Maldini Leonardo resignation follows a rotten period in Italian football’s governance as both men have quit their role within a few weeks of being appointed to rebuild their football team.
Paolo Maldini and Leonardo have quit the Italian Football Federation (FIGC), despite initially being at the heart of a major shakeup after Italy missed qualification for a third World Cup in a row. On July 11, Maldini had been appointed technical director, with the mission of rebuilding structure, finding leadership and charting the long-term direction of sport.
But he was only in power for 16 days. At the same time, Leonardo left its ranks as an adviser to help in the restructuring, which also means a lack of alignment at the highest decision-making level.
The departures coincide with a key time for the national team as they have yet to find an executive structure and a permanent coach. One of Maldini’s main tasks was to find a replacement for Gennaro Gattuso, but the search was soon to get complicated.
Andrea Pirlo had been a frontrunner for the managerial job, but had been rebuffed largely owing to his business ties with a Russian betting company. The development seems to have been the spark that led to more dislocations in the planning process within the federation.
Institutionally, Maldini and Leonardo leaving is a consequence of problems of governance; it’s not individual player decisions. Italy’s ongoing battle – on field and at the executive table – remains to be a reflection of the leadership continuity, decision alignment and crisis management issues inherent in the structure.
The FIGC is currently under renewed pressure to re-establish its leadership model and to create a more competitive track toward international success as key positions are once again left vacant.
