The 2030 FIFA World Cup in Spain, Portugal & Morocco is only about 46 moons away (depending on your own set of lunar circumstances) and it promises to be a real doozy. World Cup history is a tale resplendent with stories of triumph against the odds, childhood dreams coming true and unsung heroes becoming legends. As well as dumb idiot losers, wanker fuck-ups and teams that are just total bullshit.
But how shall ye learn about these legends, losers and teams that are just total bullshit? Well look no further my wayward friend as I profile all 211 FIFA nations eligible for World Cup qualification. Today, I take a look at Italy, which, I shit you not, has qualified for the World Cup 18 times, winning it four times, in 1934, 1938, 1982 and 2006.
FAFO: World Cup 2030 | The Long Road to Spain/Portugal/Morocco | Profile | ITALY: Yeah, it does actually play football (and yes, HAS qualified for the World Cup before, even winning it 4 times I shit you not)
Nickname: Gli Azzurri
FIFA Ranking: 15 (September 2026)
Qualified for World Cup Finals: 18 times (not qualified since 2014)
Best WC result: 4x Champions (1934, 1938, 1982 and 2006)
FIFA World Cup 2026 Qualification result: Did not qualify. Italy beat Northern Ireland 2–0 in the UEFA play-off semi-final, then drew 1–1 away to Bosnia and Herzegovina and lost the shootout 4–1, meaning a third consecutive World Cup absence.
WATCH: ITALY — WHEEL OF NATIONS – FAFO: World Cup 2030 Weekly Wheel of Nations – pt. IX – September 24, 2026:
If you watched the 2018 World Cup, the 2022 World Cup and the 2026 World Cup, you might’ve noticed the absence of one of Europe’s largest countries–four-times winners Italy. In fact, if you also got into the 2014 and the 2010 World Cup you pretty much saw the same then too (1 group stage win in those years, vs England in 2010). However, despite what you might think, Italy does in fact have a national football team that actually plays the sport of association football and actually does competes in the FIFA World Cup.
In fact, not only does it have a team that competes every four years in World Cup qualifying, but, believe it or not, it’s actually won the actual cup FOUR FUCKING TIMES. Yeah. I’m not bullshiting you. You wouldn’t thought so based on the last 16 years of World Cup qualifying and final tournaments but there ya go.
The last time the Azzurri won a game at the World Cup was in the group stage of the 2014 World Cup (2-1 v England) – its only win since winning the final of the 2006 World Cup in Germany. From that point, they failed to win a single game against Paraguay, New Zealand or Slovakia at the 2010 World Cup, they did manage to beat England but still went out at the group stage at the 2014 tournament, lost to Sweden in a playoff for a spot at the 2018 World Cup, North Macedonia in the World Cup 2022 UEFA qualifying playoff semi-finals (below) and Bosnia and Herzegovina and lost the shootout 4–1 (also below). Italy may be a nation of schemers but regardless of how furbo the Italians are, scheming their way into the World Cup lately seems beyond even them.
At least in 1950 they had a reason for their disappearance (plane crash), and ditto in 1966 (coming up against the formidable Semi-professional North Koreans). But how the mighty fallen. Things didn’t used to be this way at all.
Italy were the first team to win back-to-back World Cups in 1934 and 1938, and due to the outbreak of the second World War, it kept its title as world champs for another 12 years, until the first post-war World Cup took place in Brazil in 1950. More recently, the Italians impressively defeated Brazil, Argentina, Poland and West Germany on the way to the title in Spain in 1982 and in 2006, amid a match-fixing scandal in its own backyard, went all the way again, defeating France in the final and conceding just one goal in open play (an own goal, mind) throughout their entire victorious run.
Despite post-2006 records clearly demonstrating an absence of any team named ‘Italy national team’, the team listed with this name had once been witnessed at the World Cup regularly, not only winning it four times, but also falling just short in the final twice–both times to Brazil. Their 1970 loss in the final was at the hands of arguably the greatest team ever assembled and their 1994 defeat against another formidable Brazilian outfit, this time on penalties.
