"The crisis is deep. Italian football needs to be redesigned." Those were Gabriele Gravina's words after Italy were knocked out by Bosnia and Herzegovina on penalties in Zenica on Tuesday — and they land like a confession more than a statement of intent.
Three consecutive World Cup absences. Let that settle. The country that gave the world Baresi, Maldini, Pirlo, and four World Cup trophies has now missed the last three tournaments. This isn't a blip. This is structural collapse.
Gravina deflects — but not without a point
The FIGC president accepted personal responsibility, but was quick to spread it around. "The FIGC is being talked about as if it were the only player," he said, pointing fingers at clubs, leagues, and politicians who, in his words, "only move fast to demand resignations." He even challenged the political establishment to name a single meaningful measure they've introduced to support Italian football. It's a fair challenge, even if the timing looks defensive.
Members of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's Brothers of Italy party have joined the chorus calling for his head. A decision on Gravina's future will reportedly be made at an FIGC council meeting next week.
He has asked Gennaro Gattuso to continue as Italy head coach, which will raise eyebrows of its own. Gattuso only took charge recently, but inheriting a program this broken was always going to be a poisoned chalice regardless of who held it.
The club game is struggling too
The national team crisis doesn't exist in isolation. No Serie A side reached the Champions League quarter-finals this season. Italian football's influence in Europe has been fading for years, and the national team's absences from major tournaments are a symptom of that wider decline — not just a federation failure. Any serious rebuilding has to start at club level, in academies, in the league structure itself.
Anyone betting on Italy reaching the 2026 World Cup will need more than hope — they'll need a coherent plan, new leadership clarity, and some evidence the domestic pyramid can actually produce elite players again. Right now, none of those things are visible.
Gravina may survive next week's council meeting. But surviving and fixing are two very different things.
