Italy's World Cup drought extends to three tournaments after a devastating 4-1 penalty shootout defeat to Bosnia and Herzegovina. The 1-1 draw in Zenica ended Italy's qualification hopes for 2026.
Four-time champions Italy, who last qualified in 2014, saw Moise Kean open scoring in the 15th minute. However, Alessandro Bastoni's red card before halftime shifted momentum to Bosnia, who equalized through Haris Tabakovic with 11 minutes remaining.
Italy's penalty misses by Pio Esposito and Bryan Cristante proved costly. Bosnia will join Canada, Qatar and Switzerland in Group B. Italy becomes the only World Cup winner to miss three consecutive finals since 1958.
Italy coach Gennaro Gattuso watched helplessly as his team's World Cup dreams evaporated. The Azzurri managed just one victory across the last three tournaments after winning in 2006.