From Roma to Wimbledon: Flavio Cobolli’s football dream led him to Centre Court

Dubai: A few years ago, Flavio Cobolli was chasing wingers as a right-back in AS Roma’s youth academy. On Wednesday, he found himself chasing history — on Centre Court, against Novak Djokovic, the man he grew up idolising.

Cobolli, now 23, pushed the 24-time Grand Slam champion to four sets in a spirited Wimbledon quarter-final, even snatching the opening set in a tiebreak before eventually falling 6-7 (6), 6-2, 7-5, 6-4. The result may not have gone his way, but the moment was a full-circle milestone in a journey that began on the football fields of Trigoria and now finds him among the elite of men’s tennis.

“This is the best court in the world,” Cobolli had said ahead of the match. “He’s my idol. I just want to enjoy the crowd and have fun with every point.”

For five years, Cobolli wore the colours of his beloved Roma, dreaming of Serie A nights at the Stadio Olimpico. But at 14, he made a life-changing decision: to trade his football boots for a tennis racket. Drawn to the individuality of tennis, he left behind team huddles for solo grind — but not without bringing his love for football along.

He still attends Roma matches, follows football more than tennis, and wears his devotion on his chest — quite literally — with a tattoo that reads “sei tu l’unica mia sposa, sei tu l’unico mio amor” (you are my only wife, you are my only love), a tribute to Roma and club legend Daniele de Rossi.

Cobolli remains close with several academy teammates, including Arsenal’s Riccardo Calafiori and Fiorentina’s Edoardo Bove. Earlier this year, Bove surprised him by attending the Hamburg Open final, where Cobolli lifted his first ATP 500 title by defeating Andrey Rublev.

In London, Cobolli came face-to-face with the man he watches “every day” on YouTube — and briefly shared the court with Djokovic’s 10-year-old son Stefan during practice.

“They played some points,” Djokovic said. “He [Stefan] has everyone’s signature except mine. But that’s OK — I’ll accept that! I’ll have a conversation with my son and see what he’s noticed in the game of Cobolli.”

What the youngster — and the Wimbledon crowd — saw was a fearless, fluid game built on flair, not far removed from a playmaking footballer’s instincts. Cobolli broke Djokovic’s serve while trailing 3-5 in the first set, then edged a tense tiebreak 8-6.

But Djokovic, 38, showed why he’s still the sport’s benchmark. Despite a nasty fall late in the match — landing awkwardly in the splits on match point — the Serb gathered himself, closed out the match, and advanced to his 14th Wimbledon semi-final, where he’ll meet world No. 1 Jannik Sinner.

For Cobolli, the loss is far from the end — it’s a launchpad. Already ranked a career-high No 24, he’s enjoyed a breakout 2025 season, winning titles in Bucharest and Hamburg and reaching the second week at a Slam for the first time. His run included a fourth-round win over veteran Marin Cilic and wins over higher-ranked players throughout the grass-court swing.

And though tennis is now his home, football remains close. He still plays foot-tennis with players like Carlos Alcaraz and catches up with Roma friends for padel matches.

On Wednesday, he proved he belonged on the sport’s biggest stage — not bad for a kid who once dreamed of hearing his name echo through the Olimpico, not Wimbledon’s Centre Court.