The 35-year-old free agent, who has won league titles with Manchester City in England and Inter Milan in Italy, revealed he is open to offers from Australian clubs ahead of the 2025-26 season.
“I’m definitely very interested in playing in the A-League,” Balotelli told NewsWire. “It would be a new experience for me. Absolutely my door is open if clubs want to speak to me about coming to Australia.”
Balotelli’s career has taken him across Europe and beyond, with spells at AC Milan, Liverpool, Nice, Marseille, Brescia, Monza, Adana Demirspor, Sion and Genoa. Despite the miles on his footballing journey, the striker insists he has plenty left in the tank.
“I feel I still have two or three more seasons of professional football in me,” he said. “And besides football, Australia would also be a wonderful country to live in.”
The former Italian international has already spoken to compatriot Alessandro Diamanti, who shone during his time at Western United, about what to expect in the A-League. If he does arrive, Balotelli would join an exclusive list of Italian stars to grace Australian football, following in the footsteps of Diamanti, Alessandro Del Piero at Sydney FC and Massimo Maccarone at Brisbane Roar.
His representative, Vittorio Rigo, confirmed the striker is “completely fit” and keen to settle on a club soon. “Mario would like to find a club as soon as possible because he knows how important it is to start preparations with teammates and to adapt to a new environment,” he said.
Australian football agent Lou Sticca, a key figure in bringing marquee names such as Dwight Yorke, Del Piero and Shinji Ono to the league, is also working to help secure Balotelli’s arrival. He believes the mercurial forward would bring the spark the A-League is craving.
“Mario would bring to the A-League what it’s lacking; attention, interest, fascination,” Sticca said.
With the A-League’s new season kicking off in October, the coming weeks could prove decisive. If Balotelli signs, his arrival would not only add global star power but could also reignite international attention on the competition.
For a player whose career has often been as dramatic as his talent, Australia might just be the perfect stage for one final act.
