Farewell to Striker Igor Protti: The Family’s Announcement and His Final, Heartfelt Farewell

Last night Igor Protti passed away. The former striker—who played for Livorno, Bari, Lazio, and Napoli, among others—had been ill for some time and passed away at the age of 58 after a long battle with a serious illness.

The news of his death was shared on social media by his family in a post that also included the former striker’s final farewell.

“It is with immense sorrow that the family announces that Igor passed away last night. He wanted to leave you this message, which we are sharing in accordance with his wishes: ‘This wonderful journey, like every game, has come to the final whistle. It’s hard to find the words to explain it; the only thing I can do is thank my big, wonderful family, whom I adored.
To all the people who loved me and stood by me, and to all the fans of the teams I played for—thank you for the affection and love you always showed me, which I fully reciprocated. Hoping this is a ‘see you later’ and not a ‘goodbye’…”, the social media post read.

Igor Protti fought his illness until the very end. Throughout his career, he was one of the most prolific Italian strikers of all time. His standout performance came during the 1995–96 season, when he became the top scorer in Serie A while playing for Bari, with a total of 24 goals (a title he shared with Giuseppe Signori). It’s worth noting that he also won the top scorer title in Serie B and Serie C1.