Italy coach Roberto Mancini surprisingly resigned on Sunday, ending an an up-and-down tenure with the national team that included a European Championship title in 2021 but also a failed qualification for last year’s World Cup.
The Italian soccer federation issued a short announcement saying that Mancini communicated his resignation “late last night,” adding that a new coach would be named “over the next days.”
The federation doesn’t have much time with Euro 2024 qualifying matches against North Macedonia and Ukraine scheduled for Sept. 10 and 12, respectively.
Mancini took charge of the team in 2018 after they failed to qualify for the World Cup, having previously not missed a World Cup finals since 1958.
He guided Italy to success at the European Championship in 2021 but the team once again failed to qualify for last year’s World Cup in Qatar.
In June, Italy claimed third place at the Nations League finals under Mancini.
“A significant page in the history of the Azzurri, which began in May 2018 and ended with the 2023 Nations League Finals, comes to an end,” the FIGC said in a statement.
Information from Reuters was used in this report.