Giovanni Malagò's Mission to Revive Italy's National Team
Giovanni Malagò has a new job and an old problem: fix Italy.
Elected as the new FIGC President with almost 69% of the votes, Malagò walks into an office weighed down by recent failures and fraying belief in the Azzurri project. His mandate has been spelled out in blunt terms: rebuild the national team, restore confidence, and lay foundations sturdy enough to carry Italy back to the top of the international game.
No easing-in period. No gentle start. His first big calls will define his era.
Malagò’s first moves
At the top of his in-tray sit two appointments that will shape the next decade: the new head coach and the new technical director. Those roles will decide not only who plays for Italy, but how Italy plays, what kind of footballing identity the country wants, and how talent is nurtured from youth level to the senior side.
This is where the story sharpens. Because one name has already surged to the front of the conversation.
Paolo Maldini.
According to Gazzetta and Corriere della Sera, Malagò’s camp has already made contact with the former Milan captain over a potential role as the Azzurri’s technical director. No fanfare, no official announcements yet, but the signal is unmistakable: the FIGC is sounding out one of the most respected figures in Italian football.
Maldini’s shadow over Coverciano
Maldini’s presence alone would change the mood around the national team. On the touchline at Empoli in October 2022, watching AC Milan from the stands at the Stadio Carlo Castellani, he looked what he has always been for Italian football: a reference point. A standard.
As a player, he embodied the Azzurri ideal – elegance, authority, tactical intelligence. As a club executive, he helped steer Milan back to the summit of Serie A, blending data, scouting, and old-school football instincts into a modern project.
That blend is exactly what Italy now craves.
A technical director Maldini would not simply be a symbolic appointment. It would be a statement of method. A bridge between the federation, the coach, and the clubs. A figure capable of speaking the language of the dressing room and the boardroom with the same ease.
A presidency with Olympic scale
Malagò is no stranger to big stages or long-term projects. As President of the Organising Committee for the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, he has already been operating on a scale that demands vision and political dexterity.
His appearance in Cortina d'Ampezzo back in March 2026, speaking at the mural inauguration at the Paralympic Village, underlined the breadth of his portfolio. Now that same strategic mindset is being asked to rescue the Azzurri.
From Olympic planning rooms to Coverciano’s training pitches, the through-line is clear: build structures, not stopgaps.
A new Italy taking shape
The debate around the new national setup is already intense. Who should coach? How radical should the reset be? Where does the balance lie between experience and youth?
Into that noise, Maldini’s name cuts cleanly. Legendary former captain. Proven football executive. A man who commands instant respect in any Italian dressing room.
His potential arrival as technical director would give the new coach – whoever that may be – a powerful ally and an uncompromising filter. It would also send a message to the country: Italy is willing to trust its biggest footballing figures with real responsibility, not just ceremonial roles.
Malagò wanted a clear mission. He has one. Now comes the hard part: turning a famous shirt and a fading aura into a coherent, modern national team – and deciding whether Paolo Maldini will be at the heart of that rebuild.
