Leaning against a wall near a news-stand in central Rome, Tommaso Silvestri, 65, scans the morning's front pages, their headlines swinging between 'apocalypse,' 'scandal' and 'disaster' after Italy's latest footballing collapse. We've made a real mess of it, he says, shaking his head. We had players who couldn't even find the target.
On Tuesday night in Zenica, four-time World Cup winners Italy failed to qualify for the tournament for a third consecutive time, losing 4-1 on penalties to Bosnia and Herzegovina after being reduced to 10 men before halftime. Since winning the World Cup in 2006, the Azzurri have largely disappointed in international tournaments, with the exception of their surprise victory at the Euros in 2021 against England at Wembley.
Last night's defeat drew swift and emotional reactions across Italian politics and society. Everything has a limit, lamented Ignazio La Russa, president of the Senate and a senior figure in Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's far-right Brothers of Italy party. In a post on X, he wrote: We're not going to the World Cup. We supported them, we hoped, we even railed against a couple of questionable refereeing decisions... but deep down we feared it. In fact, we knew it.
Gomorrah author and anti-mafia writer Roberto Saviano pointed to deeper structural failures in Italian football, from governance to youth development. Clubs are corrupt and at the mercy of criminal organisations. True laundering vaults. No investment in young players, no care for second-generation talent. It's easier to buy foreign players than to develop new athletes, he said in a post on Instagram.
Across Italy, many are wondering what went wrong. Giovanni Colli, 71, rolling his eyes and sipping an espresso, expresses feelings of betrayal. Not going to the World Cup three times in a row, how on earth did it happen? What a huge disappointment. Everyone should resign. Give the young players a chance, he says.
Italy's World Cup heartbreak was crystallised in the tear-streaked face of coach Rino Gattuso, who struggled to hold back his emotions after the national team's defeat. We don't deserve this, it's not fair. I'm sorry I couldn't make it happen, Gattuso said, eyes glistening, before retreating to the dressing room. Gattuso admitted the team's shortcomings: When you have chances and don't take them, football punishes you.
Sport journalist Elisabetta Esposito of La Gazzetta dello Sport told the BBC that Italian football was facing a difficult period that would take time to overcome as loyalty to individual clubs was outweighing support for the national team. The risk is that this third consecutive failure to qualify will deepen young people's disengagement from the Azzurri, she said.
Reflecting on Tuesday’s match, Esposito added: From a technical standpoint, everything went wrong. The team hasn't worked together enough. Rebuilding will require a long-term strategy; chasing immediate wins with rushed decisions won't succeed.
Oh, we are not going to the World Cup? Teresa, a dog walker in central Rome, asked. I don't know much about football, but that's a bit of disaster, isn't it?\
On Tuesday night in Zenica, four-time World Cup winners Italy failed to qualify for the tournament for a third consecutive time, losing 4-1 on penalties to Bosnia and Herzegovina after being reduced to 10 men before halftime. Since winning the World Cup in 2006, the Azzurri have largely disappointed in international tournaments, with the exception of their surprise victory at the Euros in 2021 against England at Wembley.
Last night's defeat drew swift and emotional reactions across Italian politics and society. Everything has a limit, lamented Ignazio La Russa, president of the Senate and a senior figure in Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's far-right Brothers of Italy party. In a post on X, he wrote: We're not going to the World Cup. We supported them, we hoped, we even railed against a couple of questionable refereeing decisions... but deep down we feared it. In fact, we knew it.
Gomorrah author and anti-mafia writer Roberto Saviano pointed to deeper structural failures in Italian football, from governance to youth development. Clubs are corrupt and at the mercy of criminal organisations. True laundering vaults. No investment in young players, no care for second-generation talent. It's easier to buy foreign players than to develop new athletes, he said in a post on Instagram.
Across Italy, many are wondering what went wrong. Giovanni Colli, 71, rolling his eyes and sipping an espresso, expresses feelings of betrayal. Not going to the World Cup three times in a row, how on earth did it happen? What a huge disappointment. Everyone should resign. Give the young players a chance, he says.
Italy's World Cup heartbreak was crystallised in the tear-streaked face of coach Rino Gattuso, who struggled to hold back his emotions after the national team's defeat. We don't deserve this, it's not fair. I'm sorry I couldn't make it happen, Gattuso said, eyes glistening, before retreating to the dressing room. Gattuso admitted the team's shortcomings: When you have chances and don't take them, football punishes you.
Sport journalist Elisabetta Esposito of La Gazzetta dello Sport told the BBC that Italian football was facing a difficult period that would take time to overcome as loyalty to individual clubs was outweighing support for the national team. The risk is that this third consecutive failure to qualify will deepen young people's disengagement from the Azzurri, she said.
Reflecting on Tuesday’s match, Esposito added: From a technical standpoint, everything went wrong. The team hasn't worked together enough. Rebuilding will require a long-term strategy; chasing immediate wins with rushed decisions won't succeed.
Oh, we are not going to the World Cup? Teresa, a dog walker in central Rome, asked. I don't know much about football, but that's a bit of disaster, isn't it?\
