Paolo Maldini Appointed Technical Director of Italian Football Federation

Rome: Italian football icon Paolo Maldini has been appointed as the technical director of the national football federation (FIGC), which aims to restructure after Italy failed to qualify for the World Cup for the third consecutive year.

“Maldini has always been my target,” said newly appointed FIGC president Giovanni Malago.

“I felt that he was the right person to oversee the technical sector of the FIGC, a role that covers not only the senior national team but also the entire youth national team structure.

“We are making a four-year commitment from now on, designed to take us to the next World Cup and European Championship in 2030.”

The FIGC added that 58-year-old Maldini will work alongside Leonardo, who will be the former sporting director and advisor of Paris Saint-Germain and AC Milan.

Maldini will also assume the role of president of Club Italia, the body that oversees all national teams across all age groups, both men’s and women’s.

This is an unprecedented dual role in the FIGC and gives Maldini final authority over all sporting decisions.

His main task will be to revive the Azzurri, who have lost their place among the global elite after missing the last three World Cup tournaments despite European glory in 2021.

Maldini and Malago, who previously presided over the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics and was elected FIGC president in late June, urgently need to find a new coach.

Maldini’s former AC Milan teammate Gennaro Gattuso resigned as head coach after Italy lost to Bosnia and Herzegovina on penalties in the 2026 World Cup European play-offs in late March.

Former Italian international Antonio Conte has been suggested as a possible successor, having held the role between 2014 and 2016. Conte left Napoli last month after two seasons.

Maldini spent his entire football career at AC Milan, winning seven Italian league titles and five Champions League trophies.

Capped 126 times for Italy, he played in four World Cups and three European Championships, with his best results coming as runners-up at the 1994 World Cup and Euro 2000.

After retiring as a player, he replaced Brazilian Leonardo as AC Milan’s sporting director in 2019 and remained in this position until 2023.