Oops, Italy Did It Again, Again!

There are many ways to frame what I'm about to say, and I'm sure someone funnier and smarter than me could find the perfect way to really maximize the impact of this sentence. I, however, think the bold-faced truth, with no embellishment, is the funniest way to deliver this news, and so: For the third straight time, the Italian national team has failed to qualify to the World Cup.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HEKZd_BfUjU

Thanks to two losses to Norway in UEFA qualifier group play, Italy botched its initial qualification process for the 2026 World Cup, capped in embarrassing 4-1 blowout fashion back in November, at home no less. That meant the Italians had to navigate two one-leg knockout matches to keep the hopes of a return to the World Cup alive. The Azzurri did dispatch Northern Ireland 2-0 in Bergamo on Mar. 26, while Bosnia and Herzegovina beat Wales in a penalty shootout on the same day. That set up Tuesday's win-and-you're-in showdown in Zenica, in front of a rowdy Bosnia crowd that was no less fervent in the face of a capacity reduction handed down by FIFA, due to previous incidents in a match against Romania last year.