 Sergio Scariolo atEuroBasket 2011 | |
| Real Madrid | |
|---|---|
| Position | Head coach |
| League | Liga ACB EuroLeague |
| Personal information | |
| Born | (1961-04-01)1 April 1961 (age 64) Brescia, Italy |
| Nationality | Italian |
| Coaching career | 1989–present |
| Career history | |
Coaching | |
| 1989–1991 | Scavolini Pesaro |
| 1991–1993 | Aurora Desio |
| 1993–1997 | Fortitudo Bologna |
| 1997–1999 | Saski Baskonia |
| 1999–2002 | Real Madrid |
| 2003–2008 | Unicaja Málaga |
| 2008–2010 | Khimki Moscow |
| 2009–2012 | Spain |
| 2011–2013 | Olimpia Milano |
| 2013–2014 | Saski Baskonia |
| 2015–2025 | Spain |
| 2018–2021 | Toronto Raptors (assistant) |
| 2021–2023 | Virtus Bologna |
| 2025–present | Real Madrid |
| Career highlights | |
As head coach:
As assistant coach:
| |
Sergio Scariolo (born 1 April 1961) is an Italian professionalbasketball coach who is the head coach ofReal Madrid of theLiga ACB and theEuroLeague. Having won fourEuroBasket championships and aWorld Cup at the head of Spain, Scariolo is one of the most successful coaches in the history of international competitions,[1][2][3] and according to many players, journalists and commentators, he is regarded as the greatest national team coach of all time.[4][5][6][7]
Sergio Scariolo started hiscoaching career in the early 1980s, as the assistant coach ofBasket Brescia, the team of his hometown, andScavolini Pesaro. In 1985, he became the coach of Italy's military national team, with whom he won the world championship.[8] As assistant coach ofValerio Bianchini in Pesaro, Scariolo won its firstItalian Serie A championship in 1988.[9]
In 1989, Bianchini became the new coach ofVirtus Roma and Scariolo was hired as new head coach ofPesaro. In the 1989–90 season, Scariolo's Scavolini was able of winning another Italian league title, defeatingPallacanestro Varese 3–1 in the national finals.[10] Aged 29, Scariolo became the youngest coach ever to win the trophy.[11] In the same season, the team also reached theFIBA Korać Cup Final, which lost againstJoventut Badalona. In 1990–91 season, the club arrived 7th in the regular season and was ousted in the national quarterfinals byPhonola Caserta. However, Pesaro succeeded in reaching theEuropean Champions Cup Final Four, but it was defeated 93–84 in the semi-finals byKK Split, which then won the trophy.[12]
In the following year, he unexpectedly moved to Aurora Desio, of theItalian 2nd Division. After two seasons in which he failed to reach the promotion, he left the club. In 1993, Scariolo was hired byFortitudo Bologna, a team which was becoming more and more ambitious under the new ownership of the entrepreneur Giorgio Seragnoli. In 1994, he was awarded as Coach of the Year of the Italian Serie A.[13] In 1994–95 season, Fortitudo arrived second in the regular season but it was defeated in the national semi-finals byBenetton Treviso, while in 1995–96, Scariolo's team succeeded in reaching the national finals, the first ones in the history of the club, but Fortitudo was defeated 3–1 byOlimpia Milano.[14]
In 1997, he moved to Spain, a nation which deeply marked his entire career. With Scariolo as head coach,TAU Vitoria reached its firstSpanish Championship final in 1998 and won aSpanish King's Cup title in 1999.[15]
In 1999, Scariolo was hired byReal Madrid, one of the most important clubs of theLiga ACB. In thefirst season, he immediately led Real to win the Spanish national league title, defeating 3–2, Real's historic rivalFC Barcelona; the team also reached theEuroLeague's quarterfinals, which lost against Fortitudo Bologna.[16] However, in the following season, Real was defeated 3–0 by Barcelona in the national finals, while in2001–02, it was ousted in the quarterfinals byCB Estudiantes and Scariolo was sacked.
