Italy's soccer federation president resigned amid political pressure on Thursday, two days after the Azzurri failed to qualify for a third consecutive World Cup.Gabriele Gravina's decision will likely lead to the ouster of Italy coach Gennaro Gattuso, too.Italy Sports Minister Andrea Abodi called for a change in the countrys soccer leadership after Gravina oversaw two sets of disappointing World Cup qualifiers.Its evident to everyone that Italian soccer needs to be overhauled, Abodi said on Wednesday, and that process needs to start with new leadership at the FIGC (federation).Italys chances of reaching this years tournament in North America ended on Tuesday after a penalty shootout loss to Bosnia and Herzegovina in a qualifying playoff.Gravina took charge of the federation in 2018 replacing Carlo Tavecchio, who also stepped down after Italy failed to reach that years World Cup.The defeat to Bosnia added more misery for four-time champion Italy after being eliminated by Sweden and North Macedonia, respectively, in the qualifying playoffs for the last two World Cups.Italys World Cup struggles go back all the way to 2010 and 2014 when it failed to advance from its group on both occasions.The Azzurris last World Cup knockout match was in 2006 when they won the title by beating France in the final after a penalty shootout.Gravina did oversee Italys European Championship trophy in 2021.An election was called for June 22 to elect a new FIGC president.Gravina also announced that he would attend a hearing in Italys parliament next Wednesday to discuss the wellbeing of Italian soccer.Mancini, Inzaghi, Conte, Allegri Gattuso took over from the fired Luciano Spalletti in June with the squad already in crisis mode following a defeat at Norway in its opening qualifier.The Azzurri then went on a six-match winning streak before losing again to Norway in November to finish second in their group and end up in the playoffs again.Among those being mentioned to replace Gattuso are Roberto Mancini, Simone Inzaghi, Antonio Conte and Massimiliano Allegri.Mancini coached Italy to the European Championship title in 2021 then failed to get the Azzurri to the next years World Cup before bolting to take over Saudi Arabias national team.Inzaghi coached Inter Milan to the Serie A title in 2024 and now manages Saudi club Al-Hilal.Conte coached Italy at the 2016 European Championship and is currently at Napoli.Allegri is at AC Milan.Gravina is a UEFA vice presidentGravina is also Aleksander Ceferins top vice president at UEFA.UEFA statutes require that executive committee members are also senior FA officials but Gravina could stay in the UEFA role as a lame duck as long as the FIGCs new leadership doesnt demand his removal.Gravina was re-elected last year by UEFA so he has three more years in his current term.Gabriele is my first vice president and is very important to me, Ceferin said in Thursdays Gazzetta dello Sport after attending the playoff in Bosnia.Euro 2032Besides revitalizing the national team, whoever replaces Gravina will be tasked with getting Italys dilapidated stadiums ready to host the 2032 European Championship.Italy is slated to co-host Euro 2032 with Turkey.I hope that the infrastructure is ready, Ceferin said. Otherwise the tournament wont be played in Italy.___AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

