Italian football is at its lowest ebb in nearly 40 years after a wholesale European exodus at club level, following the nation’s failure for the third successive time to qualify for the World Cup and compounded by a leadership and structural crisis.

The exits suffered ​by Bologna and Fiorentina on Thursday in the Europa League and Conference League, respectively, meant no Italian teams are left ‌in European competition this season.

Italy’s last remaining Champions League contenders, Atalanta, went out in the round of 16 last month.

It is the first time since the 1986-87 campaign that Italian clubs have been shut out of the European semi-finals across the board in a season with three major continental competitions.

The club-level wipeout has compounded a mounting ​emergency in a country where football is a national passion.

Inter Milan made the 2025 Champions League final, where they were thrashed by ​Paris St-Germain, and Atalanta won the Europa League in 2024, but Italy have now stalled on several fronts.

Coupled with ⁠the national team’s continued World Cup exile, Italian football has been plunged into an identity crisis as the country wraps up its ‘annus horribilis’ ​season.

SYSTEMIC RESET

Italy suffered a collective shock in March after a 4-1 penalty shootout defeat by Bosnia and Herzegovina in their World Cup qualifying playoff final following ​a 1-1 draw after extra time led to the departure of coach Gennaro Gattuso.

The resignation of Italian Football Federation President Gabriele Gravina followed in the fallout and he admitted that the foundations of the domestic game had crumbled.

“The crisis is deep, Italian football needs to be redesigned,” said Gravina – a warning now being amplified by several Italian ​coaches.

Fabio Capello noted this week that “it is practically impossible to get worse than this; we have hit rock bottom.”

Carlo Ancelotti, who is in charge ​of five-time world champions Brazil, told Italian media on Friday that the nation has lost its way both on the pitch and financially.

“We already lack talent ‌in other ⁠areas of the pitch, but the excessive focus on tactics has distorted our characteristics, the ones on which we have always built our history,” he said.

He noted that the financial chasm between Serie A and its rivals has stripped the league of its former allure.

“The great foreign players no longer come to Italy. Abroad, with substantial TV rights and powerful investors, a more attractive market is formed.”

The crisis seems to pervade every level of ​the game, with crumbling infrastructure now ​dominating the headlines as Italy ⁠prepares to co-host the 2032 Euros alongside Turkey.

Italian media have warned that stadium projects are significantly behind schedule, with construction yet to begin on several key venues.

“I hope the infrastructure will be ready,” UEFA President Aleksander ​Ceferin said earlier this month. “Otherwise, the tournament will not be played in Italy.”

LOOKING AHEAD

With the season wrapping up, ​Italy face a period ⁠of restructuring. A new coach and FIGC President are yet to be announced following the resignations of Gattuso and Gravina.

Media reports suggest Napoli manager Antonio Conte and AC Milan boss Max Allegri are the frontrunners to succeed Gattuso.

A decision on the next coach is unlikely before the FIGC elections on June ⁠22. Until ​then, Italian football is in a state of suspended animation, waiting to see if ​the new leadership will opt for a total reset or a more pragmatic rebuilding phase.

In the wake of a season of systemic failure, the pressure for structural reform suggests that the ​status quo is no longer an option for the Italian game that once dominated the sport.

-Reuters

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• Summary

• * Round-trip transit fares rise over 10-fold for World Cup events
• * NJ Transit CEO Kris Kolluri cites security and parking closures for fare hike
• * Limited rideshare, closed parking lots, and shuttle options to ​manage congestion

Round-trip public transit tickets to World Cup ‌games in New Jersey will cost $150, up from less than $15 for the same route on a typical day, FIFA and NJ Transit officials said on Friday.

The more than 10-fold increase in transit fares adds to the cost of World ​Cup match tickets, which can run into the thousands of dollars.

“We’re expecting public transportation across ​the shuttle and New Jersey transit to sell out, because those are going ⁠to be the fastest and most efficient ways to get to the stadium,” the CEO of ​the World Cup’s New York/New Jersey host committee said on Friday.

The service will include round-trip tickets from ​New York City to the MetLife Stadium on trains and shuttles. About 40,000 non-refundable tickets will be available for World Cup ticket holders and go on sale on May 13.

The stadium has a capacity of around 80,000 people.

FIFA will ​run a shuttle bus service to the stadium from several locations, including Manhattan, which will cost $80 for ​a round trip, several times higher than the price for the same journey on a regular day, and will ‌have ⁠a capacity to transport 10,000 people. Tickets are expected to go on sale on Friday.

Asked to justify the price hikes, which typically do not occur during other events at the same stadium, New Jersey Transit CEO Kris Kolluri linked it to the higher number of passengers, driven by the closure of ​public parking around the stadium ​and increased costs ⁠due to World Cup security requirements.

“All consumer protection triggers that usually trigger a violation don’t apply to us, because, one, we’re seeking reimbursement for what we’re ​spending, and two, we’re not a for-profit company,” Kolluri said.

Other transportation options, ​including rideshare, will ⁠be limited because public parking lots around the stadium that normally accommodate more than 20,000 cars will be closed on game days.

The host committee said it will manage traffic to reduce congestion near the stadium. It ⁠gave ​a drop-off location for cars that is about a 20-minute walk ​from the stadium.

Penn Station in Manhattan will be closed to other passengers for four hours before and after the games.

MetLife ​Stadium will host eight World Cup games, including the final.

-Reuters

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By Kunle Solaja.

The dismissal of Hervé Renard by the Saudi Arabia national football team has highlighted a growing wave of coaching instability among teams heading to the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Renard’s exit, confirmed less than two months before the tournament, is the latest in a string of managerial changes involving World Cup-bound nations, raising concerns about continuity and preparation ahead of football’s biggest stage.

The trend is not limited to Saudi Arabia. Several other qualified teams have also parted ways with their coaches in recent months, including Otto Addo, who stepped down from the Ghana national football team, Sami Trabelsi of the Tunisia national football team, and Walid Regragui, who has also been moved on by the Morocco national football team despite previous success.

Coaches, Walid Regragui (Morocco), Sami Trabelsi (Tunisia) and Ghana’s Otto Addo qualified their teams for the 2026 World Cup, but will be glaring absentees.

Together, these changes underline a broader pattern of federations opting for last-minute technical adjustments in pursuit of improved World Cup performances.

Renard, who had returned for a second spell in 2024, leaves with a notable legacy, having guided Saudi Arabia to qualification for multiple World Cups, including the famous 2-1 victory over the Argentina national football team at the 2022 tournament in Qatar.

“That’s football,” Renard said. “Saudi Arabia have qualified for the World Cup seven times, including twice with me.”

His departure follows that of Roberto Mancini, continuing a cycle of managerial turnover within the Saudi setup. Greek coach Georgios Donis is reportedly in line to take over.

A Familiar World Cup Pattern

While the current wave of dismissals is striking, it is not unprecedented.

In the aftermath of the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, at least eight national team coaches either resigned or were dismissed following their campaigns. These included Paulo Bento (South Korea), Luis Enrique (Spain), Roberto Martinez (Belgium), Gerardo Martino (Mexico), Otto Addo (Ghana), Louis van Gaal (Netherlands), Tite (Brazil), and Fernando Santos (Portugal).

That turnover came after the tournament; the current cycle is notable for occurring before the World Cup, suggesting an even higher level of urgency and pressure among federations.

High Stakes, Quick Decisions

Analysts say the increasing frequency of coaching changes reflects the high expectations placed on national teams, particularly those from Africa and Asia seeking to make a stronger global impact.

However, such late changes also carry risks, including tactical disruption and reduced team cohesion.

Saudi Arabia, drawn in Group H alongside the Spain national football team, the Uruguay national football team and the Cape Verde national football team, now faces the challenge of adapting quickly under new leadership.

As the countdown to the 2026 World Cup continues, the growing list of coaching exits — from Renard to Addo, Trabelsi and Regragui — underscores a defining narrative of the tournament’s build-up: in modern international football, even qualification offers no guarantee of job security.

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