Gennaro Gattuso resigned as Italy's national team manager on Friday, three days after the Azzurri failed to qualify for a third consecutive World Cup. The former AC Milan midfielder's departure follows Italy's devastating 4-1 penalty shootout defeat to Bosnia-Herzegovina in Tuesday's playoff, which ended their hopes of reaching the 2026 tournament.
The resignation caps a tumultuous week for Italian football. Gattuso's exit came just one day after Gabriele Gravina stepped down as president of the Italian Football Federation (FIGC), while former goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon also resigned from his role as delegation head.
With a heavy heart, having failed to achieve the goal we set ourselves, I consider my time as coach of the national team to be over. The Azzurri jersey is the most precious asset in football, which is why it's right to facilitate future technical evaluations right from the start.
Gennaro Gattuso, Former Italy Manager — BBC
Gattuso was appointed in June 2025 to replace Luciano Spalletti, tasked with ending Italy's World Cup drought. The four-time champions last appeared at the tournament in 2014 and have now missed three consecutive editions — a first for any previous World Cup winner.
During his brief tenure, Gattuso won six of eight matches but could not overcome the systemic issues plaguing Italian football. The team's failure reflects broader challenges within the domestic game, including limited talent development and insufficient tactical evolution at the highest level.
The BBC frames the story as a mutual agreement between Gattuso and the federation, emphasizing his emotional response and the broader institutional crisis. Coverage focuses on potential replacements and Italy's unprecedented World Cup absence streak.
France 24 presents the resignation as a direct consequence of the World Cup failure, highlighting the systematic nature of Italian football's problems. The outlet emphasizes the historic significance of missing three consecutive tournaments.
The Japan Times focuses primarily on federation president Gravina's resignation, positioning it within government pressure following the World Cup failure. Coverage emphasizes the institutional upheaval more than individual coaching decisions.
Público provides detailed context on Gattuso's playing and coaching career, framing his resignation as inevitable given the mission failure. The outlet emphasizes the emotional weight of Italy's repeated World Cup absences.
NZZ takes a more analytical approach, connecting Italy's failure to broader structural problems including talent development and team composition. The outlet frames this as symptomatic of deeper issues within Italian football.
The 48-year-old Gattuso, who won 73 caps for Italy during his playing career and lifted the World Cup in 2006, expressed deep regret over the qualification failure. His coaching resume includes spells at AC Milan, Napoli, Valencia, and Marseille, though none brought the sustained success expected at international level.
Italy's elimination marks another chapter in European football's changing landscape. The penalty defeat to Bosnia-Herzegovina — a nation that has never qualified for a World Cup — underscored how traditional powerhouses can no longer take qualification for granted.
The FIGC will hold an extraordinary assembly on June 22 to elect new leadership, while the search for Gattuso's replacement begins immediately. Names being discussed include Massimiliano Allegri, currently at AC Milan, and Roberto Mancini, who led Italy to Euro 2020 glory before resigning in 2023.
The crisis extends beyond personnel changes. Italy's domestic league has struggled to develop young talent, with Serie A increasingly reliant on foreign players. This has created a shallow pool for national team selection, contributing to the country's international decline.
What comes next for Italian football remains unclear, with the federation facing pressure to implement structural reforms before the next qualification cycle begins.