In one of the most dramatic final days of the Serie A season, Como 1907 cemented their place in European football history on Sunday, 24 May 2026. A stunning 4-1 victory over Cremonese, combined with AC Milan’s shock 1-2 home defeat to Cagliari, saw the Lariani seal a top-four finish — and with it, a place in the UEFA Champions League for the very first time.
It is a moment that would have seemed utterly unthinkable just a few years ago. But for a club that has been on one of football’s most remarkable journeys, this is the reward for years of vision, investment, and brilliant management.
The Match That Made History
Como were commanding at the Stadio Giovanni Zini, putting in a dominant performance against Cremonese to run out 4-1 winners on the final day of the 2025-26 Serie A season. But the celebrations were made all the sweeter by the news arriving from San Siro, where AC Milan — one of the giants of Italian and European football — were suffering a stunning home loss.
Milan, needing a result to secure Champions League football, were beaten 2-1 by Cagliari. The Rossoneri took an early lead through Alexis Saelemaekers in just the second minute, but goals from Borrelli and Rodríguez turned the game on its head, sending Cagliari to a famous away win and Milan crashing out of Champions League contention.
The result meant Como leapfrogged Milan to finish fourth in Serie A — enough to book a place among Europe’s elite. For the club, the fans, and especially their manager, it was a moment unlike any other.
Cesc Fàbregas: From World-Class Footballer to Masterful Manager
Much of Como’s extraordinary rise is down to one man: Cesc Fàbregas. The Spaniard, who graced some of the world’s biggest clubs as a player, has proven himself as a manager of rare quality — and he has done it at breathtaking speed.
As a player, Fàbregas was among the finest midfielders of his generation. He burst onto the scene at Arsenal in 2003 at just 16 years old, becoming the club’s youngest-ever first-team player and later their youngest-ever goalscorer. Over nine years at the Emirates, he scored 35 goals in 212 appearances, becoming the heartbeat of Arsène Wenger’s side.
In 2011, he fulfilled a lifelong dream by returning to Barcelona, the club that had first recruited him as a teenager. At the Camp Nou, he played alongside Xavi and Andrés Iniesta, winning La Liga, the Copa del Rey, and the FIFA Club World Cup, among other honours. His time at Barça was followed by a move to Chelsea in 2014 for £30 million, where he won two Premier League titles, the FA Cup, the League Cup, and the UEFA Europa League in four-and-a-half seasons. He later had spells at Monaco and Como — where he played in Serie B — before retiring in July 2023.
What happened next surprised many in the footballing world. Rather than stepping away, Fàbregas immediately turned to coaching. He took charge of Como’s youth academy side and, in November 2023, was appointed interim head coach of the first team in Serie B. The results were immediate — four games, three wins, one draw, and a climb from sixth to third in the table. He never looked back.
On 19 July 2024, following Como’s promotion back to Serie A after 21 years away, Fàbregas was officially appointed as the club’s head coach on a four-year contract. In his first full season at the helm, he guided a newly promoted side to a top-ten finish. In his second, he has delivered the Champions League.
After the final whistle on Sunday, Fàbregas was visibly emotional, calling the achievement “historic” and describing Como as a “football university” — a place of learning, growth, and ambition that is now ready to compete on the grandest stage of all.
Nico Paz: The Jewel in Como’s Crown
If Fàbregas is the architect of Como’s rise, then Nico Paz is its most dazzling expression. The Argentine attacking midfielder, just 21 years old, has been one of the most exciting players in Serie A this season — and arguably one of the best young players in Europe.
Born on 8 September 2004, Paz came through the famed academy at Real Madrid before joining Como on a permanent deal in 2024, with Los Blancos retaining a buy-back clause. The move raised eyebrows at the time — why would one of Real Madrid’s most promising talents drop down to a newly promoted Italian side? The answer, it turned out, was Fàbregas. Paz trusted in the manager’s vision, and the results have been extraordinary.
In the 2025-26 season, Paz registered 13 goals and 8 assists in 40 appearances, earning the award for the best midfielder in Serie A. His technical brilliance, creativity, and maturity beyond his years have been central to everything Como have done well this season. The fact that he has done this at a club fighting to establish itself in the top flight makes it all the more impressive.
Now, Paz will get to show his talents in the UEFA Champions League — a stage that has always felt inevitable for a player of his gifts.
A Club with Deep Roots and a Bright Future
Como 1907 is not a new club chasing glory. It is one of Italian football’s oldest institutions, with a history stretching back over a century.
The club was founded on 25 May 1907, born out of a remarkable moment in local history — a football match played on the shores of Lake Como between the local Canottieri Lario rowing club and members of Buffalo Bill’s travelling circus, reportedly refereed by Colonel William Cody himself. That spirit of the unexpected has, in many ways, never left the club.
Through the decades, Como experienced the highs and lows that define a football club. They first reached Serie A in 1949, and their most successful period came in the 1980s, when they spent five consecutive seasons in Italy’s top flight. But the years that followed were marked by financial difficulty and decline, eventually seeing the club slip as far as Serie D.
The turning point came when Indonesian billionaires the Hartono brothers — ranked among the wealthiest individuals in the world — purchased the club and began a systematic rebuild. From Serie D to Serie B, and then back to Serie A in 2024 for the first time in 21 years: each step was deliberate, ambitious, and backed by real investment. Now, just two seasons into their return to the top flight, Como are heading to the Champions League.
A Historic First
This is not just a big result. This is a seismic moment in Como’s 119-year history. Never before have the Lariani competed in the UEFA Champions League. Never before have they stood alongside the Reals, the Bayerns, and the Barcelonas of European football.
But on May 24, 2026, that all changed.
With a visionary manager on the touchline, one of the most exciting young players on the continent in midfield, and an ownership group with the ambition to match their resources, Como 1907 are not just making up the numbers in the Champions League. They are a club on the rise — and the footballing world is only just beginning to take notice.
The story of Como 1907 is far from over. In many ways, it is only just beginning.
Image credit: @Como1907fc on X (Twitter)