diff --git a/.gitignore b/.gitignore
index 5d86ea8..a48fa2c 100644
--- a/.gitignore
+++ b/.gitignore
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 HELP.md
 .claude/settings.local.json
 target/
+storage/*.db
 !.mvn/wrapper/maven-wrapper.jar
 !**/src/main/**/target/
 !**/src/test/**/target/
diff --git a/CHANGELOG.md b/CHANGELOG.md
index 17e1a6e..d9e0783 100644
--- a/CHANGELOG.md
+++ b/CHANGELOG.md
@@ -42,6 +42,20 @@ Release names follow the **historic football clubs** naming convention (A–Z):
 
 ### Added
 
+- Integrate Flyway for database schema versioning and automated migrations;
+  add `spring-boot-starter-flyway` (Spring Boot 4.0 requires this dedicated
+  starter for autoconfiguration — `flyway-core` alone is insufficient) and
+  `flyway-database-postgresql` to `pom.xml`; create
+  migration directory `src/main/resources/db/migration/` with three versioned
+  scripts: `V1__Create_players_table.sql` (schema), `V2__Seed_starting11.sql`
+  (11 Starting XI players), `V3__Seed_substitutes.sql` (15 substitute players);
+  configure `spring.flyway.enabled=true` and `spring.flyway.locations` only —
+  no baseline settings, Flyway runs V1→V2→V3 from scratch on every empty
+  database; disable Flyway in test environment which continues to use SQLite
+  in-memory with `ddl.sql`/`dml.sql`; switch `spring.jpa.hibernate.ddl-auto`
+  from `none` to `validate` so Hibernate verifies entity mappings against the
+  Flyway-managed schema (#130)
+
 ### Changed
 
 - Switch runtime base image from `eclipse-temurin:25-jdk-alpine` to
diff --git a/Dockerfile b/Dockerfile
index c77e70e..de6f6e7 100644
--- a/Dockerfile
+++ b/Dockerfile
@@ -44,11 +44,6 @@ COPY --chmod=444        README.md                   ./
 COPY --chmod=555        scripts/entrypoint.sh       ./entrypoint.sh
 COPY --chmod=555        scripts/healthcheck.sh      ./healthcheck.sh
 
-# The 'hold' is our storage compartment within the image. Here, we copy a
-# pre-seeded SQLite database file, which Compose will mount as a persistent
-# 'storage' volume when the container starts up.
-COPY --chmod=555        storage/                    ./hold/
-
 # Install SQLite runtime libs, add non-root user and prepare volume mount point
 RUN apk add --no-cache sqlite-libs && \
     addgroup -S spring && \
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index fab0231..08f4ade 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -269,6 +269,53 @@ spring.datasource.url=jdbc:sqlite::memory:
 spring.jpa.hibernate.ddl-auto=create-drop
 ```
 
+## Database Migrations
+
+Schema versioning is managed by [Flyway](https://documentation.red-gate.com/flyway), which runs automatically on application startup and applies any pending migrations in order.
+
+### Migration files
+
+Versioned SQL scripts live in `src/main/resources/db/migration/` and follow the Flyway naming convention:
+
+```text
+V{version}__{description}.sql
+```
+
+| File | Description |
+| ---- | ----------- |
+| `V1__Create_players_table.sql` | Creates the `players` table (schema) |
+| `V2__Seed_starting11.sql` | Seeds 11 Starting XI players (`starting11 = 1`) |
+| `V3__Seed_substitutes.sql` | Seeds 15 Substitute players (`starting11 = 0`) |
+
+All migration SQL is written to be compatible with both **SQLite** (local dev) and **PostgreSQL** (see #286).
+
+### First start
+
+On first run, Flyway detects an empty database and applies V1 → V2 → V3 in sequence, creating the `players` table and seeding all 26 players. The database file (`storage/players-sqlite3.db`) is created automatically and is excluded from version control.
+
+### Adding a new migration
+
+Create a new file in `src/main/resources/db/migration/` with the next version number:
+
+```bash
+touch src/main/resources/db/migration/V4__Add_nationality_column.sql
+```
+
+Flyway applies it automatically on the next application startup. View the applied history by querying the `flyway_schema_history` table.
+
+### Reset local database
+
+Delete the SQLite file and restart — Flyway recreates the schema and seed data from scratch:
+
+```bash
+rm storage/players-sqlite3.db
+./mvnw spring-boot:run
+```
+
+### Tests
+
+The test environment keeps `spring.flyway.enabled=false` and uses SQLite in-memory with `ddl.sql`/`dml.sql` via Spring SQL init for fast, isolated test execution.