From 2003 to 2008, Sergio Scariolo was the head coach of the Spanish clubUnicaja Málaga, which, under his tenure and thanks to the leadership ofJorge Garbajosa, lived its so-called "golden age". In 2005, Málaga won theSpanish King's Cup title against Real Madrid and in the next year, during the2005–06 season, it won its first-everSpanish League championship, defeating TAU Vitoria 3–0 in the national finals.[17] The club finished its best years to date, by qualifying for the2007 Euroleague Final Four, where it was defeated in the semi-finals byCSKA Moscow, and thus finished in third place in theEuroLeague. In October 2007, Unicaja faced theNBA'sMemphis Grizzlies in afriendly match, and they defeated the Grizzlies, by a score of 102–99. That was one of the few times that an NBA team has lost to a foreign club.[18]
From 2008 to 2010, Scariolo served as the head coach of the Russian clubBC Khimki Moscow. In both seasons he arrived second, losing the national finals againstCSKA Moscow. In 2009, Scariolo's Khimki was also defeated 80–74 in theEuroCup Final againstLietuvos Rytas. On 20 December 2010, Scariolo and the club mutually agreed to rescind the contract.[19]
In 2011, Scariolo returned to Italy, becoming the new head coach ofOlimpia Milano. In 2011–12EuroLeague, Milan reached the Top16, but did not pass the round. Scariolo's team reached the national finals, but it was defeated 4–1 byMonte Paschi Siena. In the following season, Olimpia failed in reaching EuroLeague's Top16 and was once again defeated 4–3 by Siena in the playoffs' quarterfinals and Scariolo resigned from his post.[20]
In June 2013, Scariolo became the head coach ofLaboral Kutxa, a club which he had already coached during the late 1990s. However, after poor results both in national and European competitions, he was fired at the end of the 2013–14 season.
On July 25, 2018, Scariolo was hired by theToronto Raptors as an assistant coach,[21] aiding them to win their first NBA championship. Scariolo became the first Italian coach and the second Italian ever, after the shooting guardMarco Belinelli, to become an NBA champion. On 26 February 2021, Scariolo served as interim head coach of the Raptors for a game against theHouston Rockets after head coachNick Nurse and five assistants missed the game due to the NBA's health and safety protocols; Toronto won the game 122–111.[22] Raptors point guardKyle Lowry collected the game ball after the game and presented it to Scariolo as a memento.[23]
On 18 June 2021, Scariolo signed a three-year deal withVirtus Bologna, of the ItalianLega Basket Serie A (LBA).[24] On 21 September, the team won the secondSupercup in its history, defeatingOlimpia Milano 90–84.[25] Moreover, after having oustedLietkabelis,Ulm andValencia in the first three rounds of theplayoffs, on 11 May 2022, Virtus defeatedFrutti Extra Bursaspor by 80–67 at the Segafredo Arena, winning its firstEuroCup and qualifying for theEuroLeague after 14 years.[26] However, despite having ended the regular season at the first place and having ousted 3–0 bothPesaro andTortona in the first two rounds of playoffs, Virtus was defeated 4–2 in the national finals by Olimpia Milan.[27]
On 29 September 2022, after having ousted Olimpia Milano in the semifinals, Virtus won itsthird Supercup, defeating 72–69Banco di Sardegna Sassari and achieving a back-to-back, following the 2021 trophy.[28] However, despite good premises Virtus ended theEuroLeague season at the 14th place, thus it did not qualify for the playoffs.[29] Moreover, the team was defeated in theItalian Basketball Cup final byBrescia. In June, after having ousted 3–0 both Brindisi and Tortona, Virtus was defeated 4–3 by Olimpia Milan in the national finals, following a series which was widely regarded among the best in the latest years of Italian basketball.[30][31]
On 15 September, just a few weeks before the season start, Scariolo was fired following controversial statements regarding the new roster and the upcoming season.[32]
On 3 July 2025, Scariolo signed a three-year deal with Real Madrid, returning to the Spanish powerhouse after 23 years.[33]
_La_selecci%25C3%25B3n_espa%25C3%25B1ola_de_baloncesto_prepara_en_Madrid_el_mundial_de_China_06.jpg)
Scariolo served two times as head coach of theSpanish national team: from 2009 to 2012 and from 2015 to 2025. Under Scariolo, Spain won the gold medal at theEuroBasket 2009,EuroBasket 2011, theEuroBasket 2015 and theEuroBasket 2022, and the bronze medal atEuroBasket 2017. He also won the silver medal at the2012 Summer Olympics and the bronze medal at the2016 Summer Olympics. He also coached Spain at the2010 FIBA World Championship. In 2019, Scariolo led Spain to victory in theFIBA Basketball World Cup.
