“The Italian curse continues!”
That was the call from FOX Sports’ John Strong as Bosnia and Herzegovina crushed Italy‘s hopes of qualifying for its first FIFA World Cup since 2014 by besting the Azzurri in a penalty shootout at Bilino Polje Stadium on Tuesday.
But what is the “Italian curse” and when did it start? Here’s a brief history of Italy’s recent World Cup woes:
2018: The First Offense
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After failing to advance past the group stage in both 2010 and 2014, Italy was under immense pressure to make it to the knockout round of Russia 2018. Not only did Italy not make the knockout round, but it also failed to qualify altogether, something the four-time World Cup champions hadn’t done since 1958.
Italy’s failure was largely attributed to its unpopular manager, Gian Piero Ventura, and a changing of the guard from the 2006 world champions. But the years that followed would show the issues ran much deeper.
2022: False Hope
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Despite failing to qualify for the 2018 World Cup, Italy entered the second half of the 2022 qualifying cycle with a renewed sense of optimism, which stemmed from the fact that it had won the Euro 2021 final against England. That optimism was short-lived.
Italy failed to win its group in qualifying, drawing four of its five final group qualifying matches, two of which were against eventual group-winners Switzerland. Italy was favored in its UEFA playoff matchup with North Macedonia, but it once again failed to meet the moment, coming up scoreless despite registering 32 shot attempts to North Macedonia’s four. North Macedonia won the match 1-0 on a 92nd-minute goal from Aleksandar Trajkovski.
2026: A New Low
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For the first time since 2014, only one thing stood between Italy and a FIFA World Cup berth on Tuesday: a win. Italy won its playoff semifinal matchup against Northern Ireland, 2-0, setting it up for a “win and get in” final against Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Italy took the lead early on with a goal from Moise Kean, but disaster struck in the 41st minute, when Italy’s star center back Alessandro Bastoni was shown a straight red card for a reckless tackle.
Italy was able to survive regulation, but its luck ran out in the penalty shootout, where it was outscored, 4-1. For the third consecutive time, Italy failed to qualify for the World Cup.
There have been eight total countries to win the World Cup, and only one of those teams has failed to qualify in three straight attempts: Italy (2018, 2022, 2026).
Argentina missed three straight World Cups (1938, 1950-54) for political reasons and withdrew from the tournament; England missed three straight from 1930-1938 as it was not even a member of FIFA. Brazil, Germany, Uruguay, Spain and France have never missed three straight World Cups.
