Sociedad's Matarazzo: The American coach who studied math at Columbia and grew up watching Maradona

MADRID (AP) — A 48-year-old American coach who studied mathematics at Columbia and grew up watching Diego Maradona play for Napoli is now part of the history of Spanish club Real Sociedad in the Basque Country.

Pellegrino “Rino” Matarazzo led Sociedad to its fourth Copa del Rey title on Saturday with a penalty-shootout win over Atletico Madrid.

It was the first career title for the coach who left the United States to try to play soccer professionally and ended up becoming a manager in Germany.

“Just the feeling you have of ‘wow, wow, this happened, we did it, we did it,’" said Matarazzo, who in less than four months took Sociedad from near the relegation zone in the Spanish league to lifting the prestigious Copa del Rey trophy.

The New Jersey-born coach was hired in December when Sociedad was two points above the relegation zone. He guided it back to safety and to its title run in the Copa in what he called "an unbelievable journey."

“If you think about all the games that we played, every game has been very very special since I arrived and I think we finished with a very special game," the soft-spoken Matarazzo said. "Wow, wow...”

Matarazzo downplayed his role in the team's turnaround and credited his players' talent and character for the improvement and the title run in the Copa.

“I'm very grateful to be manager of this club, very very grateful,” Matarazzo said. “Being part of its history now is, of course, something special, and I'm also very grateful to have this team, these players, this staff, this club. It’s a product of the work we've done together in the past weeks.”

Matarazzo is from an Italian family whose parents met in the United States after emigrating to the country for work.

Matarazzo's first language was Italian before he went to school. He used to watch Serie A matches on a small television in his father's bedroom during the time that Argentina great Maradona played for Napoli.

In an interview with Sociedad's TV channel, Matarazzo said he was always passionate about soccer even though the sport was far from popular while he grew up in the United States.

Before moving to Germany to try to play, Matarazzo earned a degree in mathematics from Columbia University, which he said has helped him as a coach even though he knows that the job is about people and not just numbers.

Matarazzo, a defender, first tried to play in Italy but ended returning to the United States after what he called broken promises by agents. He was then invited by a friend to go to Germany, where he moved in his early 20s without knowing a word of German. He ended up staying and working in the country for 25 years.

Matarazzo started playing in the fourth division and eventually moved into coaching with Nuremberg’s reserves and youth sides. He was an assistant to Julian Nagelsmann when both were at Hoffenheim in 2018, then landed the Stuttgart job in December 2019. He steered the club back to the Bundesliga at the first attempt and guided it to a commendable finish in his first top-flight season.

He was fired by Stuttgart in late 2022 and about four months later was hired by Hoffenheim, where he stayed until the end of 2024, when he was let go following a disappointing season.

Matarazzo got off to a great start in Spain, and he hoped it could be "just the beginning” of a long and successful stint for him and the club.

“I hope that we continue to stay ambitious because we still have seven games left in La Liga and we can do more,” he said. “I'm not done yet, and hopefully we are not done yet.”

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Real Sociedad's head coach Pellegrino Matarazzo celebrates after winning the Copa del Rey final soccer match between Atletico Madrid and Real Sociedad in Seville, Spain, Saturday, April. 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Jose Breton)

Real Sociedad's head coach Pellegrino Matarazzo gestures during the Copa del Rey final soccer match between Atletico Madrid and Real Sociedad in Seville, Spain, Saturday, April. 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Jose Breton)

Real Sociedad's head coach Pellegrino Matarazzo celebrates after winning the Copa del Rey final soccer match between Atletico Madrid and Real Sociedad in Seville, Spain, Saturday, April. 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Jose Breton)

Real Sociedad's head coach Pellegrino Matarazzo celebrates after winning the Copa del Rey final soccer match between Atletico Madrid and Real Sociedad in Seville, Spain, Saturday, April. 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Jose Breton)

Real Sociedad's head coach Pellegrino Matarazzo, right, celebrates with Duje Caleta-Car after winning the Copa del Rey final soccer match between Atletico Madrid and Real Sociedad in Seville, Spain, Saturday, April. 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Jose Breton)

SOFIA, Bulgaria (AP) — Bulgarians are heading to the polls on Sunday for the eighth time in five years, hoping to finally elect a parliament able to resolve the longtime political impasse that has gripped this Balkan country.

The snap vote follows the resignation of a conservative-led government amid nationwide protests last December that drew hundreds of thousands, mainly young people, to the streets. The protesters called for an independent judiciary to tackle widespread corruption.

Since 2021, the nation of 6.5 million has struggled with fragmented parliaments that produced weak governments, none of which managed to survive more than a year before being brought down by street protests or backroom deals in parliament.

