When Italy's most capped outfield player, Paolo Maldini, quit as technical director after just 16 days on the job, it was the latest twist in a saga that has left one of football's most storied nations without a permanent manager and scrambling for a way back to the World Cup. The chaos began with a failed attempt to appoint Andrea Pirlo, whose ties to a Russian betting company sparked fierce opposition, and ended with Roberto Mancini being reappointed for a second spell, alongside Claudio Ranieri as technical director. But the underlying problem—Italy's failure to qualify for three consecutive World Cups—remains unresolved.
At the heart of the turmoil is the Italian Football Federation's (FIGC) search for a new head coach. The job became vacant in April when Gennaro Gattuso left by mutual consent after Italy missed out on this summer's World Cup, marking their third successive failure to reach the finals. The FIGC initially approached Pep Guardiola and Carlo Ancelotti, but both turned the role down. Andrea Pirlo then emerged as the preferred candidate, backed by Maldini, but his appointment fell through after controversy over his commercial ties to Fonbet, a Russian betting company. Pirlo said on Instagram that he "heard last night that I’m no longer the candidate for the Italy national team job." In response, Maldini and his adviser Leonardo resigned, leaving FIGC president Giovanni Malago without a technical director or a coach.
“Why Italy's managerial chaos reveals a deeper crisis for the four-time world champions.”
The background to this crisis stretches back more than a decade. Italy, four-time world champions, have not appeared at a World Cup finals since 2014, when they were eliminated in the group stage. They also failed to qualify in 2010 and 2018, making them the first World Cup winners ever to miss three consecutive tournaments. Their last taste of glory came at Euro 2020, when Mancini—who was appointed in 2018—led them to a penalty shootout victory over England at Wembley and set a world record 37-game unbeaten run. But that success was bookended by World Cup heartbreak: a play-off loss to North Macedonia in 2022 sealed their absence from Qatar, and another play-off defeat this year kept them out of the 2026 tournament. Mancini resigned in August 2023 after the first failure, and Gattuso's short tenure did little to reverse the decline.
For UK readers, this saga matters because the Italian national team is a fixture of major tournaments and a barometer of European football health. With Italy absent from World Cups, fans lose the chance to see classic rivalries—like the Azzurri against England—on the global stage. The Euro 2020 final, played at Wembley, was a high-water mark that feels increasingly distant. Also, the involvement of Claudio Ranieri, who led Leicester City to the Premier League title in 2016, adds a familiar face for British audiences. His appointment as technical director, replacing Maldini, signals a fresh start but also raises questions about how quickly Italy can rebuild.
Q: Why did Andrea Pirlo pull out of the Italy job? Pirlo withdrew after his commercial ties to Fonbet, a Russian betting company, caused opposition within the FIGC. He announced on Instagram that he was no longer a candidate, saying he "heard last night that I’m no longer the candidate for the Italy national team job."
Q: Who is the new Italy manager, and what is his record? Roberto Mancini was reappointed for a second spell. He previously managed Italy from 2018 to 2023, winning Euro 2020 and setting a world-record 37-game unbeaten run, but failed to qualify for the 2022 World Cup and resigned in August 2023.
Q: Why have Italy failed to qualify for three World Cups in a row? Italy have not appeared at a World Cup finals since 2014. They missed out in 2018, 2022, and 2026 due to play-off defeats—most recently losing to North Macedonia in 2022—and have struggled to maintain consistency despite their Euro 2020 success.
The immediate next step is for Mancini and Ranieri to prepare Italy for their Nations League campaign, which begins on 25 September at home to Belgium, followed by a trip to Turkey three days later. Beyond that, the focus will be on rebuilding a squad that can end their World Cup drought. But with only two years until qualifying for the 2030 tournament begins, and a recent history of managerial upheaval, the road back to the elite remains steep.