Serie A’s global reach: countries that have only been represented once in the league’s history
Serie A has always pulled in talent from all over the world, but not every country has built a long-standing presence in Italy. Some, in fact, have had just one representative ever – sometimes for a fleeting moment, sometimes in unforgettable fashion.
The latest to join this unique group is Andrias Edmundsson, a defender at Hellas Verona and the first Faroese player to appear in Serie A. A small piece of history, made even more interesting by the fact that – in the same window – Lecce’s Oumar Ngom narrowly missed out on joining this exclusive list, becoming Mauritania’s second ever representative as he followed in the footsteps of Souleymane Doukara.
Signed from Wisła Płock and already well established with the Faroe Islands national team after 21 appearances, Edmundsson now takes his place among a group of players who, for one reason or another, found themselves representing their nation alone.
Europe: Mkhitaryan and more, where being the only one makes you unforgettable
Serie A has now welcomed players from almost every UEFA country: only Azerbaijan, Andorra, Gibraltar, Malta and Northern Ireland are still missing, while even microstates like San Marino (Bonini and Mancina) and Liechtenstein (Frick and Büchel) have had more than one representative.
Some stories are brief. Issa Bah, a Luxembourg international, played just eight minutes for Venezia in 2022 – enough to earn a footnote in Serie A history. More recent was Raimonds Krollis, a Latvian striker, who made just four appearances for Spezia in 2023.
Others, though, left a serious impression. The standout is Henrikh Mkhitaryan, still the only Armenian to play in Serie A, and one of its most consistent performers in recent years. Since arriving in 2019, he’s passed 200 league appearances between Roma and Inter. He won the UEFA Conference League with the Giallorossi in 2020/21 and set a competition record as the highest goalscorer within Europe’s top 5 leagues, with 13 goals, before going on to win a Scudetto with Inter in 2023/24, his first domestic title. Being Armenia’s sole representative – and their all-time top goalscorer with 32 goals – only adds to his legacy.
Kazakhstan’s moment came through Alexander Merkel, an AC Milan academy product who debuted during the Allegri’s Scudetto-winning season but never quite fulfilled the early promise his debut suggested.
Africa: icons, cult heroes and one-off stories
Africa’s legacy in Serie A mirrors the league’s global evolution. It began with Côte d'Ivoire’s François Jean Zahoui, the first African player to feature in Serie A with Ascoli in the early 1980s – a trailblazer in every sense.
The real turning point, however, came in the 1990s from Liberia, with the arrival of George Weah. From 1995 to 2000, the future Ballon d'Or winner illuminated AC Milan with 114 appearances, 46 goals, and two Scudetti, one under Capello in 1995-96 and the Centenary Scudetto under Zaccheroni in 1998-99. Weah remains unique as the only African footballer to have won both the Ballon d'Or and the FIFA World Player of the Year awards. Curiously, he also remains the only Liberian to have played in Serie A, given that his son Timothy Weah, despite two seasons at Juventus, represented the United States.
Weah’s success encouraged players from many more African nations: Bryan Dabo carried Burkina Faso’s flag across spells with Fiorentina, SPAL and Benevento, scoring 3 goals in 74 appearances, while McDonald Mariga became Kenya’s first and only representative, remembered for his spells at Parma and Inter, including a role in the Treble-winning squad of 2010.
Madagascar's stint came through Andy Pelmard, a 2000-born defender who moved from Lecce two seasons ago, but he made only three appearances for the Giallorossi before continuing his career abroad. Geoffrey Kondogbia, though French-born, represented the Central African Republic during his two seasons at Inter.
Then there is the special case of Elio Capradossi, born in Uganda to a Roman father and a Congolese mother. Raised in Italy, he chose to represent his country of birth and has since made three Serie A appearances for Roma and Spezia. Zimbabwe is currently represented by Jordan Zemura, who has made 61 appearances for Udinese and scored twice, with 11 appearances this season.
Between 2015 and 2017, Togo had its only stint in the league: Serge Gakpé, a French-born winger who played for Genoa, Atalanta, and Chievo, finishing his career in Italy with 34 appearances and four goals.
Perhaps the most romantic tale belongs to Henok Goitom. Born in Solna, Sweden, of Eritrean origins, the striker became the protagonist of one of the league's most incredible stories: a single Serie A appearance for Udinese in the 2004-05 season, he came on with eight minutes remaining and scored a header in injury time to level the score against Toldo's Inter. One goal, one appearance, an entire nation represented. Goitom would never play in Serie A again, continuing his career between Spain and Sweden, but he remains the only Eritrean to have both played and scored in the league.
Curiously, Somalia is not on this list, having had two representatives – Ayub Daud and Abel Gigli – with one appearance each.
Asia: historic debuts and political weight
Asia’s presence in Serie A has been sparse, notably with no players ever from China or India.
Qatar has its sole representative in Guilherme, who made 39 appearances in two seasons for Udinese, becoming a recognizable presence in the Friulian midfield.
A recent case is that of Saud Abdulhamid, the first Saudi Arabian player to play in Serie A. Last season, he appeared four times for Roma, even providing an assist for Nicolò Pisillì in the win against Torino, before moving to Lens in Ligue 1.
Some stories carry wider significance. Han Kwang-song made history as the first North Korean to score in Serie A, finding the net for Cagliari in 2017 after a strong spell in Serie B. It was a moment that went far beyond football.
South Korea, meanwhile, has had three representatives: Jung-hwan Ahn at Perugia, who scored 5 times in 30 appearances; Lee Seung-woo, who made 14 appearances for Verona and scored once; and Kim Min-jae, a key figure in Napoli’s title-winning defence under Spalletti.
The Americas: rare flags in familiar stadiums
Central and South America has provided Serie A with an impressive array of represented nations. Emmanuel Rivière, the only Martinique player to have played in Serie A, bagged one goal in his one season with Crotone. Wilfried Dalmat, who made seven appearances for Lecce in 2004, is from Saint Martin.
Panama’s standard-bearer was Julio Dely Valdés, who scored 21 goals in 64 games for Cagliari in the mid-90s and remains one of the most effective players on this list.
Bolivia appears on this list thanks to Jaume Cuéllar, who made two Serie A appearances for SPAL. El Salvador, meanwhile, is represented by Joshua Pérez, who made a single appearance for Fiorentina in 2016 before a season in Serie C with Livorno.
Oceania: the other side of the world
Unsurprisingly, Oceania’s representation is largely dominated by Australians, led by Mark Bresciano, still the most capped Aussie in Serie A history. The only exception is Liberato Cacace, who represented New Zealand with Empoli before moving on to Wrexham.
(Photo Getty Images + LaPresse)