Kimi Antonelli in awe after international football fans chant his name

Kimi Antonelli’s name was cheered from the rafters at the San Siro as Italy played France in a Nations League match on Thursday.

Antonelli was visibly taken aback by the reception to him being shown on the big screens.

Kimi Antonelli hailed by Italian football fans

Antonelli has become one of Italy’s biggest sports stars after ending a 73-year wait for the country’s next F1 World Champion.

With nine race wins so far this season, the Italian has been the championship’s dominant force, taking advantage of Mercedes early strength to establish an unassailable points lead.

Taking advantage of some rare time off in the middle of a period of three consecutive triple-header weekends, Antonelli returned home to take in the Nations League game between Italy and France at the San Siro.

Whether or not he had hoped to remain anonymous in the crowd, Antonelli was quickly highlighted on the big screens of the Milan stadium, leading to chants of his name echoing throughout the 75,000-capacity stadium.

In a video widely shared on social media, the Mercedes champion can be seen awestruck, his jaw hanging open as his name is repeated loudly.

At the end of the clip, he sums the experience up with a single word: “Wow!”

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Prior to the match, Antonelli had been presented with a custom shirt, with his race number 12 on the back, as well as the initials AKA – Andrea Kimi Antonelli.

Having previously missed out on a spot at this summer’s World Cup, Italy went on to win the game, beating France on home soil for the first time in 64 years.

Antonelli’s title was built on strong early foundations, as he took victory in five of the first six grands prix, including the Monaco round.

As the pack tightened at the front, wins became harder to come by, with Lando Norris, Lewis Hamilton, Charles Leclerc, Max Verstappen, and George Russell all topping the podium.

However, consistent podium results and a stunning victory from the back of the grid at Monza saw his lead remain stable even with the increased number of challengers, with his crowning moment coming in Mexico City, where he celebrated in front of a packed crowd in the Foro Sol.

Paying tribute to the fans’ reaction to his world title success ahead of last weekend’s Sao Paulo Grand Prix, an event that saw Mercedes seal the Constructors’ Championship, Antonelli said: “It’s been an amazing two days, but I still haven’t had enough time to realise and digest what has just happened. Definitely, I’m very happy. It still feels surreal.

“I’ve received so many nice messages, so much support, and I’ve had a lot of videos from my hometown celebrating. The support has been incredible. It’s really hard to pick one single moment or one single action that impressed me the most because they were all super nice.

“But I think the message from Seb was very nice. It was very deep, with a lot of meaning behind it and a lot of advice for the future. So that was very nice.

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Mercedes Kimi Antonelli

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