Historians maintain that an Italian national football team does in fact exist, particularly after their performances in the Euros, losing to France in the Euro 2000 final only after conceding a last minute goal and then a golden goal, losing in the final at Euro 2012 to another legendary team–Spain this time–and most recently, the most compelling evidence of suggesting existence of the team was seen at Euro 2020 (and 2024 in the Euros Round of 16. The fact remains that these scattered signs of life don’t confirm the existence of an Italian national team, particularly as it’s been 20 long years since the whole world actually caught a proper glimpse of them.
That day in Berlin back in July 2006 was the last confirmed sighting of an Italian national team, and while there appears to be little hope of seeing them at the World Cup anytime soon (the World Cup expanding to 114 teams for 2030 will boost their chances), Italians still maintain a profound faith in the existence of an Italy national team, and in hope that it one day will return, they piously pray very aggressively and gesticulate confounding sentiments of which only an Italian can understand.
Last three World Cup Finals
2014 — Group stage: Beat England 2–1, then lost to Costa Rica and Uruguay to finish third in the group and go home.
2010 — Group stage: The defending champions failed to win a match, drawing with Paraguay and New Zealand before losing 3–2 to Slovakia and finishing bottom of their group.
2006 — Champions: Italy went unbeaten, conceded just twice all tournament and defeated France on penalties in the final to win their fourth World Cup.
Last three World Cup qualification campaigns
2026 — Failed to qualify: Italy reached the UEFA play-off final but were eliminated by Bosnia and Herzegovina on penalties, missing a third consecutive World Cup.
2022 — Failed to qualify: Finished second behind Switzerland before a stunning 1–0 home defeat to North Macedonia in the play-off semi-final.
2018 — Failed to qualify: Finished second behind Spain before Sweden beat them 1–0 on aggregate in the play-off, ending Italy’s run of 14 consecutive World Cup appearances.
One to watch: Z100’s “Arriva Arriva”, if you’re freaking out about the state of the Italian national football team/its scandalous political system/racism in the country and its attitudes towards Blacks, Jews and Muslims/its rage-inducing bureaucracy/its ageing, stagnant conservative society and the subsequent social security crisis that is looming
Should you be panicking about the future of the Italian national team or the fragile state of the country’s society in general, Z100’s 1995 club banger is just the medicine you need. So stop weeping in the shower, climb up out of the fetal position and up off the floor, hit play on this puppy above, and jump around out of control singing: “NON TI PREOCCUPARE, NON TI PREOCCUPARE, ARRIVA ARRIVA QUELLO CHE DEVE ARRIVARE, NON TI PREOCCUPARE, NON TI PREOCCUPARE, DEVE ARRIVARE, NON TI PREOCCUPARE, NON TI PREOCCUPARE, ARRIVA ARRIVA QUELLO CHE DEVE ARRIVARE, NON TI PREOCCUPARE, NON TI PREOCCUPARE, DEVE ARRIVARE (“DON’T YOU WORRY, DON’T YOU WORRY, WHATEVER WILL COME, WILL COME, DON’T YOU WORRY, DON’T YOU WORRY, WHATEVER WILL COME, WILL COME, DON’T YOU WORRY, DON’T YOU WORRY, WHATEVER WILL COME, WILL COME, DON’T YOU WORRY, DON’T YOU WORRY, WHATEVER WILL COME, WILL COME”). Problem solved. You’re welcome.
The Highpoint: Winners, 1934, 1938, 1982 and 2006 World Cups
Yeah, yeah, take your pick. Four World Cups. But BFD. Does anyone talk about what role their semi-final win via coin toss over the Soviet Union at Euro 1968 played in the momentum and confidence and status of its league or both future Italian sides and past ones? No. The flip of a Goddamn coin. It’s all that got Italy to the Euro 1968 final, one in which they beat Yugoslavia and became European champions for the first ever time. But no one talks about that do they? It’s just all about the World Cup wins isn’t it, not the bullshit ass way it advanced to the Euro 1968 final and its intangible and immeasurable effect it had on past and previous squads. Meh.
