Branco made his professional debut on 7 April 1995, knocking out Aladar Horvath in six rounds. Fighting almost exclusively in his native Italy, he would spend the next nine years undefeated, save for a points draw against Viktor Baranov on 19 October 1998. Branco won his first major regional championship—the vacant European light-welterweight title—on 23 June 2001, with a majority decision victory over Gabriel Mapouka. Two successful defences of the title were made, against George Scott on 17 November 2001 (sixth-round technical decision) and Allan Vester on 9 March 2002 (tenth-round stoppage).
