Giuliano Simeone: The son who earned his place at Atlético Madrid

Key facts

• Giuliano Simeone, 22, is the youngest son of Atlético Madrid coach Diego Simeone.
• He broke his ankle in 2023 while on loan at Alavés.
• He was a ballboy for Atlético as a child, leaping into his father's arms after a 2015 derby win.
• He left River Plate's academy at 16 to join Atlético's youth system.
• His father kicked him out of the family home when he turned 18.
• He was loaned to Zaragoza and Alavés before breaking into the first team.
• Diego Simeone initially said he would not sign his son due to the baggage it would bring.
• Giuliano's grandfather advised him to switch from centre-forward to the wing.

A birthday gauntlet and a family reunion

At the start of Atlético Madrid's final training session before their biggest game in a decade, the players lined up by the centre circle at the Metropolitano and waited for their coach. Diego Simeone arrived, ran through the middle of them, and as he passed, head down, they cheered and hit him. It was his 56th birthday, and one of the sons hidden in the crowd was hitting him too. That son was Giuliano Simeone, the youngest of Diego's three boys. Two decades earlier, when Simeone bade farewell to the Vicente Calderón as a player in December 2004, he carried two-year-old Giuliano in his arms. Now, the father is still the coach, and the son is a first-team player. “I have no birthday wish,” Simeone said before the semi-final, “just pure gratitude to be able to be with my three sons on my birthday, with my two daughters, my mum, my wife, my lifelong friends.”

From ballboy to teammate: a long road

Giuliano's journey to the Atlético first team was anything but straightforward. He grew up in Argentina with his elder brothers Giovanni and Gianluca, but they visited their father often in Madrid. They would eat together via an iPad on matchday mornings, and the house was covered in tactical scribblings their dad left behind. As a ballboy, Giuliano was invariably by the bench. He would race along the touchline and leap into the coach's arms after a derby win in January 2015. “It was crazy seeing the players up close,” he has said. “I always thought: ‘Imagine being out there; that would be mad.’” His idol became Antoine Griezmann. At 16, he left River Plate's academy and crossed the Atlantic to join Atlético's youth system, living with his father. But when he turned 18, Simeone Sr kicked him out. “It was time to be a man,” the implication being that he had to forge his own path.

Proving himself against the doubters

Giuliano has had to overcome the suspicion that he was only playing because of his father. “When I was 12 people said I was playing because I was my father’s son,” he told Cadena Ser. “I try to isolate myself from [that]. I know I won’t be gifted anything.” Diego Simeone once said he would not sign his son because of the baggage it would bring. “I don’t want to say never, but … it would be very difficult to have a son in the dressing room. Very difficult for him, for the relationship, for everyone,” he said, though he was referring to Gio, not Giuliano. Atlético did not sign Giuliano; he came through the academy. Loaned to Zaragoza and then Alavés, he broke an ankle in 2023. His father immediately went to his bedside, but the doubts about his career were not limited to the injury. He overcame it with determination, but there was a reluctance from Simeone to open a pathway for his son.

Smashing down the door

Giuliano ended up opening the door himself. He switched from centre-forward to the wing on the advice of his grandfather, and his relentless running caught the eye. Alavés’s then-coach, Luis García, said: “That Simeone, man … bloody hell. He runs for 90 minutes without stopping. He’s a pain. He’s got a very high level. He makes something out of nothing at any moment.” Now, his father is his manager and his hero is his teammate. But Simeone has been careful not to talk effusively about his son, even when he has done so for other players. Before facing Barcelona, he publicly told Griezmann: “I love you.” Of Giuliano, he says simply: “I see a player, not a son.” The young Simeone has made himself impossible to ignore. As insistent and relentless as his old man was, he has earned his place at the Metropolitano.

What comes next for the Simeone dynasty

Giuliano is now an established member of Atlético's squad, contributing to their run to the European Cup semi-final for the first time in nine years. The team faces a crucial period, with the semi-final representing their biggest game in a decade. For Diego Simeone, who has spent almost 20 years at the club as player and coach, having his son on the pitch is a source of pride he rarely expresses publicly. But the story of Giuliano's rise is a testament to his own stubbornness and talent, not his father's influence. The question now is how far this Simeone can go. His brothers Gianluca and Gio also became professionals, but Giuliano has surpassed expectations. “They would kick me, throw me to the floor, and if I cried, I couldn’t play with them any more; I learned to be tougher,” he said. That toughness is now paying off on the biggest stage.

The bottom line

• Giuliano Simeone has established himself as a first-team player for Atlético Madrid despite initial reluctance from his father to sign him.
• He overcame a broken ankle in 2023 and years of skepticism about nepotism to earn his place.
• His grandfather advised him to switch from centre-forward to the wing, which proved crucial to his development.
• Diego Simeone treats his son as a player, not a son, and has avoided public praise to avoid accusations of favoritism.
• Giuliano's journey from ballboy to teammate spans over a decade and includes loans to Zaragoza and Alavés.
• He is now part of Atlético's European Cup semi-final campaign, the club's first in nine years.