After a number of trophies won in 2011-2012, he took some time off from the National team and returned in 2015 to lead the Settebello straight to the Olympics. He plays with his brother in law Niccolò Gitto and his brother Nicholas: the National team has become a real family for him. The captain of AN Brescia is also involved in charity work: he supports the work of the charity known as “Tribù nel mondo” (Tribes of the World) becoming its testimonial and involving his club and his teammates in various fundraising campaigns. In the Shanghai world championships, he cheered the team’s victory by mimicking the thumb-sucking gesture like his idol Totti, and he then declared that, in 2001 when Roma won the championship, he had a season ticket for the Curva Sud (the Roma supporters section).