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Italian Football Federation President defends Position, Questions Impact of Leadership Change
ROME – Italian Football Federation (FIGC) President Gabriele Gravina has staunchly defended his leadership, suggesting a change at the helm wouldn’t guarantee success for the national team.Speaking publicly,Gravina provocatively questioned whether Italy’s fortunes woudl automatically reverse with his departure,stating,”If I went away,would football start again and Italy would win the World Cup? If that were the case I would step aside,but it’s not.”
Gravina addressed concerns about potential repercussions following a negative performance in upcoming Playoffs, referencing the past treatment of previous presidents and national team figures. He distinguished his situation from those of predecessors Giorgio Abete, who resigned for personal reasons, and Giancarlo Tavecchio, who gravina said was “disheartened and betrayed.” He emphasized the democratic principles underpinning the FIGC structure, arguing that automatically linking presidential responsibility to on-field results would be a mistake. “I don’t go on the field, but I defend my choices,” he stated, adding, “What happens if I leave? Italy wins the World Cup and the problems disappear? In 1994 they wanted to lynch the players after a lost final, do you remember that?” He further questioned whether accountability should be tied to results or to ongoing reforms.
The president also clarified his interactions with current and former national team managers, Roberto Mancini and Luciano Spalletti. He confirmed speaking with Mancini, who expressed willingness to return to the role. Gravina refuted claims he avoided Spalletti’s farewell press conference, stating he was present at a concurrent UEFA conference and had planned to jointly announce the resolution with Spalletti. However, he described Spalletti’s unexpected outburst during the press conference as “the reaction of a true Italian,” explaining the manager “collapsed at the first question” and ”didn’t hold back his explosion of anger.”
Gravina’s comments come amid ongoing scrutiny of the Italian national team’s performance and the broader state of Italian football.