+
 ## Contributing
 
 Contributions are welcome! Please see [CONTRIBUTING.md](CONTRIBUTING.md) for details on:
diff --git a/pom.xml b/pom.xml
index 2b5ba25..0a6b798 100644
--- a/pom.xml
+++ b/pom.xml
@@ -169,6 +169,31 @@
             <groupId>org.hibernate.orm</groupId>
             <artifactId>hibernate-community-dialects</artifactId>
         </dependency>
+        <!-- Spring Boot Starter Flyway ==================================== -->
+        <!--
+            Spring Boot 4.0 moved Flyway auto-configuration out of
+            spring-boot-autoconfigure into this dedicated starter. Adding only
+            flyway-core is no longer sufficient — this starter is required to
+            enable FlywayAutoConfiguration and the spring.flyway.* properties.
+            Transitively brings in flyway-core (version managed by Spring BOM).
+            https://mvnrepository.com/artifact/org.springframework.boot/spring-boot-starter-flyway
+        -->
+        <dependency>
+            <groupId>org.springframework.boot</groupId>
+            <artifactId>spring-boot-starter-flyway</artifactId>
+        </dependency>
+        <!-- Flyway Database PostgreSQL ==================================== -->
+        <!--
+            Flyway 10+ modular architecture requires explicit database support
+            modules for non-community databases. Required for PostgreSQL support
+            (see #286 — Add PostgreSQL support with unified migration-based
+            initialization).
+            https://mvnrepository.com/artifact/org.flywaydb/flyway-database-postgresql
+        -->
+        <dependency>
+            <groupId>org.flywaydb</groupId>
+            <artifactId>flyway-database-postgresql</artifactId>
+        </dependency>
         <!-- H2 Database Engine ============================================ -->
         <!--
             Provides a fast in-memory database for testing. Used only in test
diff --git a/scripts/entrypoint.sh b/scripts/entrypoint.sh
index 5f87856..e95e8f4 100644
--- a/scripts/entrypoint.sh
+++ b/scripts/entrypoint.sh
@@ -1,37 +1,38 @@
 #!/bin/sh
 set -e
 
-echo "✔ Executing entrypoint script..."
-
-IMAGE_STORAGE_PATH="/app/hold/players-sqlite3.db"
-VOLUME_STORAGE_PATH="/storage/players-sqlite3.db"
-
-echo "✔ Starting container..."
-
-if [ ! -f "$VOLUME_STORAGE_PATH" ]; then
-  echo "⚠️ No existing database file found in volume."
-  if [ -f "$IMAGE_STORAGE_PATH" ]; then
-    echo "Copying database file to writable volume..."
-    if cp "$IMAGE_STORAGE_PATH" "$VOLUME_STORAGE_PATH"; then
-      echo "✔ Database initialized at $VOLUME_STORAGE_PATH"
-    else
-      echo "❌ Failed to copy database from $IMAGE_STORAGE_PATH to $VOLUME_STORAGE_PATH"
-      echo "   Check file permissions and available disk space."
-      exit 1
-    fi
-  else
-    echo "⚠️ Database file missing at $IMAGE_STORAGE_PATH"
+# Helper function for formatted logging
+log() {
+    echo "[ENTRYPOINT] $(date '+%Y/%m/%d - %H:%M:%S') | $1"
+    return 0
+}
+
+log "✔ Starting container..."
+
+STORAGE_PATH="${STORAGE_PATH:-storage/players-sqlite3.db}"
+
+mkdir -p "$(dirname "$STORAGE_PATH")"
+
+if [ ! -w "$(dirname "$STORAGE_PATH")" ]; then
+    log "❌ Storage directory is not writable: $(dirname "$STORAGE_PATH")"
     exit 1
-  fi
+fi
+
+if [ -f "$STORAGE_PATH" ] && [ ! -w "$STORAGE_PATH" ]; then
+    log "❌ Database file is not writable: $STORAGE_PATH"
+    exit 1
+fi
+
+if [ ! -f "$STORAGE_PATH" ]; then
+    log "⚠️ No existing database file found at $STORAGE_PATH."
+    log "🗄️ Flyway migrations will initialize the database on first start."
 else
-  echo "✔ Existing database file found. Skipping seed copy."
+    log "✔ Existing database file found at $STORAGE_PATH."
 fi
 
-echo "✔ Ready!"
-echo "🚀 Launching app..."
-echo ""
-echo "🔌 Endpoints:"
-echo "   Health:  http://localhost:9001/actuator/health"
-echo "   Players: http://localhost:9000/players"
-echo ""
+log "✔ Ready!"
+log "🚀 Launching app..."
+log "🔌 API endpoints   | http://localhost:9000"
+log "📚 Swagger UI      | http://localhost:9000/swagger/index.html"
+log "❤️ Health check    | http://localhost:9001/actuator/health"
 exec "$@"
diff --git a/src/main/resources/application.properties b/src/main/resources/application.properties
index 52a6bdf..6f5be93 100644
--- a/src/main/resources/application.properties
+++ b/src/main/resources/application.properties
@@ -20,7 +20,13 @@ springdoc.swagger-ui.path=/swagger/index.html
 spring.datasource.url=jdbc:sqlite:${STORAGE_PATH:storage/players-sqlite3.db}
 spring.datasource.driver-class-name=org.sqlite.JDBC
 spring.jpa.database-platform=org.hibernate.community.dialect.SQLiteDialect
-spring.jpa.hibernate.ddl-auto=none
+spring.jpa.hibernate.ddl-auto=validate
 spring.jpa.hibernate.naming.physical-strategy=org.hibernate.boot.model.naming.PhysicalNamingStrategyStandardImpl
 spring.jpa.show-sql=false
 spring.jpa.properties.hibernate.format_sql=true
+
+# Flyway Database Migration Configuration
+# Flyway manages all schema creation and seed data via versioned SQL migrations.
+# On first start, Flyway creates the database and runs V1 → V2 → V3 in order.
+spring.flyway.enabled=true
+spring.flyway.locations=classpath:db/migration
diff --git a/src/main/resources/db/migration/V1__Create_players_table.sql b/src/main/resources/db/migration/V1__Create_players_table.sql
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..11d5c85
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/resources/db/migration/V1__Create_players_table.sql
@@ -0,0 +1,21 @@
+-- V1: Create players table
+-- Compatible with both SQLite (local dev) and PostgreSQL (see #286).
+-- TEXT columns use TEXT affinity in SQLite and the unlimited TEXT type in PostgreSQL.
+-- INTEGER is used for squadNumber (natural key) and starting11 (boolean flag: 1/0).
+-- UUID primary key is stored as VARCHAR(36) and generated at the application level.
+
+CREATE TABLE IF NOT EXISTS players (
+    id           VARCHAR(36)  NOT NULL,
+    squadNumber  INTEGER      NOT NULL,
+    firstName    TEXT         NOT NULL,
+    middleName   TEXT,
+    lastName     TEXT         NOT NULL,
+    dateOfBirth  TEXT         NOT NULL,
+    position     TEXT         NOT NULL,
+    abbrPosition TEXT         NOT NULL,
+    team         TEXT         NOT NULL,
+    league       TEXT         NOT NULL,
+    starting11   BOOLEAN      NOT NULL,
+    PRIMARY KEY (id),
+    UNIQUE (squadNumber)
+);
diff --git a/src/main/resources/db/migration/V2__Seed_starting11.sql b/src/main/resources/db/migration/V2__Seed_starting11.sql
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..8fb8aa7
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/resources/db/migration/V2__Seed_starting11.sql
@@ -0,0 +1,16 @@
+-- V2: Seed Starting XI players (starting11 = 1)
+-- Argentina 2022 FIFA World Cup squad — 11 players who started the final.
+-- Rolling back this migration removes only the Starting XI, leaving substitutes intact.
