Chi vuol essere milionario? Il torneo was the sixteenth series of Chi vuol essere milionario?, the Italian version of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?. It was the premiere of the Tournament version of the format. Hosted for eight weeks across December 2025 and January 2026 by Gerry Scotti, the top prize was €1,000,000.
Format overview[]
Each episode consists of two distinct segments: the Qualification Phase and the Finale (Tournament) Phase.
This format is budget-friendly, similar to Millionaire Hot Seat, ensuring that there is only one definitive winner at the end of each episode.
Qualification Phase[]
The Qualification Phase functions similarly to a Fastest Finger First round. 10 contestants compete across a total of 15 multiple-choice questions. For each question:
- Contestants must select the correct answer as quickly as possible.
- Correct answers award 1 point. Incorrect answers award 0 points.
- After each question, only the "Who Got It Right?" state is revealed, but the individual times remain hidden.
Eliminations[]
In this game, players will be eliminated as the game progresses. At first, the leaderboard ranks players first by their points (descending) and then by their total time taken (ascending). Then the lowest-performing players will be eliminated from the show, reducing the total number of remaining contestants.
- After Question 5 out of 15: Contestants are reduced from 10 to 7
- After Question 10 out of 15: Contestants are reduced from 7 to 4
- After Question 15 out of 15: Contestants are reduced from 4 to 3 (finalists determined)
Guaranteed Winnings from Qualification[]
The three finalists receive guaranteed winnings based on their ranking:
- 1st place: 5.000€
- 2nd place: 3.000€
- 3rd place: 2.000€
The fourth-ranked contestant acts as a reserve and does not initially advance to the Finale; however, if either the 3rd or 2nd ranked finalist, who are the first two contestants to attempt the climb to one million, gives an incorrect answer and is eliminated before reaching their safety net, the fourth-ranked contestant immediately enters the Tournament Phase under the same conditions.
Finale: Tournament Phase[]
The finale follows the Classic Millionaire experience but shortened, slightly more difficult, and more competitive. All three finalists will play sequentially, beginning with the 3rd ranked and ending on the 1st ranked.
Each finalist attempts a 10-question high-risk money tree, ranging from 10.000€ (Q1) to 1.000.000€ (Q10).
Contestants begin with only two lifelines:
If a finalist answers the first five questions correctly, they earn a third lifeline:
- Switch the Question (lo switch)
Before beginning, each finalist must also set one safety net anywhere from Q1 to Q9. If someone answers the million euro question correctly, any contestant that will play after them would have no safety net.
The objective of the Tournament is to secure the highest total winnings of the night. Any incorrect answer immediately ends the contestant’s run. Walking away or reaching the safety net simply establishes the contestant’s final standing for comparison. After completing their run, the contestant with the highest winnings so far is seated on the “Hot Throne” to observe the remaining finalists attempting to beat the current record. If a subsequent finalist surpasses the total winnings, they then become the new leader of the show and kicking the previous finalist out of the competition.
In the event of a tie, meaning two or all three finalists complete their runs with the same total winnings, the finalist who answered most recently will take the throne. This is because, when totals are identical, the advantage goes to the contestant who was better ranked during the Qualification Phase and therefore plays later in the Finale.
Only the finalist on the "Hot Throne" at the end of the episode, holding the highest total winnings achieved, will win their prize. All other finalists leave the show with no Finale winnings and retain only their guaranteed Qualification Game amounts.
Gameplay elements[]
Lifelines[]
- Plus One (Chiedi a un esperto)
- 50:50 or "50%" (cinquanta-cinquanta)
- Switch the Question (lo switch)
Money Tree[]
For their only guaranteed sum in the finale, the player can choose any amount from Question 1 (€10.000) to Question 9 (€300.000) in an adjustable high-risk format.
| Question No. |
Correct Answer Value |
Walk Away Value |
Miss Answer Value |
Amount Gained for a Right Answer |
Amount Lost for a Wrong Answer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | €10,000 | €0 | €0 | €10,000 | €0 |
| 2 | €20,000 | €10,000 | depends on the second safety net | ||
| 3 | €30,000 | €20,000 | |||
| 4 | €50,000 | €30,000 | |||
| 5 | €70,000 | €50,000 | |||
| 6 | €100,000 | €70,000 | |||
| 7 | €150,000 | €100,000 | |||
| 8 | €200,000 | €150,000 | |||
| 9 | €300,000 | €200,000 | |||
| 10 | €1 Million | €300,000 | |||
The highest possible risk is €298,000 (risking at the €1,000,000 question without a safety net whilst being the 3rd ranked) however, the most money a finalist can steal is €998,000 (if both the 3rd ranked and another finalist wins the million and the former fails the tie-break).
