Inauguration of the 464th Academic Year

Friday 6 February 2026 - 11:00 am

Verdi Theatre
Via Politeama, 2 - Sassari

After the entrance of the academic procession to the notes of the university anthem "Gaudeamus igitur", institutional greetings from the President of the Sardinia Region are expected, Alessandra Todde .

Next, the Rector Gavino Mariotti will deliver the inaugural speech. They will intervene later Nicoletta Pinna , Representative of Doctoral and Postgraduate Students in the Academic Senate, e Antonio Francesco Piana , Head of the Research and Quality Office.

Immediately afterwards, he will intervene Raffaele Fitto , Executive Vice President of the European Commission for Cohesion and Reform.

This will be followed by the traditional speech of the new Pontifex Maxima of the Turritana Goliardic Association, Anda I Maxima Aurea (to the century Gabriella Piga ). In closing, the Magnificent Rector will proclaim the opening of the 2025-2026 academic year, the 464th since its foundation.

They will speak on Choir of the University of Sassari , directed by Irene Dore , i Bitti's Tenores “Mialinu Pira” and the singer Maria Giovanna Cherchi together with the musician Manuel Rossi Cabizza .

You can access the theater with invitation or accreditation, after registering at the entrance, from 9.45am to 10.30am.

The ceremony will be broadcast in live streaming .

Born on 28 August 1969 in Maglie (Lecce), he had a prominent political career both in Italy and in Europe. He began his political journey in the 1990s and was elected to the European Parliament in 1999, marking the beginning of his influence on the European scene. 

he was President of the Puglia Region from 2000 to 2005 and a member of the Italian Parliament from 2006 to 2014 and again from 2022 to 2024. During this period he also held the position of Minister for Regional Affairs in the Berlusconi government from 2008 to 2011.

Returning to the European Parliament in 2014, Fitto held key roles within the European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) group, serving as co-president from 2019 to 2022 and focusing in particular on economic cohesion and regional development. Since 2022 he has held the role of Minister for European Affairs in the government of Giorgia Meloni and, on 17 September 2024, he was appointed Executive Vice President of the European Commission for Cohesion and Reforms, consolidating his role as a leading figure in Italian and European politics.