Rome: Four-time world champions Italy suffered a third consecutive World Cup elimination, falling to Bosnia-Herzegovina in a devastating penalty shootout to extend their absence from the sport's premier tournament.
According to Oman News Agency, no previous winner of the FIFA World Cup has ever missed three straight editions of the competition. Italy's failure to qualify follows their absences from Russia 2018 and Qatar 2022.
After Gennaro Gattuso's ten-man side weathered a relentless barrage of Bosnian attempts to force extra time, Pio Esposito fired over the crossbar and Bryan Cristante struck the underside of the bar from the spot, sealing Italy's fate in the shootout.
For Bosnia-Herzegovina-and their 40-year-old captain Edin Džeko-the victory marks only their second World Cup qualification in history. They will face Canada, Qatar, and Switzerland in Group B this summer.
For Italian football, however, it was another woeful night. A visibly emotional Gattuso deflected questions about his future, insisting it 'was not important' after Italian Football Federation (FIGC) president Gabriele Gravina revealed he had asked the coach to stay.
Italy had taken an early lead when Nicol² Barella pounced on a misplaced pass from Bosnia goalkeeper Nikola Vasilj, setting up Moise Kean to finish emphatically from the edge of the area in the 15th minute.
The hosts' path back into the contest was cleared five minutes before halftime, however, when Italy defender Alessandro Bastoni was sent off for hacking down Amar Memic as the Bosnia winger bore down on goal.
Azzurri goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma produced a string of crucial saves in the second half, but after he pushed out Džeko's header from Amar Dedic's 79th-minute cross, Haris Tabakovic converted the rebound to force extra time.
Bosnia-Herzegovina were flawless from the penalty spot, with Benjamin Tahirovic, Tabakovic, Kerim Alajbegovic, and Esmir Bajraktarevic all converting to send their nation to the summer tournament.
Italy's decline on the global stage is stark. Since lifting the World Cup for the fourth time in 2006, the Azzurri have failed to progress past the group stage in 2010 and 2014. Their victory over England in the Euro 2020 final now stands as an outlier for a once-dominant football power.
Former midfielder Gattuso, who started in Italy's 2006 World Cup final triumph, took over from Luciano Spalletti two games into the qualifying campaign. Spalletti had been dismissed following a 3-0 defeat to Norway in June-a result that came after a win over Moldova three days earlier-following Italy's disappointing last-16 exit at Euro 2024.
Despite early doubts over his appointment, Gattuso won five consecutive matches, including two against Estonia and victory over Moldova. But a 4-1 loss to Norway ultimately consigned Italy to second place in the group and a play-off fate they could not escape.