It was a trip that featured football, family and (new) friends. And what an unforgettably enjoyable experience it was for South High senior Angelo LaRose and the rest of the American Football Worldwide high school elite team that spent five days practicing in and touring Italy before playing the Italian under-21 national team last Saturday in Milan.

“It was the best week of my life,” LaRose said Tuesday evening, two days after returning home to Worcester. “One hundred percent, it was the best week of my life. I had the most fun.” LaRose received a text from AFW president Jim Barnes in early November inviting him to join the organization’s latest elite team tour of Italy.