In the World Cup’s missing country, failure sparks bitter political battle

This post was originally published on Politico.

ROME — Donald Trump isn’t the only problem on Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s mind.

Failure to qualify for the FIFA men’s World Cup for the third consecutive time triggered a major political and public outcry in the football-obsessed country that has now morphed into a bitter fight over who controls the sport.

Meloni’s Brothers of Italy party leaped to propose curtailing the power of the country’s football association — the Federazione Italiana Giuoco Calcio (FIGC) — after its president, the 72-year-old Gabriele Gravina, resigned in April under heavy pressure following a World Cup playoff defeat to Bosnia-Herzegovina.

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