Sports
4 Titles, 3 Consecutive Failures, 68% Foreign Players — Three Numbers That Killed Italian Football
Italy's failure to qualify for the 2026 North American World Cup marks an unprecedented third consecutive tournament absence, a humiliating record for a four-time champion. Even with the expanded 48-team format providing more berths than ever before, the Azzurri could not secure their place — a collapse compounded by a bonus scandal, the structural decay of Serie A, and the simultaneous resignation of the entire football leadership. From the glory of Berlin 2006 to the humiliation of a playoff loss in Bosnia in 2026, Italy's twenty-year decline stands as a textbook case study in how a nation's football can systematically implode.