+
+INSERT INTO players (id, squadNumber, firstName, middleName, lastName, dateOfBirth, position, abbrPosition, team, league, starting11) VALUES
+    ('01772c59-43f0-5d85-b913-c78e4e281452', 23, 'Damián',  'Emiliano',         'Martínez',  '1992-09-02T00:00:00.000Z', 'Goalkeeper',      'GK', 'Aston Villa FC',           'Premier League', 1),
+    ('da31293b-4c7e-5e0f-a168-469ee29ecbc4', 26, 'Nahuel',  NULL,               'Molina',    '1998-04-06T00:00:00.000Z', 'Right-Back',      'RB', 'Atlético Madrid',          'La Liga',        1),
+    ('c096c69e-762b-5281-9290-bb9c167a24a0', 13, 'Cristian','Gabriel',          'Romero',    '1998-04-27T00:00:00.000Z', 'Centre-Back',     'CB', 'Tottenham Hotspur',        'Premier League', 1),
+    ('d5f7dd7a-1dcb-5960-ba27-e34865b63358', 19, 'Nicolás', 'Hernán Gonzalo',   'Otamendi',  '1988-02-12T00:00:00.000Z', 'Centre-Back',     'CB', 'SL Benfica',               'Liga Portugal',  1),
+    ('2f6f90a0-9b9d-5023-96d2-a2aaf03143a6',  3, 'Nicolás', 'Alejandro',        'Tagliafico','1992-08-31T00:00:00.000Z', 'Left-Back',       'LB', 'Olympique Lyon',           'Ligue 1',        1),
+    ('b5b46e79-929e-5ed2-949d-0d167109c022', 11, 'Ángel',   'Fabián',           'Di María',  '1988-02-14T00:00:00.000Z', 'Right Winger',    'RW', 'SL Benfica',               'Liga Portugal',  1),
+    ('0293b282-1da8-562e-998e-83849b417a42',  7, 'Rodrigo', 'Javier',           'de Paul',   '1994-05-24T00:00:00.000Z', 'Central Midfield','CM', 'Atlético Madrid',          'La Liga',        1),
+    ('d3ba552a-dac3-588a-b961-1ea7224017fd', 24, 'Enzo',    'Jeremías',         'Fernández', '2001-01-17T00:00:00.000Z', 'Central Midfield','CM', 'SL Benfica',               'Liga Portugal',  1),
+    ('9613cae9-16ab-5b54-937e-3135123b9e0d', 20, 'Alexis',  NULL,               'Mac Allister','1998-12-24T00:00:00.000Z','Central Midfield','CM','Brighton & Hove Albion',   'Premier League', 1),
+    ('acc433bf-d505-51fe-831e-45eb44c4d43c', 10, 'Lionel',  'Andrés',           'Messi',     '1987-06-24T00:00:00.000Z', 'Right Winger',    'RW', 'Paris Saint-Germain',      'Ligue 1',        1),
+    ('38bae91d-8519-55a2-b30a-b9fe38849bfb',  9, 'Julián',  NULL,               'Álvarez',   '2000-01-31T00:00:00.000Z', 'Centre-Forward',  'CF', 'Manchester City',          'Premier League', 1);
diff --git a/src/main/resources/db/migration/V3__Seed_substitutes.sql b/src/main/resources/db/migration/V3__Seed_substitutes.sql
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..5398b8b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/main/resources/db/migration/V3__Seed_substitutes.sql
@@ -0,0 +1,20 @@
+-- V3: Seed Substitute players (starting11 = 0)
+-- Argentina 2022 FIFA World Cup squad — 15 players who did not start the final.
+-- Rolling back this migration removes only the substitutes, leaving the Starting XI intact.
+
+INSERT INTO players (id, squadNumber, firstName, middleName, lastName, dateOfBirth, position, abbrPosition, team, league, starting11) VALUES
+    ('5a9cd988-95e6-54c1-bc34-9aa08acca8d0',  1, 'Franco',    'Daniel',    'Armani',    '1986-10-16T00:00:00.000Z', 'Goalkeeper',        'GK', 'River Plate',               'Copa de la Liga',    0),
+    ('5fdb10e8-38c0-5084-9a3f-b369a960b9c2',  2, 'Juan',      'Marcos',    'Foyth',     '1998-01-12T00:00:00.000Z', 'Right-Back',        'RB', 'Villarreal',                'La Liga',            0),
+    ('bbd441f7-fcfb-5834-8468-2a9004b64c8c',  4, 'Gonzalo',   'Ariel',     'Montiel',   '1997-01-01T00:00:00.000Z', 'Right-Back',        'RB', 'Nottingham Forest',         'Premier League',     0),
