Gabriele Gravina has stepped down as president of the Italian Football Federation (FIGC) after Italy failed to qualify for the FIFA World Cup for a third straight cycle.
themomentng reports that Gravina handed in his resignation during an emergency FIGC general council meeting, called hours after Italy lost their play-off final to Bosnia and Herzegovina via penalties on Tuesday night, March 31. A vote to elect his successor is scheduled for 22 June.
The emergency session brought together leading figures across Italian football, including representatives from the professional leagues, amateur game, players and coaches.
Gravina had led the federation since October 2018. During his tenure, Italy lifted the UEFA Euro 2020 trophy but missed out on places at the 2022 and 2026 World Cups. Italy had also failed to qualify for the 2018 edition before his appointment.
He oversaw the appointments of Luciano Spalletti and Gennaro Gattuso as national team coaches in 2023 and 2025.
Pressure on Gravina had intensified in recent days, with supporters and senior figures calling for change following the latest setback.
Italian sports minister Andrea Abodi said on Wednesday that: “it’s evident that Italian football needs to be rebuilt, and this process must start with a renewal of the FIGC leadership.”
At the time of writing, there were speculations that Gattuso and his coaching crew could also lose their jobs due to the World Cup failure.