In October 2020, Scariolo announced that he will remain as head coach of the team through the2024 Summer Olympics.[34]
For his service, he was awarded with the Gold Medal (2015)[35] and the Grand Cross (2025)[36] of theRoyal Order of Sports Merit.
Scariolo is married toBlanca Ares, a former Spanish basketball player. The couple has two children: Alessandro, who also plays basketball, and Carlota.[37] Scariolo is an avid fan ofInter Milan.[38]
Sergio Scariolo appeared in the Netflix filmHustle, produced byLeBron James andAdam Sandler, who was the co-star along withJuancho Hernangómez, which was released on 8 June 2022. In the movie, Scariolo portrayed himself as the head coach of Spanish national team.[39]
| Legend | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | Games coached | W | Games won | L | Games lost | W–L % | Win-loss % | ||
Note: TheEuroLeague is not the only competition in which the team played during the season. He also coached in domestic competition, and regional competition if applicable.
| Team | Year | G | W | L | W–L% | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scavolini Pesaro | 1990–91 | 18 | 10 | 8 | .556 | Lost inSemi-finals |
| Teamsystem Bologna | 1996–97 | 31 | 22 | 9 | .710 | Lost inQuarter-finals |
| Tau Cerámica | 1996–97 | 10 | 5 | 5 | .500 | Eliminated atGroup stage |
| Real Madrid | 1999–00 | 28 | 15 | 13 | .536 | Eliminated atTop 16 Stage |
| 2000–01 | 15 | 10 | 5 | .667 | Lost inQuarter-finals | |
| 2001–02 | 20 | 12 | 8 | .600 | Eliminated atTop 16 Stage | |
| Unicaja Málaga | 2003–04 | 14 | 4 | 10 | .286 | Eliminated atGroup stage |
| 2004–05 | 14 | 6 | 8 | .429 | Eliminated atGroup stage | |
| 2005–06 | 20 | 15 | 5 | .750 | Eliminated atTop 16 Stage | |
| 2006–07 | 25 | 14 | 11 | .560 | Lost inSemi-finals | |
| 2007–08 | 20 | 13 | 7 | .650 | Eliminated atTop 16 Stage | |
| BC Khimki | 2009–10 | 16 | 10 | 6 | .625 | Eliminated atTop 16 Stage |
| EA7 Milano | 2011–12 | 16 | 7 | 9 | .438 | Eliminated atTop 16 Stage |
| 2012–13 | 10 | 3 | 7 | .300 | Eliminated atGroup stage | |
| Laboral Kutxa | 2013–14 | 24 | 11 | 13 | .458 | Eliminated atTop 16 Stage |
| Virtus Segafredo Bologna | 2022–23 | 34 | 14 | 20 | .412 | Eliminated atRegular season |
| Career | 315 | 171 | 144 | .543 | ||
| Sporting positions | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | FIBA World Cup Winning Coach 2019 | Succeeded by |
Links to related articles | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
