Italy Fails to Reach the World Cup Again, Gravina and Buffon Resign

ROME, FRIDAY — Following the widespread calls for accountability over Italy's failure to qualify for the 2026 World Cup, the President of the Italian Football Federation, Gabriele Gravina, has finally resigned from his position. The legend of the Italian national team, Gianluigi Buffon, has also taken a similar step by stepping down from his role as Head of the National Team Delegation.

The Italian Football Federation (FIGC) announced Gravina's resignation through a statement on their official website, Thursday (2/4/2026). The announcement was made after Gravina requested his resignation in front of several competition representatives during a meeting at the FIGC headquarters in Rome on the same day.

At the meeting, Gravina also informed that he is willing to attend on April 8 before the VII Committee on Culture, Science, and Education of the House of Representatives. "Here, President Gravina will present, as thoroughly and comprehensively as possible, a report on the strengths and weaknesses of Italian football," the statement read.

In order to elect a new president, the FIGC will hold a vote on June 22. This date has been set in accordance with the Federation's Statute.

Gravina took over as FIGC President in October 2018. He replaced Carlo Tavecchio who resigned following Italy's failure to beat Sweden in the 2018 World Cup playoffs in Russia.

Under Gravina's leadership, Italy won Euro 2020 after defeating England in a penalty shootout at Wembley Stadium. However, during his tenure, "Gli Azzuri" failed to qualify for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar and experienced the same failure for the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Canada, and Mexico.

“Gli Azzurri” failed to qualify for the 2026 World Cup after being defeated by Bosnia-Herzegovina, the team ranked 71st (before the match), on penalties 1-4 after a 1-1 draw in the final of the 2026 World Cup path A playoff at the Bilino Polje Stadium, Zenica, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Wednesday (1/4/2026).

This means that the Italian national team has failed to qualify for two consecutive editions of the World Cup under the leadership of Gravina at the FIGC. In total, this four-time World Cup champion has failed to appear in the biggest football festival for three consecutive editions.

This failure demands accountability from stakeholders, including Gravina. Before ultimately resigning from his position, Gravina remained steadfast despite calls for his resignation coming from various quarters.

Following Gravina's resignation, Gianluigi Buffon also stepped down from his role as Head of the National Team Delegation. Buffon took on this position in August 2023, after accepting Gravina's proposal.

"Now that President Gravina has chosen to resign, I feel capable of doing what I consider to be the most responsible thing because, although I am very confident that we have built a strong spirit and unity with Rino Gattuso and the entire staff, the main objective, within the limited time we have, is to bring Italy back to the World Cup. And we did not succeed," wrote Buffon.

"It is now appropriate to give freedom to those who come after me to choose the person they consider most suitable to take over my role," he continued in his statement.

The head coach of the Italian national team, Gennaro Gattuso, is also reported to be stepping down. Italian journalist and football transfer expert, Fabrizio Romano, revealed this on his social media on Thursday. However, there has been no official announcement regarding this news.

After the defeat to Bosnia, Gattuso was reluctant to discuss his future. Gattuso only expressed his feelings about how painful it was to see Italy lose, even though he believed they deserved to win.

Gattuso, a legend of AC Milan, was appointed as the coach of Italy in June 2025 to replace Luciano Spalletti, who was dismissed. The dismissal occurred after Italy lost 0-3 to Norway in the Group I match of the European World Cup qualifying round.

Although Spalletti remains responsible for the next three days following the victory over Moldova, his departure is an early indicator of the challenges that Italy will face. Gattuso, who has coached 10 clubs in 12 years, must manage an Italy haunted by the trauma of past failures.

Legendary Italian coach, Fabio Capello, believes that Gattuso should not rush to resign or be dismissed. People should give him the opportunity to lead at least two more matches.

"Do not forget that he took over the team when the World Cup qualifiers had already begun under Luciano Spalletti, and he succeeded in bringing character and determination to the team," said Capello as quoted by Sky Sports.

"Unfortunately, and it is sad to say, we are paying the price for the fundamental individual mistakes of the players; otherwise, we might have brought home a better result," said the coach who delivered four Serie A titles for AC Milan.