Ravenna vs Forli LIVE, Ronaldinho Return, Latest Score and Serie C Updates

Italy's Serie C officiating committee has assigned referee Giuseppe Vingo from the Pisa section to oversee Sunday's clash at Stadio Bruno Benelli. Vingo is joined on the touchlines by assistant referee Salvatore Nicosia of Saronno, the second linesman, and the fourth official stationed between Mandorlini and Bamonte.

Serie C matches also utilize the Football Video Support review monitor for coach challenges on penalty-box incidents and direct red cards.

Keeping tempers in check early will define the flow of a regional derby mixing fierce local pride with unprecedented global viewership.

Even if open-play sprinting at age 46 demands economical positioning from Ronaldinho, dead-ball situations around the penalty arc remain an immediate weapon. Pairing Ronaldinho's right-footed curlers over the wall with left-footed specialist Nicolas Viola gives Ravenna two elite set-piece takers on the pitch simultaneously.

Every foul conceded within thirty yards of Luca Martelli's net carries major scoring danger.

Discipline in defensive challenges around the box is paramount for Palomba, Onofri and De Risio, especially with 6-foot-4 center-back Giovanni Zaro crashing the six-yard area on corners and wide free kicks.

Tasked with crowding the central pockets occupied by Ronaldinho and Nicolas Viola, interim boss Gianluigi Bamonte sticks with Forli's compact 3-5-2 formation. Goalkeeper Luca Martelli is protected by a three-man central defense of Luigi Palomba, Stefano Onofri and Giacomo Perretta.

Veteran holding midfielder Carlo De Risio patrols the zone directly in front of the center-backs.

Davide Macri and Manuel Rosetti complete the interior midfield trio, with wing-backs Nicola Farinelli and Alessandro Mattioli tracking Donati and Bani down the flanks. Up front, Valentino Coveri and Elia Petrelli partner in a two-striker tandem built to attack space immediately upon winning possession.

While Ravenna spent the week basking in worldwide attention, Forli navigated sudden turmoil in their dugout just five days ago. On Tuesday, November 10, head coach Nicola Campedelli stepped down citing personal reasons, while former promotion-winning boss Alessandro Miramari (who parted ways with Forli in June) was appointed manager of Group A side Carpi earlier this week.

Assistant coach Gianluigi Bamonte takes interim charge on the touchline at Stadio Bruno Benelli today.

Despite sitting 15th in the table, the Biancorossi have proven stubborn opponents all autumn: six of their thirteen league fixtures have ended level, and their minus-one goal differential (17 for, 18 against) reflects how rarely they get blown out.

Rather than saving his star signing for a late cameo off the bench, Ravenna head coach Andrea Mandorlini confirmed in his pre-match press conference that Ronaldinho starts from the opening whistle. Mandorlini, a former Inter Milan Serie A title-winning defender and veteran top-flight manager, deploys a 4-3-3 system granting the 46-year-old free creative license across the front line.

Ravenna surround their No. 10 with a battle-tested spine of former Serie A and Serie B regulars.

Goalkeeper Giacomo Venturi starts behind a back four featuring former Bayer Leverkusen and Monza right-back Giulio Donati, center-backs Giovanni Zaro and Matteo Esposito, and left-back Cristiano Bani. Former Bologna and Cagliari playmaker Nicolas Viola anchors central midfield flanked by energetic runners Lorenzo Lonardi and Edoardo Duca, while forwards Simone Rabbi and Matteo Maggio provide vertical movement alongside Ronaldinho.

Far from being a mid-table exhibition club, Ravenna enter Matchday 14 sitting alone in second place in Group B with 29 points from 13 matches (9 wins, 2 draws, 2 losses). The Giallorossi trail only unbeaten leaders Spezia (35 points from 11 wins and 2 draws) in the race for automatic promotion to Serie B.

Ravenna boast the joint-highest scoring attack in the division with 25 goals alongside Spezia and the second-stingiest defense with just 8 goals allowed (+17 goal differential).

Third-placed Grosseto sit six points back on 23 (having played 14 games), followed by Pescara and Torres on 22. Visitors Forli occupy 15th place on 15 points through 13 outings (3 wins, 6 draws, 4 defeats; 17 goals scored, 18 conceded), holding a slim two-point cushion above 16th-placed Pianese (13 points) at the edge of the relegation playout zone.

Ticket demand across Italy and abroad overwhelmed Stadio Bruno Benelli within hours of the fixture announcement. To accommodate the surge of supporters and international media, Ravenna erected a temporary extra seating section christened the R10 Stand (Tribuna R10) specifically for Sunday's derby.

Over two hundred credentialed reporters, photographers and broadcast crew members line the touchlines in Ravenna.

Beyond the global spotlight surrounding the No. 10 shirt, Ravenna against Forli remains a fierce local Romagna derby between two cities separated by just 17 miles, guaranteeing committed tackles and vocal away support from kickoff.

Bringing one of the sport's most recognizable figures to Italy's third tier was orchestrated by Ravenna president Ignazio Cipriani alongside club vice-president Ariedo Braida. Under Cipriani's ownership, Ronaldinho joined the Emilia-Romagna club not merely as a registered player, but also as an equity partner and global ambassador through his R10 brand.

In the boardroom stands the exact executive who first brought Ronaldinho to Italian soccer eighteen years ago.

Back in the summer of 2008, Braida served as AC Milan's sporting director and flew to Spain to seal Ronaldinho's transfer from FC Barcelona to San Siro. Reuniting in Ravenna in November 2026 turned an audacious vision into an officially cleared Serie C registration after weeks of full team training sessions.

Soccer history unfolds in northern Italy this Sunday morning for American viewers. At 11:30 a.m. ET (8:30 a.m. PT) inside a sold-out Stadio Bruno Benelli, Ravenna host regional rivals Forli on Matchday 14 of the 2026/27 Italian Serie C Group B campaign, marking the official competitive return of Brazilian icon Ronaldinho at age 46.

The 2005 Ballon d'Or winner and 2002 FIFA World Cup champion last appeared in a sanctioned professional match back in September 2015 for Fluminense in Brazil's top flight.

More than a decade removed from that final outing at the Maracana, Ronaldo de Assis Moreira pulls on Ravenna's yellow-and-red No. 10 jersey in a genuine league fixture carrying real promotion and relegation consequences.