Mancini returns as Italy coach

What's happened

Italy has reappointed Roberto Mancini as men’s national coach and named Claudio Ranieri technical director after a chaotic selection that prompted Paolo Maldini and adviser Leonardo to resign. Mancini will lead a team still reeling from a third consecutive World Cup failure and will begin with Nations League fixtures in September.

What's behind the headline?

What this decision means

• The FIGC has chosen experience over fresh faces. Roberto Mancini has previously rebuilt Italy after a qualifying failure and will use that record to stabilise the squad.

Behind the scenes

• The coaching search has been turbulent. Pep Guardiola and Carlo Ancelotti turned the job down, Andrea Pirlo’s candidacy was blocked over commercial ties, and Maldini and Leonardo resigned within weeks of taking roles. That collapse has concentrated authority with president Giovanni Malagò.

Short-term consequences

• Mancini will inherit a squad under intense scrutiny and limited time. Italy is playing Belgium on Sept. 25 and will face Turkey and France in October; the new leadership must deliver performance quickly or face deeper institutional pressure.

Medium-term forecast

• This will increase pressure on Italy’s federation to show concrete progress in qualifying campaigns and youth development. Ranieri’s role overseeing elite football development will be judged on how rapidly Italy restores consistency.

Political and reputational stakes

• The Pirlo episode and executive resignations have politicised the appointment process. The federation will face scrutiny from fans, former players and politicians if results do not improve.

Bottom line

• Mancini’s return will recalibrate expectations: he will be expected to stabilise results and rebuild trust. Failure to produce visible improvements this autumn will force further leadership changes.

How we got here

Italy has missed three straight World Cups, prompting the resignations of FIGC president Gabriele Gravina and coach Gennaro Gattuso. Giovanni Malagò has taken leadership and has appointed Mancini — who won Euro 2021 — to revive the national side while Ranieri replaces Paolo Maldini as technical director.

Our analysis

The coverage converges on the same facts but highlights different angles. AP News reports Mancini’s apology and frames his return with personal regret: “I’m very sorry… I’m going to try to bring the national team back where it belongs,” the AP quotes Mancini (AP News, 29 Jul). AP also notes that Mancini was a fourth-choice option after Carlo Ancelotti and Pep Guardiola declined the role (AP News, 29 Jul). The Guardian and Independent emphasise the administrative turmoil: both report that Paolo Maldini and adviser Leonardo resigned after Andrea Pirlo’s appointment was blocked over ties to a Russian betting firm, and they quote federation president Giovanni Malagò saying, “Mancini is the coach” (The Guardian, 28 Jul; Independent, 28 Jul). BBC Business places the chaos at the centre, saying Maldini and Leonardo left after 16 days and calling the selection process a descent into “complete chaos” while tracing the broader reform ambitions inside Italian football (BBC Business, 28 Jul). The Japan Times and Al Jazeera note the immediate structural change: Claudio Ranieri will replace Paolo Maldini as technical director and will oversee technical operations (The Japan Times, 29 Jul; Al Jazeera, 28 Jul). The New York Post and other outlets focus on Pirlo’s blocked candidacy and the political sensitivity around his commercial ties, quoting Pirlo’s defence that his Fonbet role was commercial and not political (New York Post, 27 Jul). Together the accounts show a single outcome — Mancini’s appointment and Ranieri’s arrival — while differing on emphasis: AP and Guardian centre Mancini’s record and apology; BBC and The Guardian emphasise institutional chaos and leadership resignations; New York Post foregrounds the Pirlo controversy.

Go deeper

• How will Mancini’s squad selection differ from his 2018–23 team?
• What authority will Claudio Ranieri have over youth and elite development?
• Will the Pirlo commercial controversy prompt federation policy changes?

More on these topics

• Roberto Mancini - Italian football manager

  Roberto Mancini is an Italian football manager and former player who is manager of the Italy national team. He is nicknamed Il Mancio.

• Italy - Country in Europe

  Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a sovereign country consisting of a peninsula delimited by the Alps and surrounded by several islands. Italy is located in south-central Europe, and is considered part of western Europe.

• Andrea Pirlo - Italian football coach

  Andrea Pirlo Ufficiale OMRI is an Italian professional football coach and former player who is currently the head coach of Serie A club Juventus.

• Gennaro Gattuso - Italian footballer

  Gennaro Ivan "Rino" Gattuso Ufficiale OMRI is a retired Italian footballer who is the current manager of Napoli. As a player, he mainly played in the centre as a defensive midfielder, although he was also capable of playing on the wing.

• Paolo Maldini - Italian footballer

  Paolo Cesare Maldini Ufficiale OMRI is an Italian former professional footballer who played primarily as a left back and central defender for AC Milan and the Italy national team.

• Claudio Ranieri - Italian football manager

  Claudio Ranieri Grande Ufficiale OMRI is an Italian football manager and former player who most recently managed Serie A club Sampdoria.

• Bosnia and Herzegovina - Country in the Balkans

  Bosnia and Herzegovina, abbreviated BiH or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country in South and Southeast Europe, located within the Balkans. Sarajevo is the capital and largest city.

• UEFA Euro 2020 - Tournament

  The 2020 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2020 or simply Euro 2020, is scheduled to be the 16th UEFA European Championship, the quadrennial international men's football championship of Europe organised by the Union of

• Pep Guardiola - Spanish football manager

  Josep "Pep" Guardiola Sala is a Spanish professional football manager and former player, who is the current manager of Premier League club Manchester City. He is considered to be one of the greatest managers of all time.

• France - Country in Europe

  France, officially the French Republic, is a country consisting of metropolitan France in Western Europe and several overseas regions and territories.

• Zinedine Zidane - Former football player

  Zinedine Yazid Zidane, popularly known as Zizou, is a French former professional football player who played as an attacking midfielder. He is the current manager of La Liga club Real Madrid and is one of the most successful managers in the world.

• Manchester City Football Club - Football club

  Manchester City Football Club is an English football club based in Manchester that competes in the Premier League, the top flight of English football. Founded in 1880 as St. Mark's, it became Ardwick Association Football Club in 1887 and Manchester City i

• England - Country of the United Kingdom

  England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest of England and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. England is separated from continental Europe by

• Juventus Football Club - Football club

  Juventus Football Club, colloquially known as Juventus and Juve, is a professional football club based in Turin, Piedmont, Italy, that competes in the Serie A, the top flight of Italian football.

• AC Milan - Football club

  Associazione Calcio Milan, commonly referred to as A.C. Milan or simply Milan, is a professional football club in Milan, Italy, founded in 1899.

• Belgium - Country in Europe

  Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Western Europe. It is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to the southwest, and the North Sea to the northwest.

• Gabriele Gravina - President of the Italian Football Federation

  Gabriele Gravina Grande Ufficiale OMRI is an Italian sport director. Since 22 October 2018, he serves as president of the Italian Football Federation.

• FIFA World Cup - Football competition

  The FIFA World Cup, often simply called the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the Fédération Internationale de Football Association, the sport's global governin

• Saudi Arabia - Country in the Middle East

  Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, is a country in Western Asia constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula.