SANTA CLARA, Calif. - Santa Clara men's water polo made a huge addition to their roster on Wednesday as Riccardo De Simon, a phenomenal center defender/utility from Bologna, Italy, officially signed with the Broncos. Head Coach Keith Wilbur made the announcement.

"We are excited to have Riccardo join our team next year!", Wilbur said. "He is a very talented, versatile player who brings valuable international experience, having competed at a very high level with the Italian U18 Youth Team and the Italian Junior National Team. In his gap year, he is currently competing with Bologna De Akker in the Serie A1 League. Riccardo has the skill level and experience to be an impact player for our program, and he also really complements the other commits in next year's recruiting class. We really like how this class is coming together!"

De Simon, who attended high school at I.I.S. Giordana Bruno, has been a member of three Italian National Teams. In 2022, he was a member of the Italian Youth National Team at the U18 Mediterranean Championships, where he helped lead the team to a fourth-place finish. They lost by just one goal (8-7) against champion-Serbia in the semifinal round. That same year, he also played in the FINA World Men's Youth Water Polo Championships in Belgrade, Serbia. 

In 2023, De Simon returned to the world championships, this time at the World Aquatics U20 Water Polo Championships in Romania as a member of the Italian Junior National Team. The team finished sixth overall in the event.

De Simon is currently playing club level in the top Italian League (Serie A1) as a member of Bologna De Akker. 

De Simon joins Santa Clara as a freshman with four years of eligibility remaining.