 to 2002. He made appearances for s ...

. They were removed unfairly from the first team and within a few months were required to practice alone or with the youth team. In January 2002, Billio alleged that he was headbutted by a man with a

skinhead A skinhead or skin is a member of a subculture that originated among working-class youth in London, England, in the 1960s. It soon spread to other parts of the United Kingdom, with a second working-class skinhead movement emerging worldwide i ...

haircut outside of

Dens Park Dens Park is a football stadium in Dundee, Scotland, which is the home of club Dundee F.C. and has a capacity of . Tannadice Park, the home of rivals Dundee United, is just 200 yards (183 metres) away. History Dundee moved to "Dens" from the ...

and that his car was stolen from his home. There was speculation about whether Dundee executive Paul Marr had been involved in the attack, but he was later acquitted in court.

FIFA The Fédération Internationale de Football Association (), more commonly known by its acronym FIFA ( ), is the international self-regulatory governing body of association football, beach soccer, and futsal. It was founded on 21 May 1904 to o ...

decided to release him from his contract shortly thereafter and was signed by

Aberdeen Aberdeen ( ; ; ) is a port city in North East Scotland, and is the List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, third most populous Cities of Scotland, Scottish city. Historically, Aberdeen was within the historic county of Aberdeensh ...

on a free transfer in August 2002. He scored his first goal for the club in a 3–1 win over

Dunfermline Dunfermline (; , ) is a city, parish, and former royal burgh in Fife, Scotland, from the northern shore of the Firth of Forth. Dunfermline was the de facto capital of the Kingdom of Scotland between the 11th and 15th centuries. The earliest ...

. He decided to leave Aberdeen in December 2002, and he signed for

Livorno Livorno () is a port city on the Ligurian Sea on the western coast of the Tuscany region of Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Livorno, having a population of 152,916 residents as of 2025. It is traditionally known in English as Leghorn ...

of Serie B. He then played for Sora (Serie C1, 2003–04, 2004-5 January), Pro Sesto (January 2005 – 2006, Serie C1 &C2) and Massese (Serie C1). He returned to Pro Sesto in 2008 Serie C1 and successively returned to Tuscany in January 2009 to join

Lega Pro Seconda Divisione Serie C2 was the fourth highest football league in Italy, the lowest with a professional status. History Before the 1978–79 season, there were only three professional football leagues in Italy, the third being Serie C. The league menaging ...

club Colligiana, where he finished his career.

Retirement

Following his retirement in 2011, Billio joined the LOYAC AC Milan Soccer School in

Kuwait Kuwait, officially the State of Kuwait, is a country in West Asia and the geopolitical region known as the Middle East. It is situated in the northern edge of the Arabian Peninsula at the head of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to Iraq–Kuwait ...

as the technical director and head coach. He had expressed interest in opening an AC Milan Soccer School arm in

Death

Billio died from a heart attack on 23 January 2023, at the age of 48.Attacco cardiaco, è morto l’ex calciatore Patrizio Billio

References

External links

*

Profile at massesecalcio.itCurriculum Giocatore
{{DEFAULTSORT:Billio, Patrizio 1974 births 2023 deaths Footballers from the Province of Treviso Italian men's footballers Men's association football midfielders Serie B players Premier League players Scottish Premier League players AC Milan players Ravenna FC players Hellas Verona FC players Ternana Calcio players AC Monza players Crystal Palace F.C. players AC Ancona players Dundee F.C. players Aberdeen F.C. players US Livorno 1915 players Pro Sesto 1913 players US Massese 1919 players ASD Olimpia Colligiana players Italian expatriate men's footballers Italian expatriate sportspeople in England Expatriate men's footballers in England Italian expatriate sportspeople in Scotland Expatriate men's footballers in Scotland