Italy FA in Chaos: Maldini, Leonardo Quit After 16 Days
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- Paolo Maldini resigned as FIGC technical director after just 16 days alongside special advisor Leonardo, citing an inability to share Malago's vision on Mancini
- Roberto Mancini was rehired as Italy manager after approaches to Guardiola, Ancelotti, and Pirlo all collapsed within roughly a fortnight
- Andrea Pirlo was ruled out as a candidate because of his role promoting a Russian betting company, including sponsored visits to Moscow following the 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine
- Claudio Ranieri, aged 74, was appointed to replace Maldini as FIGC technical director
- Italy failed to qualify for a third consecutive World Cup (2018, 2022, 2026), prompting the resignations of FIGC president Gabriele Gravina and head of delegation Gianluigi Buffon earlier this summer
- An FIGC report found Serie A ranks 49th out of 50 leagues globally for minutes played by under-21 players, that only 32.1% of Serie A players are Italian-eligible, and that the league has the highest average age in major European football
Why it matters: Italy's two-decade slump has now cost them three straight World Cup qualifications, yet Malago's promised "new era" is being delivered with Mancini — who quit for Saudi Arabia once already — and a 74-year-old technical director, leaving the systemic flaws the FIGC's own report flagged untouched and the federation's credibility dented after the 16-day meltdown played out in public.