Italy's soccer federation president resigned amid political pressure on Thursday, two days after the Azzurri failed to qualify for a third consecutive World Cup.Gabriele Gravina's decision will likely lead to the ouster of Italy coach Gennaro Gattuso, too.Italy Sports Minister Andrea Abodi called for a change in the countrys soccer leadership after Gravina oversaw two sets of disappointing World Cup qualifiers.Its evident to everyone that Italian soccer needs to be overhauled, Abodi said on Wednesday, and that process needs to start with new leadership at the FIGC (federation).Italys chances of reaching this years tournament in North America ended on Tuesday after a penalty shootout loss to Bosnia and Herzegovina in a qualifying playoff.Gravina took charge of the federation in 2018 replacing Carlo Tavecchio, who also stepped down after Italy failed to reach that years World Cup.The defeat to Bosnia added more misery for four-time champion Italy after being eliminated by Sweden and North Macedonia, respectively, in the qualifying playoffs for the last two World Cups.Italys World Cup struggles go back all the way to 2010 and 2014 when it failed to advance from its group on both occasions.The Azzurris last World Cup knockout match was in 2006 when they won the title by beating France in the final after a penalty shootout.Gravina did oversee Italys European Championship trophy in 2021.An election was called for June 22 to elect a new FIGC president.Gravina also announced that he would attend a hearing in Italys parliament next Wednesday to discuss the wellbeing of Italian soccer.Mancini, Inzaghi, Conte, Allegri Gattuso took over from the fired Luciano Spalletti in June with the squad already in crisis mode following a defeat at Norway in its opening qualifier.The Azzurri then went on a six-match winning streak before losing again to Norway in November to finish second in their group and end up in the playoffs again.Among those being mentioned to replace Gattuso are Roberto Mancini, Simone Inzaghi, Antonio Conte and Massimiliano Allegri.Mancini coached Italy to the European Championship title in 2021 then failed to get the Azzurri to the next years World Cup before bolting to take over Saudi Arabias national team.Inzaghi coached Inter Milan to the Serie A title in 2024 and now manages Saudi club Al-Hilal.Conte coached Italy at the 2016 European Championship and is currently at Napoli.Allegri is at AC Milan.Gravina is a UEFA vice presidentGravina is also Aleksander Ceferins top vice president at UEFA.UEFA statutes require that executive committee members are also senior FA officials but Gravina could stay in the UEFA role as a lame duck as long as the FIGCs new leadership doesnt demand his removal.Gravina was re-elected last year by UEFA so he has three more years in his current term.Gabriele is my first vice president and is very important to me, Ceferin said in Thursdays Gazzetta dello Sport after attending the playoff in Bosnia.Euro 2032Besides revitalizing the national team, whoever replaces Gravina will be tasked with getting Italys dilapidated stadiums ready to host the 2032 European Championship.Italy is slated to co-host Euro 2032 with Turkey.I hope that the infrastructure is ready, Ceferin said. Otherwise the tournament wont be played in Italy.___AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

Gabriele Gravina has stepped down as president of Italy's football federation following mounting political pressure, just 48 hours after the national team's devastating elimination from World Cup qualification.The resignation marks a dramatic response to the Azzurri's historic failure to reach a third consecutive World Cup finals.Thursday's departure comes in the wake of Italy's crushing exit from the 2026 tournament, which will be hosted across North America.Gravina's tenure saw him preside over two separate failed qualification campaigns, prompting calls from within the Italian government for sweeping changes at the top of the country's football administration.TRENDINGStoriesVideosYour SayTuesday's penalty shootout defeat to Bosnia and Herzegovina in the qualifying playoff brought Italy's hopes of competing in this year's World Cup to a crushing end.Sports Minister Andrea Abodi responded to the elimination by demanding a shake-up of the nation's football leadership, having witnessed Gravina oversee two consecutive failed qualification attempts.The federation president's exit is also expected to spell the end for national team manager Gennaro Gattuso, whose position now appears untenable.The former midfielder's departure would represent a complete overhaul of Italian football's senior leadership following the country's unprecedented run of World Cup absences.LATEST SPORTS NEWS:London schoolgirl, 11, becomes Englands top female chess player after stunning global riseAs Phil Foden struggles for England, five world-class stars who failed to deliver on the international stageTyson Furys condition revealed after father said relationship had been 'completely destroyed'Gattuso was downbeat after the result against Bosnia. There have been suggestions he could walk away but, in the immediate aftermath, he refused to commit to a decision."I'm not interested at all in talking about my future today," he said."It hurts, it really hurts. More than hurting me, it hurts to see this group which has really given everything in these months and I think we deserved to get back what we put in and I honestly think it's too reductive and too immature to be talking about my future today."Here we should be talking about Italy, about the national team shirt, that it's yet another blow even though this time we didn't deserve it. We deserved more and that's why my future doesn't matter."Two managers have been linked with the post.Antonio Conte could be one option, though he's currently in charge of Napoli.Massimiliano Allegri is another, though he is working with AC Milan.Italy will now have to contend with another summer at home, with their failure to make the World Cup also coming just six years after they won the European Championships. Our Standards: The GB News Editorial Charter

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