 Celestini withLausanne-Sport in 2010 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | (1975-10-31)31 October 1975 (age 50) | ||
| Place of birth | Lausanne, Switzerland | ||
| Height | 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) | ||
| Position | Midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | CSKA Moscow (manager) | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 1983–1993 | Renens | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 1993–1995 | Renens | 48 | (8) |
| 1995–2000 | Lausanne-Sport | 127 | (23) |
| 2000–2002 | Troyes | 50 | (2) |
| 2002–2004 | Marseille | 59 | (1) |
| 2004–2005 | Levante | 25 | (1) |
| 2005–2010 | Getafe | 121 | (1) |
| 2010 | Lausanne-Sport | 13 | (1) |
| Total | 443 | (37) | |
| International career | |||
| 1998–2007 | Switzerland | 35 | (2) |
| Managerial career | |||
| 2013–2014 | Málaga (assistant) | ||
| 2014 | Terracina | ||
| 2014–2015 | Terracina | ||
| 2015–2018 | Lausanne-Sport | ||
| 2018–2019 | Lugano | ||
| 2020–2021 | Luzern | ||
| 2022–2023 | Sion | ||
| 2023–2025 | Basel | ||
| 2025– | CSKA Moscow | ||
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Fabio Celestini (born 31 October 1975) is a Swissfootballmanager and former player who is the manager ofRussian Premier League clubCSKA Moscow. Adefensive midfielder, he started and finished his 15-year professional career withLausanne, and also played for ten years in France and Spain, representing four clubs. He appeared with theSwiss national team atEuro 2004.
After retiring as a player, he moved into management and had periods in charge ofLausanne-Sport,Lugano,Luzern,Sion andBasel in Switzerland.
Born inLausanne, Celestini started playing professionally with hometown clubFC Lausanne-Sport, then had a four-season spell inFrance, spending two years each withTroyes AC andOlympique de Marseille.[1] Whilst with the latter he played the2004 UEFA Cup final, coming on as asubstitute in the second half of the 0–2 loss toValencia CF.[2]
Celestini moved to Spain in 2004, playingone season withLevante UD.[3] After the team's immediate relegation he stayed in the country, joining fellowLa Liga clubGetafe CF where he never was an undisputed starter, but managed to feature heavily in consecutive seasons. In2007–08, as theMadrid outskirts sidereached the quarter-finals in theUEFA Cup, he scored againstR.S.C. Anderlecht in a 2–1 group stage home win.[4]
On 16 February 2010, after having been regularly used in the past two seasons, albeit not as a usual first-choice, the 34-year-old Celestini announced he would not renew his contract with Getafe, choosing to return to Lausanne on a one-year deal.[5] However, due to a break in negotiations over his future role at the club after his playing career, he decided to retire before the end ofthe campaign, playing his last game on 15 December againstU.S. Città di Palermo in theEuropa League group stage.
ASwitzerland international since 1998, Celestini collected 35caps and was a participant at theUEFA Euro 2004 (appearing in two incomplete matches, as the nation exited in the group stage).[6][7]
On 24 March 2015, after a spell as assistant manager at Spanish clubMálaga CF[8] and head coach with Italian amateursTerracina Calcio 1925,[9] Celestini replacedMarco Simone at Lausanne-Sport in the latter capacity, as the side was in apoor run of results in theSwiss Challenge League.[10] Two months later, he was confirmed in this role for the next three years.[11]
In2015–16, Celestini led his team back to theSwiss Super League after a two-year absence.[12]
On 3 October 2018, he was appointed atFC Lugano in the same division.[13] Just over a year later, he was ousted from his job due to bad results, and replaced byMaurizio Jacobacci.[14]
Celestini signed as manager ofFC Luzern on 2 January 2020.[15] His contract with the club was terminated on 22 November 2021,[16] after spending the majority of the season in the bottom of the league, having only accrued ten points in 14 games.
On 21 November 2022, he took on as new head coach ofFC Sion.[17][18] He was sacked on 3 March 2023.[19]
On 31 October 2023, he was appointed the new head coach ofFC Basel,[20] who sat in last place of theSwiss Super League at the time of his appointment. Just 18 months later, he had led Basel to a domestic double, winning the2024–25 Swiss Super League and the2024–25 Swiss Cup.[21] Following these successes, he resigned from his position.
On 20 June 2025, Celestini signed a contract with Russian clubCSKA Moscow for two seasons with an optional third.[22] Celestini's appointment prompted debate in Switzerland due toRussia's invasion of Ukraine and CSKA's links tosanctioned entities. Swiss outlets reported that his decision drew sharp criticism from sections of FC Basel's support and commentators, while legal analysis discussed whether payments from a sanctioned employer could be blocked by Swiss banks and, in some scenarios, expose him to penalties under Swiss sanctions law.[23][24][25] In response to questions about the backlash, Celestini said he intended to focus on football and was unconcerned by criticism unrelated to sport.[26][27]
In his first competitive game in charge of CSKA, the club won the2025 Russian Super Cup.[28]
For both of his first two months managing CSKA in theRussian Premier League, he was chosen league's Manager of the Month.
| Team | Nat | From | To | Record | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| M | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Win % | |||||
| Terracina |  | 1 July 2014 | 5 November 2014 | 10 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 14 | 19 | −5 | 020.00 | |
| Terracina | | 23 December 2014 | 21 January 2015 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 6 | −3 | 033.33 | |
| Lausanne-Sport |  | 24 March 2015 | 20 April 2018 | 120 | 44 | 26 | 50 | 189 | 192 | −3 | 036.67 | |
| Lugano | | 3 October 2018 | 28 October 2019 | 46 | 12 | 17 | 17 | 59 | 57 | +2 | 026.09 | |
| Luzern | | 2 January 2020 | 22 November 2021 | 79 | 29 | 21 | 29 | 121 | 121 | +0 | 036.71 | |
| Sion | | 21 November 2022 | 3 March 2023 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 14 | −8 | 000.00 | |
| Basel | | 31 October 2023 | 30 June 2025 | 73 | 41 | 15 | 17 | 156 | 83 | +73 | 056.16 | |
| CSKA Moscow |  | 30 June 2025 | Present | 27 | 16 | 6 | 5 | 42 | 24 | +18 | 059.26 | |
| Total | 364 | 145 | 92 | 127 | 590 | 516 | +74 | 039.84 | ||||
Individual