Amounts lost depending on the second safety net[]
| No. | Question Value |
Amount Lost for a Wrong Answer (if safety net is set at...) | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Not Set (3rd) | Not Set (2nd) | Not Set (1st) | €10,000 | €20,000 | €30,000 | €50,000 | €70,000 | €100,000 | €150,000 | €200,000 | €300,000 | ||
| 2 | €20,000 | €8,000 | €7,000 | €5,000 | €0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 3 | €30,000 | €18,000 | €17,000 | €15,000 | €10,000 | €0 | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 4 | €50,000 | €28,000 | €27,000 | €25,000 | €20,000 | €10,000 | €0 | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 5 | €70,000 | €48,000 | €47,000 | €45,000 | €40,000 | €30,000 | €20,000 | €0 | - | - | - | - | - |
| 6 | €100,000 | €68,000 | €67,000 | €65,000 | €60,000 | €50,000 | €40,000 | €20,000 | €0 | - | - | - | - |
| 7 | €150,000 | €98,000 | €97,000 | €95,000 | €90,000 | €80,000 | €70,000 | €50,000 | €30,000 | €0 | - | - | - |
| 8 | €200,000 | €148,000 | €147,000 | €145,000 | €140,000 | €130,000 | €120,000 | €100,000 | €80,000 | €50,000 | €0 | - | - |
| 9 | €300,000 | €198,000 | €197,000 | €195,000 | €190,000 | €180,000 | €170,000 | €150,000 | €130,000 | €100,000 | €50,000 | €0 | - |
| 10 | €1 Million | €298,000 | €297,000 | €295,000 | €290,000 | €280,000 | €270,000 | €250,000 | €230,000 | €200,000 | €150,000 | €100,000 | €0 |
Episodes[]
Only finalists with their resulting total prize money (for tournament winners) or guaranteed winnings (for non-winners) are listed in the table below. Total Winnings is the value paid out to the contestant after all three finalists have played their games.
- Episode 1 (7th December 2025)[1]
| Rank | Name | Total Winnings | Safety net | Main Game Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3rd | Filippo | € 100.000 | € 100.000 (Q6) | €100.000 - lost on € 150.000 (Q7) |
| 2nd | Michele | € 3.000 | € 100.000 (Q6) | €0 - lost on € 50.000 (Q4) |
| 1st | Valentina | € 5.000 | € 100.000 (Q6) | €0 - lost on € 70.000 (Q5) |
- Episode 2 (14th December 2025)[2]
| Rank | Name | Total Winnings | Safety net | Main Game Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3rd | Vittoria Licari | € 1.000.000 | € 300.000 (Q9) | won € 1.000.000 (Q10) |
| 2nd | Marco | € 3.000 | None by Rules | €0 - lost on € 1.000.000 (Q10) |
| 1st | Mattia | € 5.000 | None by Rules | €0 - lost on € 150.000 (Q7) |
- Episode 3 (21st December 2025)[3]
| Rank | Name | Total Winnings | Safety net | Main Game Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3rd | Frederico | € 150.000 | € 50.000 (Q4) | €150.000 - walked away on € 200.000 (Q8) |
| 2nd | Mauro | € 3.000 | € 150.000 (Q7) | €0 - lost on € 150.000 (Q7) |
| 1st | Sara | € 5.000 | € 150.000 (Q7) | €0 - lost on € 150.000 (Q7) |
- Episode 4 (28th December 2025)
| Rank | Name | Total Winnings | Safety net | Main Game Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3rd | Constanza | € 2.000 | € 100.000 (Q6) | €100.000 - lost on € 200.000 (Q8) |
| 2nd | Matteo | € 3.000 | € 100.000 (Q6) | €0 - lost on € 50.000 (Q4) |
| 1st | Antonio | € 150.000 | € 100.000 (Q6) | walked away on € 200.000 (Q8); Beat the record of Constanza (Steal) |
- Episode 5 (4th January 2026)[4]
| Rank | Name | Total Winnings | Safety net | Main Game Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3rd | Luigi | € 2.000 | € 150.000 (Q7) | € 70.000 - walked away on € 100.000 (Q6) question |
| 2nd | Diletta | € 3.000 | € 100.000 (Q6) | €0 - lost on € 100.000 (Q6) |
| 1st | Claudio | € 150.000 | € 70.000 (Q5) | € 150.000 - walked away on € 200.000 (Q8) question; Beat the record of Luigi (€ 70.000) |
- Episode 6 (11th January 2026)[5]