+    ('9d140400-196f-55d8-86e1-e0b96a375c83',  5, 'Leandro',   'Daniel',    'Paredes',   '1994-06-29T00:00:00.000Z', 'Defensive Midfield','DM', 'AS Roma',                   'Serie A',            0),
+    ('d8bfea25-f189-5d5e-b3a5-ed89329b9f7c',  6, 'Germán',    'Alejo',     'Pezzella',  '1991-06-27T00:00:00.000Z', 'Centre-Back',       'CB', 'Real Betis Balompié',       'La Liga',            0),
+    ('dca343a8-12e5-53d6-89a8-916b120a5ee4',  8, 'Marcos',    'Javier',    'Acuña',     '1991-10-28T00:00:00.000Z', 'Left-Back',         'LB', 'Sevilla FC',                'La Liga',            0),
+    ('c62f2ac1-41e8-5d34-b073-2ba0913d0e31', 12, 'Gerónimo',  NULL,        'Rulli',     '1992-05-20T00:00:00.000Z', 'Goalkeeper',        'GK', 'Ajax Amsterdam',            'Eredivisie',         0),
+    ('d3b0e8e8-2c34-531a-b608-b24fed0ef986', 14, 'Exequiel',  'Alejandro', 'Palacios',  '1998-10-05T00:00:00.000Z', 'Central Midfield',  'CM', 'Bayer 04 Leverkusen',       'Bundesliga',         0),
+    ('b1306b7b-a3a4-5f7c-90fd-dd5bdbed57ba', 15, 'Ángel',     'Martín',    'Correa',    '1995-03-09T00:00:00.000Z', 'Right Winger',      'RW', 'Atlético Madrid',           'La Liga',            0),
+    ('ecec27e8-487b-5622-b116-0855020477ed', 16, 'Thiago',    'Ezequiel',  'Almada',    '2001-04-26T00:00:00.000Z', 'Attacking Midfield','AM', 'Atlanta United FC',         'Major League Soccer',0),
+    ('7cc8d527-56a2-58bd-9528-2618fc139d30', 17, 'Alejandro', 'Darío',     'Gómez',     '1988-02-15T00:00:00.000Z', 'Left Winger',       'LW', 'AC Monza',                  'Serie A',            0),
+    ('191c82af-0c51-526a-b903-c3600b61b506', 18, 'Guido',     NULL,        'Rodríguez', '1994-04-12T00:00:00.000Z', 'Defensive Midfield','DM', 'Real Betis Balompié',       'La Liga',            0),
+    ('7941cd7c-4df1-5952-97e8-1e7f5d08e8aa', 21, 'Paulo',     'Exequiel',  'Dybala',    '1993-11-15T00:00:00.000Z', 'Second Striker',    'SS', 'AS Roma',                   'Serie A',            0),
+    ('79c96f29-c59f-5f98-96b8-3a5946246624', 22, 'Lautaro',   'Javier',    'Martínez',  '1997-08-22T00:00:00.000Z', 'Centre-Forward',    'CF', 'Inter Milan',               'Serie A',            0),
+    ('98306555-a466-5d18-804e-dc82175e697b', 25, 'Lisandro',  NULL,        'Martínez',  '1998-01-18T00:00:00.000Z', 'Centre-Back',       'CB', 'Manchester United',         'Premier League',     0);
diff --git a/src/test/resources/application.properties b/src/test/resources/application.properties
index 7e0c762..1267428 100644
--- a/src/test/resources/application.properties
+++ b/src/test/resources/application.properties
@@ -15,6 +15,10 @@ spring.sql.init.data-locations=classpath:dml.sql
 spring.jpa.show-sql=false
 spring.jpa.properties.hibernate.format_sql=true
 
+# Flyway Configuration (disabled for tests)
+# Tests use SQLite in-memory with Spring SQL init (ddl.sql + dml.sql) instead.
+spring.flyway.enabled=false
+
 # Server Configuration (disabled for tests)
 server.port=0
 management.server.port=0
diff --git a/src/test/resources/ddl.sql b/src/test/resources/ddl.sql
index 25e8bc0..32e2b9b 100644
--- a/src/test/resources/ddl.sql
+++ b/src/test/resources/ddl.sql
@@ -15,5 +15,5 @@ CREATE TABLE players (
     abbrPosition TEXT        NOT NULL,
     team        TEXT         NOT NULL,
     league      TEXT         NOT NULL,
-    starting11  INTEGER      NOT NULL
+    starting11  BOOLEAN      NOT NULL
 );
diff --git a/storage/.gitkeep b/storage/.gitkeep
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..e69de29
diff --git a/storage/players-sqlite3.db b/storage/players-sqlite3.db
deleted file mode 100644
index 0a15fd4..0000000
Binary files a/storage/players-sqlite3.db and /dev/null differ