The revolving door of governments has fostered widespread public mistrust, voter apathy and a shrinking turnout in elections.

Still, Sunday’s vote is significant as it could bring to power a left-leaning, pro-Russian former president — just days after Hungarian voters rejected the authoritarian policies and global far-right movement of Viktor Orbán, who cultivated close ties with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The front-runner, Bulgaria’s former President Rumen Radev, is leading a newly formed, center-left Progressive Bulgaria coalition. He resigned from the mostly ceremonial presidency in January, a few months before the end of his second term, to launch a bid to lead the government as prime minister.

The 62-year-old former fighter pilot and air force commander is seen as Bulgaria’s most popular politician and has promised to give the nation a fresh start. His supporters are split on those hoping he will put an end to the country’s oligarchic corruption and those lining up behind his Eurosceptic and pro-Russian views.

After voting on Sunday, Radev said that Bulgaria now has a historic chance to change the alleged oligarchic model of governance. He urged people to go to the polls because mass “voting is the only way to drown vote-buying in a sea of free votes.”

Polling stations opened at 7 a.m., and are to close at 8 p.m., after which initial exit polls will be announced. Preliminary results are expected on Monday.

Bulgaria is a European Union and NATO member country, joined the eurozone on Jan. 1, shortly after entering the border-free Schengen travel area. However, it has been plagued by political instability since 2021, when three-time conservative Prime Minister Boyko Borissov resigned following massive protests fueled by anger over widespread corruption and injustice.

Radev has cast himself as an opponent of the country’s entrenched mafia and its ties to high-ranking politicians. At campaign rallies he vowed to “remove the corrupt, oligarchic model of governance from political power.”

And though Radev has officially denounced Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, he has repeatedly opposed military aid to Kyiv and has favored reopening talks with Russia as a way out of the conflict.

Opinion polls predict that Radev’s coalition could get more than 30% of the vote, putting him nearly 10% ahead of his closest rival — Borissov’s center-right GERB party. Most polls report margins of error from 3 to 3.5%.

Mario Bikarski, senior Eastern and Central Europe analyst at the risk intelligence company Verisk Maplecroft, also believes that Radev’s new coalition stands the best chance to lead a future government, with possibly “the best electoral result for a single party in nearly 10 years.”

Radev's relatively vague campaign has left him open for cooperation with almost any party in the future Parliament, Bikarski noted. He predicted that the vote share for euroskeptic and Russia-leaning parties also will to rise to the highest level in decades.

Radev, however, seems reluctant to enter a formal coalition with the hard right and openly pro-Russian Revival party, Bikarski added.

People cast.their ballots at a polling station in Sofia, Bulgaria, Sunday, April 19, 2026, during early parliamentary elections. (AP Photo/Valentina Petrova)

A man casts his vote during an early election at a polling station in Sofia on Sunday, April 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Valentina Petrova)

A man casts his ballot during an early election at a polling station in Sofia on Sunday, April 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Valentina Petrova)

People cast.their ballots at a polling station in Sofia, Bulgaria, Sunday, April 19, 2026, during early parliamentary elections. (AP Photo/Valentina Petrova)

Former Bulgarian President Rumen Radev casts his vote at a polling station in Sofia, Bulgaria, Sunday, April 19, 2026, during early parliamentary elections. (AP Photo/Valentina Petrova)

A supporter of former Bulgarian President Rumen Radev reacts during the closing rally of his campaign, in Sofia, Thursday, April 16, 2026, as Bulgaria heads into an early parliamentary election. (AP Photo/Valentina Petrova)

Supporters of former Bulgarian President Rumen Radev hold posters in the colors of the Bulgarian flag during the closing rally of his campaign, in Sofia, Thursday, April 16, 2026, as Bulgaria heads into an early parliamentary election. (AP Photo/Valentina Petrova)

A print on the back of a jacket of a supporter depicts the former three-time conservative Prime Minister Boyko Borissov at the closing rally of his campaign, in Samokov, Wednesday, April 15, 2026, as Bulgaria heads into an early parliamentary election. (AP Photo/Valentina Petrova)

Former three-time conservative Prime Minister Boyko Borissov is seen at the closing rally of his campaign, in Samokov, Wednesday, April 15, 2026, as Bulgaria heads into an early parliamentary election. (AP Photo/Valentina Petrova)

Former Bulgarian President Rumen Radev delivers a speech at the closing rally of his campaign, in Sofia, Thursday, April 16, 2026, as Bulgaria heads into an early parliamentary election. (AP Photo/Valentina Petrova)