Italy football chief steps down after World Cup failure

Gabriele Gravina – (Web Desk) – The head of Italian football has resigned. Gabriele Gravina stepped down on Thursday after Italy failed to qualify for the World Cup for the third time in a row. That is not a typo. Three consecutive failures for one of football’s greatest nations.

Gravina made his announcement after a meeting at the federation’s Rome headquarters. It came just one day after Italy’s sports minister publicly called on him to go.

The trouble started on Tuesday. Italy lost a playoff shootout to Bosnia and Herzegovina and will now watch this summer’s World Cup from their sofas. The tournament is being held across the United States, Canada and Mexico.

The embarrassment was too much to ignore. Gravina had originally planned to wait until a board meeting next week before saying anything. But the pressure became too great and he quit sooner than expected. A vote to find his replacement will take place on June 22.

One name already being talked about is Giovanni Malago. He previously led the Italian Olympic Committee and helped organise the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics.

Gravina’s exit could also push coach Gennaro Gattuso out the door. It was Gravina who personally asked him to stay beyond his contract, which runs out this summer. With Gravina gone, that conversation changes.

Italy’s sports minister did not hold back after the Bosnia defeat. He said Italian football needs to be rebuilt completely, starting right at the top.

Gravina himself had admitted just days earlier that Italian football is in a deep crisis. He had also taken a swipe at politicians he felt were only interested in calling for heads to roll.

Gravina took charge of the federation back in October 2018. He replaced Carlo Tavecchio, who had also resigned after Italy missed the World Cup that year.

His best moment came at Euro 2020. Italy, managed brilliantly by Roberto Mancini, went on an incredible 37-match unbeaten run and beat England at Wembley to win the whole thing. That night felt like a new beginning.

But it was not. Two more World Cup failures followed. A poor defence of the European title made things worse. And Italian clubs have not won the Champions League since 2010. The cracks run deep.

There is another problem looming. Italy is set to co-host Euro 2032 alongside Turkey. But UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin gave a sharp warning on Thursday. He told an Italian newspaper that if Italy’s stadiums are not ready in time the tournament will simply be moved elsewhere. That is a serious threat and one Italy cannot afford to ignore.

Away from football Italy is actually thriving. The country won 30 medals at the recent Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics, 10 of them gold. At the Paris Summer Olympics in 2024 they collected 40 medals. Tennis star Jannik Sinner has won four Grand Slam titles. Italy is producing world class athletes across many sports.

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Which makes the football situation even harder to understand.

Gravina stirred up more anger on Tuesday by calling Olympic sports “amateur” because many Italian athletes are technically employed by the military or police. That comment did not go down well. Not even a little bit.