Italy's soccer federation president resigned amid political pressure on Thursday, two days after the national team failed to qualify for a third consecutive World Cup. Gabriele Gravina's decision was quickly followed by Gianluigi Buffon stepping down as the national teams delegation chief and 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. Buffon was the goalkeeper on the World Cup-winning 2006 team and is Italys record-holder with 176 appearances as a player. He was behind Gattusos hiring. "Its only fair to leave to those who come after me the freedom of selecting who will replace me," Buffon said. "Representing the national team is an honor and a passion that has embodied me since I was a kid." 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. "Soccer has been in trouble since 2006," Italian coaches association president Renzo Ulivieri said. Players association president Umberto Calcagno said new regulations promoting the use of more Italian players in Serie A were necessary: "A rapid change needs to be made." 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 president Gravina 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 2032 Besides 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." Reporting by The Associated Press.

Explosive knocks by openers Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma led Sunrisers Hyderabad to their first win of the IPL season with a 65-run thrashing of Kolkata Knight Riders on Thursday.

Alex Caruso, Austin Reaves, Jose Alvarado, Duncan Robinson and Lu Dort are some of the NBA's biggest two-way success stories

This article originally appeared on PGHHockeyNOW.com.A playoff hope has become a downhill chase as Pittsburgh Penguins (38-21-16) could slash their magic number to single digits with a win Thursday when they visit one of the best teams in the NHL, the Tampa Bay Lightning (46-22-6) at Benchmark International Arena.Despite Tampa Bays usual position at the top of the standings, the Penguins have points in nine of their last 12 games against Tampa Bay (7-3-2). And the Penguins are 5-2-0 in their last seven visits to Benchmark International Arena dating back to Oct. 23, 2019.Road warriors: The Penguins have points in five-consecutive road games (4-0-1) and have points in 13 of their last 15 road games overall (9-2-4).Tuesday, Anthony Mantha scored his 30th goal of the season. The first time hes reached that plateau. Also, he has 21 points (8G-13A) in 30 career games against the Lightning and is a plus-11. His 21 points are the most hes accumulated vs. one opponent.Click here to read more from PGHHockeyNOW.com. Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts.Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW

Silas Demary Jr., who has been hobbled with a high ankle sprain during the NCAA tournament, is expected to be at 90% for UConn's Final Four matchup vs. Illinois.

Authorities in Florida released the body camera video of Tiger Woods being arrested on Thursday following a rollover car crash last week that led to him stepping away from golf to seek treatment.

Mickelson, 55, is a three-time winner at Augusta National and had been listed among the participants for the 2026 tournament, but he has now revealed he won't tee it up in Georgia next week.

Barcelona scored six goals again to outclass Real Madrid 6-0 and reach a record-extending eighth straight semifinal in the Womens Champions League on Thursday.Caroline Graham Hansen scored twice and Alexia Putellas, Irene Paredes, Ewa Pajor and Esmee Brugts all scored a goal apiece for the three-time champion in the second leg of their quarterfinal to advance on a 12-2 aggregate score.Barcelona will face Bayern Munich for a spot in the May 23 final in Oslo.It was Barcelonas sixth win over Madrid in the womens clsico in all competitions this season and it was watched by 60,067 spectators in the womens first game at the newly revamped Camp Nou.Later Thursday, Lyonnes and Wolfsburg will meet to determine the final semifinal spot. Wolfsburg won the first leg 1-0. The winner will play defending champion Arsenal in the last four.Barcelona didnt waste time in proving its superiority, giving Madrid no chance for an unprecedented quarterfinal turnaround after last week's 6-2 result in the Spanish capital.In the eighth minute, Pajor's attempt from the left side of the box was saved by goalkeeper Misa Rodrguez. But Putellas scored off the rebound to mark the two-time Ballon d'Or winner's 500th Barcelona appearance.With the goal, Putellas became the first Spanish player to have 30 goals in womens club competitions, according to UEFA.Seven minutes later, Graham Hansen headed in the second from close range. Paredes made it 3-0 with another header off a corner from Graham Hansen in the 27th.The home team went into halftime with a 4-0 lead after Pajor's seventh goal in the Champions League this season and career 40th in European club competitions.Graham Hansen chipped the ball over Rodrguez 10 minutes into the second half for a 5-0 lead. Clara Serrajordi set up Brugts to tap in the sixth.Barcelona seeks to reclaim the title it lost to Arsenal last season. The Catalan club topped the league phase with an unbeaten campaign that included 20 goals scored and three against.___AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

This weeks Rhythm Energy Athlete of the Week is from Galveston County representing the Cougars of La Marque High School. Brendan Harris is a standout for the boys basketball program and has helped turn La Marque into a powerhouse playing for Head Coach Kevin Wilcox. Harris is a senior forward for the Cougars who averaged 18 points and 10 rebounds a game this season leading La Marque to an incredible 41-2 record and a trip to the Class 4A State Championship game that unfortunately ended with a loss to Dallas Carter inside the Alamodome in San Antonio.Congrats to Brendan for earning our Rhythm Energy Athlete of the Week honors!

The United Nations' special rapporteur on violence against women and girls has praised the International Olympic Committee's newly announced eligibility rules for the 2028 Games as a "common sense" decision.Under the policy confirmed last week, the IOC will mandate that competitors in women's categories must have been born female.All athletes must complete a one-time screening process before competing.Reem Alsalem, the UN official responsible for monitoring violence against women globally, expressed her support for the measure, describing it as grounded in scientific evidence and factual reality.TRENDINGStoriesVideosYour SayAlsalem said: "The new policy is rooted in common sense, facts, and science. "It restores dignity, fairness and safety for women and girls in Olympic sport."She characterised the decision as both necessary and proportionate, arguing it aligns with international human rights law and standards designed to safeguard women and girls.The rapporteur emphasised that sporting policies at every level should be developed, monitored and reviewed using evidence-based methods.Central to her position was the importance of acknowledging what she termed "the material reality of sex" when formulating regulations governing athletic competition.Kirsty Coventry, the IOC president, outlined the scientific basis underpinning the new eligibility framework.The screening process will test for the presence of the SRY gene, which the organisation considers a highly reliable marker of male sex development.Coventry said: "The scientific evidence is very clear male chromosomes give performance advantages in sports that rely on strength, power or endurance."LATEST SPORT NEWSRoberto De Zerbi issues apology to Tottenham fans after criticism over Mason Greenwood commentsDerek Chisora and Nigel Farage display Union Jacks aboard tank ahead of Deontay Wilder clashChelsea star urged to abandon England ambitions as Ireland boss pushes for allegiance switchThe policy's implementation will result in the exclusion of most athletes with differences in sex development from women's events at the Los Angeles Games.This represents a significant shift in how the Olympic movement approaches eligibility questions surrounding biological sex and athletic competition.However, the IOC's approach has drawn criticism from some quarters of the scientific community.Alun Williams, professor of sport and exercise genomics at Manchester Metropolitan University's Institute of Sport, argued that testing all competitors for genetic markers was "not the right approach".He said: "There's no convincing direct evidence that athletes with DSDs have advantages in sport."Williams warned that the screening process carries substantial ethical and practical difficulties.He noted that disclosing unexpected, life-altering genetic information to young athletes could prove devastating for both them and their families.He also pointed out that similar genetic testing programmes were trialled and subsequently abandoned during the 1990s due to concerns over validity, practicality and ethics.Our Standards: The GB News Editorial Charter