World Cup 2026: Could Italy miss the qualifiers after ‘torturous’ qualifying campaign?

When Italy qualified for the final against France 20 years ago, they did so with arguably the greatest team in the country’s history.

From Gianluigi Buffon and Cannavaro in defense to Alessandro Del Piero and Francesco Totti in attack, coach Marcello Lippi had an embarrassment of riches at his disposal.

But the fourth victory in the country’s history was only an overnight success; He was the product of a development model that no longer exists in Italian football.

The foundations were laid a decade ago when the Under-21 side – coached by Cesare Maldini – won three consecutive European Championships between 1992 and 1996.

The development of Maldini’s squad – which included Buffon, Cannavaro, Totti and Del Piero – was aided by a ruling in Serie A prohibiting clubs from having more than three non-European players on the pitch at one time.

This meant that by the time the 1994 and 1996 tournaments began, the quartet had already amassed a wealth of senior experience at clubs such as Parma, Napoli, Roma and Juventus.

But that all changed in 1995 when the Bosman ruling – a case that fought to improve the rights of European players – dramatically changed the football landscape on the continent.

As a result, Italy – and other European countries – were forced to relax their quota regulations, leading to an influx of foreign players heading to Serie A at the turn of the century.

It came at a cost, as home-grown talent in the generations that followed found top-flight opportunities increasingly difficult to come by.

“Over the years, Serie A clubs have relied more on foreign talent than local talent,” Gates said.

“You would think that because of the lack of money in Serie A, clubs would rely more on home-grown talent – ​​but that is not the case.

He added: “They rely on young foreign talent more than Italians.”

Italian football is different in its financial struggles, with none of its clubs appearing in the top ten on Deloitte’s list of the world’s top revenue-generating clubs.

While Premier League clubs benefit from ever-increasing TV deals, and other European leagues attract huge investments, Serie A has seen this revenue source stagnant.

Italian clubs have failed to modernize their stadiums, which in turn affects their business operations. Revenue gaps have widened between them and leagues such as the Premier League, making it difficult to sign or retain top players.

Some of the top clubs in the league have reported significant losses in recent years, with many having to sacrifice investment in the future.

European football expert Julian Lorenz told BBC Sport: “Academies in Italy are not producing enough players, or players qualified to play for their first team. The way they spend their money is not what we are used to from Italian clubs.”

“It’s a result of what happened in Italy in recent years,” Alessandro Del Piero, the former Italy striker, told CBS.

“The level of investment is low. Other markets are becoming much bigger than us.

“Are there problems? On the pitch. We know you have to do better off the pitch [to improve] Which. Youth systems too.”

An obvious statistic is that only eight of the 487 goals in the Champions League stage this season were scored by Italians.