The president of the Italian Football Federation (FIGC), Gabriele Gravina, submitted his resignation on Thursday, 48 hours after Italy was eliminated on penalties by Bosnia-Herzegovina in the World Cup 2026 qualifying playoff final (June 11-July 19).
“Mr. Gravina informed the members of the federal council that he had submitted his resignation from the mandate entrusted to him in February 2025 and that he had convened an extraordinary elective assembly on June 22 in Rome,” the institution said in a statement.
Gravina, 72, had been at the helm of the FIGC since October 2018 and had begun his third term in February 2025. He is also the first vice-president of UEFA and close to the president of the European body, Aleksander Ceferin.
Under his leadership, Italy won Euro 2021, but failed to qualify for both the 2022 and 2026 World Cups and was eliminated in the round of 16 of the last European Championship in 2024. Gravina had been under pressure since Italy’s defeat in the European playoff final against Bosnia-Herzegovina on Tuesday.
Initially, to preempt calls for his resignation, he had convened a federal council meeting immediately after the Bosnia game to “evaluate his actions at the helm of the Italian Federation.”
However, Italian Sports Minister Andrea Abodi had called for his departure the day after what the Italian press dubbed as the “third apocalypse” of Italian football. “Italian football needs to be restructured and this process must involve a renewal within the leadership of the FIGC,” he said.
Gravina had taken over the powerful FIGC (1.5 million licensed players) following the resignation of Carlo Tavecchio after Italy’s failure to qualify for the 2018 World Cup in Russia.
The name of Giovanni Malago, former president of the Italian Olympic Committee and the organizing committee of the 2026 Milan Cortina Olympics, is the most mentioned to take over the leadership of Italian football in crisis.
Gianluigi Buffon, who served as Italy’s general manager, also announced his departure on social media. “Resigning a minute after the Bosnia match was a serious act that emerged from the depths of me. Spontaneous like tears and this pain in my heart that I know I share with all of you,” he wrote, indicating he had waited for President Gravina’s departure to announce his own.
By June 22, the manager of the Italian national team Gennaro Gattuso, appointed in June 2025, is also expected to leave according to the Italian press.