| Rank | Name | Total Winnings | Safety net | Main Game Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3rd | Riccardo | € 2.000 | €70.000 (Q5) | €70.000 - lost on € 150.000 (Q7) |
| 2nd | Giovanni | € 3.000 | €100.000 (Q6) | €0 - lost on € 30.000 (Q3) |
| 4th | Nicolò | € 0 | €100.000 (Q6) | €0 - lost on € 30.000 (Q3) |
| 1st | Andrea | € 150.000 | €70.000 (Q5) | € 150.000 - walked away on € 200.000 (Q8); beat the record of Riccardo (€ 70.000) |
- Episode 7 (18th January 2026)[6]
| Rank | Name | Total Winnings | Safety net | Main Game Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3rd | ||||
| 2nd | ||||
| 1st |
- Episode 8 (25th January 2026)
| Rank | Name | Total Winnings | Safety net | Main Game Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3rd | ||||
| 2nd | ||||
| 1st |
Ratings[]
| Episode | Date | Audience (Total) | Shares (%) | Primetime
Top 10 Rank |
Weekly
Top 10 Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 7th December 2025 | 3.003.000 | 22.40% | 1 | 5 |
| 2 | 14th December 2025 | 2.189.000 | 19.70% | 1 | 10 |
| 3 | 21st December 2025 | 2.274.000 | 18.80% | 1 | 6 |
| 4 | 28th December 2025 | 2.176.000 | 18.40% | 1 | 9 |
| 5 | 4th January 2026 | 2.433.000 | 18.50% | 2 | 10 |
| 6 | 11th January 2026 | 2.285.000 | 18.00% | 1 | |
| 7 | 18th January 2026 | ||||
| 8 | 25th Janaury 2026 |
Trivia[]
- This is the first Italian season to use the Dark Rave graphics made by Olga van den Brandt. The graphic in this version was similar to most versions using Olga v3 variant (which is used in the Vietnamese version since 2021). Though, during Gerry's entrance, the graphic pops up as Rave v3.
- This season, the studio got a slight upgrade, with the old glass floor replaced by a new video floor similar to the UK 2018 version, while still keeping the same set design from Poland 2017.
- This season also marks return of the Strachan soundtrack (except the intro and commercial break tracks, which uses the Covalo and Magnus tracks).
- The Strachan's Host Entrance cue played in the first episode, after the Intro.
- This is the second version of Millionaire to have a 10-question money tree, after Japan's Super Millionaire.
- When the winning contestant gets their money, they also get a copy of the Millionaire board game as well.
- This is not the first time that the Italian version has used the Christmas period to premiere a new version of the format. Chi vuol essere milionario? Edizione Straordinaria, the first version of Millionaire Hot Seat, was stripped daily across two weeks in late December 2008, seventeen years prior.
- For the first time in Italy, the €1,000,000 question was read twice in the same episode. Vittoria answered correctly and won the full amount, while Marco answered incorrectly and left with only the guaranteed winning from qualification; losing a huge €297,000.
- Marco became the first Top Prize Loser worldwide outside of Millionaire Hot Seat to not have a safety net.
Gallery[]
Sources[]
- Mediaset Infinity page with full episodes (subscription required outside of Italy)
References[]
- ↑ Promo for December 7, 2025: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2fiVCGQdodA
- ↑ Promo for December 14, 2025: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LwWb-T7KP1k
- ↑ Promo for December 21, 2025: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8EgcsTIN9Zc
- ↑ Promo for January 5, 2026: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d5fXEEo9Dgc
- ↑ Promo for January 11, 2026 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=taeHNyPDOU0
- ↑ Promo for January 18, 2026: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=meLxhyJ7oBA
| Preceded by Season 15 |
Italian Series Season 16 |
Succeeded by Season 17 |