The road to the closing night of the Fair Play Menarini International Award is entering its most eagerly awaited stretch. As the two final events of the 30th edition draw near, the list of honourees welcomes two more giants of world football: Diego Milito and Emilio Butragueño, who will take the stage at the Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino on 2 July, alongside the other champions of the 2026 edition.
Their paths through life and football couldn’t be more different, yet both won over the countless fans of the clubs they played for.
Diego Milito, “El Príncipe”, was a true globetrotter of the game, moving between Argentina, Spain and Italy to build a career full of moments that have become part of football’s collective memory. His defining year remains 2010, when he was the driving force behind Inter’s Treble, capping it with two goals in the Champions League final against Bayern Munich. Yet for all he achieved, he has never lost touch with his roots: Milito is today the president of Racing Club de Avellaneda, the club that launched his professional career and where he returned to play in 2014.
The recognition of loyalty, ethics and respect also goes to Emilio Butragueño, one of the most iconic figures in Real Madrid’s history. Nicknamed “El Buitre” (The Vulture), he was among the most admired strikers of his generation and the face of a golden era for the Madrid club spanning the 1980s and 1990s. In thirteen seasons with Real he won 15 domestic and international titles, all while carving out a distinguished international career: 69 caps for Spain and 26 goals in the national shirt.
Their presence enriches a 30th edition that looks at international sport through a wide range of life stories, all bound by one essential quality: the ability to turn success into example. It was in this spirit that Luca Lastrucci, Valeria Speroni Cardi and Filippo Paganelli, board members of the Fair Play Menarini Foundation, underlined what the arrival of Milito and Butragueño means for the Prize, noting that both have left «a profound mark on sport not only for what they achieved, but for how they achieved it».
Their names round out the 2026 roster of honourees, joining those of Achille Polonara, Antonella Palmisano, Armand Duplantis, Bebe Vio, Chiara Mazzel, Daniele Garozzo, the trio of Davide Ghiotto, Michele Malfatti and Andrea Giovannini, Fabio Caressa, Gianfranco Zola, Gregorio Paltrinieri and Simone Anzani.
The countdown now turns to Florence: the gala dinner at Piazzale Michelangelo on 1 July, followed the next day by the closing ceremony at the Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, where the 30th edition of the Award will bring its protagonists together in the name of fair play.
