Official: Gennaro Gattuso appointed new Italy coach for challenging 2026 World Cup campaign

Gennaro Gattuso has officially been appointed as the new coach of the Italy squad. ‘He is a symbol of Italian football,’ said FIGC President Gabriele Gravina.

A presentation press conference will be held in Rome on Thursday June 19.

“Gattuso is a symbol of Italian football,” said Federation chief Gravina.

“The Azzurri jersey is like a second skin for him. His motivation, his professionalism and his experience will be fundamental to face the next Nazionale challenges.

“Aware of the importance of the objective we want to achieve, I thank him for his availability and the total dedication with which he accepted this challenge, sharing the FIGC’s project of overall development of our football, with the Azzurri strategically at the centre.”

Gattuso lifetime in the Italy shirt

As a player, Gattuso was part of the 2006 World Cup winning squad and made 73 senior appearances for the Nazionale.

He was also in the side that won the European Under-21 Championship in 2000.

The former Milan, Napoli, Valencia, Olympique Marseille and Hajduk Split tactician was a free agent after terminating his deal with the Croatian club by mutual consent, just one season into the tenure.

Italy had sacked CT Luciano Spalletti following the 3-0 defeat to Norway, which opened their 2026 World Cup qualifying campaign, but kept him on to oversee the 2-0 victory against Moldova on Monday.

Claudio Ranieri had initially been approached, but wanted to maintain his promise to act as special advisor to Roma and retire from management.

Italy are next in action against Estonia on September 5, then Israel on September 8.