Davide Nicola takes over Venezia after Giovanni Stroppa's departure

In the maritime flair of Venice, the stadium of Venezia FC is ready for a radical course change: after six consecutive defeats, promotion coach Giovanni Stroppa had to step down on Tuesday after 49 games.

Stroppa's departure after poor record

The 53‑year‑old Stroppa, who had not earned a point this season, was dismissed because the team had no points of its own after six defeats.

Davide Nicola as new rescue anchor

Venezia now turns to Davide Nicola, a coach with an excellent reputation as a “firefighter” in Italy. Nicola, 53, has been given a contract until 2028 and has 254 Serie A matches under his belt, including 61 wins, 66 draws and 127 losses.

In recent years he guided Genoa CFC (2019/20) and Torino FC (2021/22) just above the relegation zone, launched an almost impossible Serie A season with US Salernitana (2022/23) and kept FC Empoli (2023/24) as well as Cagliari Calcio (2024/25) in the top Italian league.

In 2025 he took over the promoted US Cremonese, also from Stroppa, but had to leave in March because the relegation was inevitable.

Venezia as fourth Serie A club in the season change

With Nicola, Venezia becomes the fourth Serie A club this season to change its coach – a clear signal that the club management is pursuing the “Premium Service” strategy with strong “Support” to exceed Bundesliga expectations.