Naples Is Having Its Biggest Pizza Year Yet, and We're Taking Notes

Between a 35-country World Pizza Championship in June and the AVPN's Vera Pizza Champion finals arriving in September, Naples is doubling down on what makes a truly authentic pie, and it's exactly the tradition we lean on behind our own oven.

A Pizza Contest the Size of a World's Fair

In June, Naples turned the Mostra d'Oltremare into pizza's biggest stage. The 23rd Trofeo Caputo World Pizza Championship, held June 8 through 10, pulled in more than 600 competitors representing 35 countries, a lineup that included brand new entries from Finland, Armenia, Puerto Rico and Bosnia and Herzegovina. That kind of reach says something about how far Neapolitan pizza's reputation has traveled since the style started as humble street food for dockworkers.

Antimo Caputo, whose family milling company backs the event, put the goal plainly, saying the competition exists to bring pizzaioli from everywhere back to "the exact place where pizza was born." Twelve separate judged categories, from the strict Pizza Napoletana STG division to a newer wine pairing category, gave competitors plenty of ways to show off technique beyond just tossing dough.

A Sydney Pizzaiolo Takes the Top Prize, Again

The marquee STG Neapolitan category, judged against the tightest dough and cooking rules in the whole competition, went to Simone Zullo of Fratelli Pulcinella in Parramatta, a Sydney suburb, for a simple marinara pie built from tomato, oregano, garlic and olive oil with no cheese to hide behind. It was his second consecutive world title, after also claiming the Pizza Classica category the year before.

There is a lesson in that repeat win. The STG designation exists specifically to protect the plainest, oldest version of the pizza, made with San Marzano style tomatoes, buffalo or fior di latte mozzarella, and a wood fired oven that runs close to 900 degrees. Winning that category twice running says a cook has mastered fundamentals that never go out of style, no shortcuts, no gimmicks, just technique.

September Brings a Second Championship to Naples

The Trofeo Caputo event is not the only major pizza contest crowning champions in Naples this year. The Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana, the trade group that wrote much of the international rulebook for what counts as authentic Neapolitan pizza, is wrapping up its own four-year global qualifying cycle. Finalists who won regional rounds across five continents will gather in Naples from September 15 through 17 to compete for the Vera Pizza Champion 2026 title.

Entry is limited to certified Pizzaioli Veraci and cooks from AVPN affiliated pizzerias, and competitors choose two categories from a list that includes Vera Pizza Napoletana, Gourmet Pizza, Pizza Fritta, Mastunicola and Calzone Napoletano. Having two separate global titles decided in the same city in the same year is a reminder that the standards behind a proper Neapolitan pie are specific enough to fill an entire calendar of its own.

What It Means for Anyone Who Loves a Proper Pie

You do not need a plane ticket to Naples to care about any of this. The same fundamentals being judged on that stage, a properly hydrated dough, real San Marzano style tomatoes, a hot enough oven, and restraint on the toppings, are the same fundamentals we lean on every night behind our own counter here in Las Vegas. Watching a field of 35 countries get judged against those exact rules is a good reminder that the basics are the whole game.

So if the news out of Naples has you thinking about a proper margherita or a classic marinara, come pull up a seat with us. We would love to send a pie your way built on the same old-world standards the judges in Naples spent all June, and will spend all September, rewarding.

7 Pizza Styles Being Judged on the World Stage This Year

Between the two championships, Naples is putting an entire spectrum of pizza tradition under the microscope this year. Here is what each style actually means.

1. Pizza Napoletana STG: The strictest category of all, built on San Marzano style tomatoes, buffalo or fior di latte mozzarella, and a wood fired oven, with almost no room for creative shortcuts.
2. Pizza & Vino: A newer category that pairs a pizza with a specific wine, judging the match as much as the crust itself.
3. Vera Pizza Napoletana: AVPN's own certified version of the classic, judged against the association's international rulebook for dough hydration, cooking time and ingredients.
4. Gourmet Pizza: Room for a chef's own creative toppings and technique, as long as the base craftsmanship still holds up under scrutiny.
5. Pizza Fritta: The fried, folded street food version of Neapolitan pizza, judged on its crisp shell and molten filling.
6. Mastunicola: A simple, old-school pie built on lard, basil and pecorino instead of tomato sauce, a nod to pizza's pre-tomato history.
7. Calzone Napoletano: The stuffed, folded cousin of the open pie, judged on how well the dough seals in its filling without turning soggy.

← More from the Las Vegas Italian blog