San Marino’s footballing community is in mourning following the death of Loris Zanotti, a former national team midfielder in the 1990s, who passed away at the age of 63. The news was announced by Cosmos, the club where Zanotti spent part of his playing career.
“A profound loss has struck the Sammarinese sporting community. Loris Zanotti, former national team midfielder in the 1990s, has passed away at the age of 63” — reads the statement from the Secretariat of State for Sport, which recalled some of the most significant moments of the footballer’s career.
Among these was the match played by the San Marino national team against England at Wembley, a fixture that has gone down in the history of Sammarinese football, not least for the penalty saved by Pierluigi Benedettini against England captain David Platt.
It was at the end of that very match that an episode occurred which later became one of the enduring memories associated with Zanotti. “Faced with Platt’s handshake in the dressing room, the Sammarinese midfielder responded with pride: ‘We’ll see you in San Marino.’ A spontaneous remark that instinctively became the symbol of an entire footballing community” — the statement recounts.
Following news of his death, condolences also came from the Secretary of State for Sport, Rossano Fabbri, who recalled Zanotti’s contribution during the early years of the national team’s international journey.
“With Loris’s passing, we lose a trailblazer of our competitive movement, an athlete who wore the white-and-blue jersey with dignity and an immense sense of belonging. That comment of his at Wembley shows how one can face a global powerhouse with head held high. To his family and to the leadership of Cosmos go the heartfelt condolences of our institutions.”
