From Milan to Burnley | An Italian Love Affair With the Clarets

August 22, 2026

For Davide and Lorenzo, supporting Inter Milan is part of life. But more than 750 miles from Milan, another football club has found its way under their skin.

From Milan to Burnley: An Italian Love Affair With the Clarets — © James McDonough

Over the past decade, a chance meeting between Italian and Burnley supporters has developed into a genuine friendship – built around football, travel, families and a shared love of the culture surrounding the game. What began with a couple of Inter fans joining the Burnley away end at Brentford has grown into regular trips between Lancashire and Milan, shared away days and an unlikely but deeply felt connection with Burnley Football Club.

For Davide (dark hair) and Lorenzo (wearing cap), much of the attraction lies in what Burnley represents: an old ground surrounded by terraced streets, fierce local identity, underdog spirit and a town where the football club remains deeply connected to its community.

On the opening weekend of the Championship, they returned to Lancashire for Burnley’s 2-2 draw with West Ham United. Burnley supporter and pal James McDonough joined them, photographing their weekend around the town, in the pubs and streets surrounding Turf Moor, before taking their places inside the ground – just feet from West Ham’s travelling support.

This is James’ story of a football friendship that has grown far beyond the game.

“It all started at Brentford away in January 2016. Two of Davides friends went to watch Brentford vs Burnley. They were meant to be in the home end. But loved the atmosphere in the pub with the Burnley fans. Ripped up their tickets and went in the away end. Burnley raced into a 3-0 lead in a game that turned our season around and we went on to win the Championship. The two lads from that game then invited us to some future Inter games.

Inter played Southampton away later that year and that’s where we met Davide and the rest of the inter boys. We then travelled back and forth multiple times per year to one another’s games. We took my nephew over there and they treated him like royalty. We even visited one another’s homes and families.

Davide…

“1,236 kilometres as the crow flies. 768 miles. That’s the distance between my city and Turf Moor. And yet, somehow, it has never felt that far.

I’ve supported the team from my hometown for as long as I can remember. FC Internazionale Milano. 48 official trophies, and never relegated in its history – the only club in Italy to hold that record.

And yet, almost ten years ago, I met a bunch of lads from Burnley through a mutual friend, at a Southampton – Inter Europa League game at St Mary’s. The bond was immediate. As a lover of English culture, both football-related and otherwise, I already knew about Burnley Football Club – or at least, I knew about their fans. Thanks in no small part to brilliant documentaries such as one on Burnley featuring Danny Dyer.

Time gave us unforgettable moments, both at San Siro and at Turf Moor. Seeing these lads, their sense of belonging and what Burnley meant to them, drew me closer to them. Football did the rest.”

“They’ve since met and attended games with my friends from Monchengladbach and the Balkans. And even my Dad has started travelling to Milan to watch Inter games. They have even went to dog-racing with my Dad!

A friend of theirs from Venice and one from Switzerland now also follow and have been to Burnley games. One came for the friendly with Espanyol. And one coming this weekend for West Brom away…

Davide is now planning on getting a Burnley tattoo. Many of their friends’ kids have Burnley shirts. And ours Inter.

Davide…

“Over time, as James, Tom, Archie and so many other Clarets friends travelled to Milan and across Europe, the bond between us grew stronger. And through more games at Turf Moor, away days at the Etihad Stadium, Craven Cottage and Anfield, goal after goal, minute after minute, I went from being a simple football wanderer to becoming a Burnley Football Club supporter.

That support has now become so visceral, so deeply, that it led me to write my first novel, published in Italy, dedicated to all the lads from Burnley, their families and their history.

UP THE CLARETS!”

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Lorenzo, we met for the first time last July. I took him all around the town. To the nice places. And the less nice places. Showed him the turf. Towneley hall. Haffners pies. The miners pub. All the iconic Burnley locations. He fell in love with the town but having been to the turf he has now seen it all. He came to Anfield where we drew 1-1 in January. And then West Ham at the weekend.

Lorenzo…

“My first time here was last year, at the end of July, when there wasn’t even a match. I saw Turf Moor only from the outside. But I was struck by the peculiar passion you can feel in the air. A deep sense of community, strong despite all the difficulties. I saw those feelings explode at Turf Moor. It was my first time inside the ground. And listening to the vibes running through the people around me in those stands, I became a real supporter of this team.”

I think the passion for Burnley comes from the underdog spirit and mentality. The traditional old ground set among terrace houses. The fierce loyalty we have of a place that nobody else could love. And the fact that so many people in Burnley support Burnley.”