A sporting experience you’ve gotta go to that’s uniquely local and awesome (and doable):
You’re thinking of Calcio Storico Fiorentino in Florence. Once a year, the city’s four historic quarters compete in two semifinals and a final on a sand-covered Piazza Santa Croce. It’s an early form of football with a substantial amount of fighting baked in—the description “barbaric” is doing honest work here.
The games are held in June, with the final traditionally on 24 June, Florence’s feast day for Saint John the Baptist. For your Italy sporting experience, this is a hell of a pick.
One unique natural experience to see/visit/experience: Hike the Dolomites and stay in a rifugio
Walk into the Dolomites, spend the night in a mountain rifugio and wake up surrounded by those absurd limestone peaks; there are routes ranging from straightforward hikes to serious alpine trekking.
One town/city that the locals love:
Bologna: porticoes, university life, osterie, markets and one of Italy’s great food cultures without Rome/Florence/Venice levels of tourism theatre — La Dotta, La Grassa, La Rossa.
Just one thing, if you’re looking for a sports bar to watch the Premier League that’s not creepy as fuck with a couple of old wasted dudes staring at you, with their backs to the screen the whole game, try some other place, in fact, you know what, maybe just leave Italy and look there.
Food you’ve gotta have: Pasta al ragù
I’m deliberately not saying pizza: the “Italian living abroad and craving what tastes like home” answer is proper pasta, and my single representative plate is tagliatelle al ragù — fresh egg pasta with a slowly cooked meat ragù, not bloody spaghetti Bolognese.
🫠 FAFO Favourite: Pesto Pizza- FUCK YES.
A drink you’ve gotta smash: Espresso
Not Aperol Spritz, not limoncello: espresso is the everyday ritual — walk into a bar, order un caffè, drink it standing at the counter (don’t take longer than 45 seconds), ignore your mate looking for a place to get comfortable, carry on with your life.
🫠 FAFO Favourite: Limoncello.
The Wedding Banger (Italy’s unofficial national anthem): “Sarà perché ti amo” — Ricchi e Poveri
This beats Volare for the FAFO test: “Sarà perché ti amo” is the big arms-around-each-other, everyone-knows-the-chorus Italian party song, and it remains a staple of Italian wedding playlists.
🫠 FAFO FAVOURITE 1 – The Wedding Banger:
🫠 FAFO FAVOURITE 2 – The Wedding Banger:
🫠 FAFO FAVOURITE 3 – The Wedding Banger:
3 Legends
Sport
Sport — Valentino Rossi: Nine-time motorcycle world champion and one of the most recognisable Italian sportspeople ever.
Music — Luciano Pavarotti: The Italian tenor whose voice became internationally synonymous with Italian opera and crossed massively into popular culture.
Culture — Federico Fellini: Director of La Dolce Vita, 8½ and Amarcord and one of the defining figures in Italian cinema.
🫠 FAFO Favourites
Sport — Claudio Marchisio: Juventus and Italy midfielder, articulate, strongly connected to Italian football culture and potentially excellent on what football means beyond Serie A.
⚽ Gabriele Marcotti — Sport: Italian-American football journalist and broadcaster, best known for ESPN and The Gab & Juls Show, with decades covering Serie A, the Italian national team and European football; particularly good FAFO material because he can explain Italian football culture without turning it into misty-eyed cliché.
🎭 Santo Cilauro — Culture: Australian comedian, writer and producer of Italian heritage, best known as a founding member of The D-Generation and The Chaser and for The Late Show and Frontline; a very FAFO-shaped guest for talking about growing up Italian-Australian, diaspora identity, football, food and the peculiar ways Italian culture survives when you’re thousands of kilometres from Italy.
Music — Diodato: Contemporary Italian singer-songwriter and Sanremo winner; importantly,
Culture — Alessandro Borghese: Chef and television personality who gives you the food/culture/everyday-Italy lane rather than another actor doing publicity — potentially ideal for testing “what food do Italians actually miss, where do Italians actually go, and what have we got completely wrong?”
Learn the lingo & speak like a local!
