Benatti was born in Mirandola. He began his career with Reggiana in 1927 in the Divisione Nazionale, the Italian First Division at the time, before moving to Roma the following season, where he remained for two seasons in total. He made his debut in the Serie A with Roma on 6 October 1929, in a 3–1 defeat to Alessandria. He played for Lecce in Serie B during the 1930–31 season, before moving to Napoli for the next three seasons. He also played for Spezia and Trento before joining Bagnolese in the Italian lower divisions for the final two seasons of his career, retiring from professional football in 1936.