Of the 224 matches played so far by all the Club Italia National Teams in the 2022/23 season, the one on 16 July in Ta ‘Qali will go down in history. With the 1-0 victory against Portugal, the Under 19 team brought the European title back to Italy 20 years after their last triumph. And thus ended the 2022/23 season for the men’s national teams with captain Giacomo Faticanti raising the cup to the skies of Malta. This long season which began last August with the first summer friendlies and culminated with the success of the U19 team and the second place of the Under 20s at the World Cup played in Argentina. These results came in addition to the Senior Team securing qualification to the Nations League Finals (third place in the Netherlands) and the Under 21s and Under 17s to the respective final phases of the Euros. The Women’s National Team, however, have yet to experience their most important point, as Milena Bertolini’s Azzurre are currently on duty at the World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.

In total, excluding the ongoing Women's World Cup, the Italian National Men’s and Women’s Teams for Football, Futsal and Beach Soccer teams have taken to the pitch on 224 occasions, with 121 victories (54%), 30 draws (13%) and 73 defeats (33%). The National 11-a-side teams played 153 matches, with 83 wins (54%), 22 draws (14%) and 48 defeats (32%), with 304 goals scored and 200 conceded.

YOUTH NATIONAL TEAMS. For the men’s youth teams, as mentioned, it has been a very significant season, with Italy being the only European country to have taken teams of all categories to the final stages of their respective competitions (for the Under-19 and Under-17, it was the fourth in a row, the best result in Europe).

“It has been an incredibly positive season in terms of both results and play - explained Maurizio Viscidi, Co-ordinator of the Men’s Youth National Teams - We achieved two great results within a month of each other: First, second place at the Under 20 World Cup, a feat never achieved before by Italy, then the victory of the Under 19 European Championship 20 years after the last title. The real disappointment lies with the Under 21s: Elimination in the group stage following two unfortunate matches, against France and Norway, where we did not play well. The overall balance, however, remains incredible: I have received compliments from colleagues from other federations for the work done over the years of players hindered by the pandemic. Nunziata, Bollini and Franceschini’s great work must be highlighted. Franceschini led the U18 group last year, now U19 champions, to the silver medal at the Mediterranean Games. But, above all, the work the players put in must be appreciated; it’s them who step onto the pitch.” 

The Youth teams, as always, represent a pool of selection for the Senior team. Five players have made their debuts under Roberto Mancini this season: Pasquale Mazzocchi is the exception, having never represented Italy at youth level, but the other four have worked their way up the ranks. Simone Pafundi collected 5 appearances in the Under 20s, 5 in the Under 17s and 1 in the Under 16s; Nicolò Fagioli, 7 in the Under 21s, 20 in the Under 19s, 14 in the Under 17s and 2 in the Under 15s; Andrea Pinamonti, 9 in the Under 21s, 11 in the Under 20s, 21 in the Under 19s, 16 in the Under 17s and 6 in the Under 16s and Under 15s; Fabio Miretti, finally, has made 5 appearances in the Under 21s, 13 in the Under 19s, 4 in the Under 17s, 11 in the Under 16s and 2 in the Under 15s. 

“This is an important aspect, also in terms of the continuity of call-ups,’ adds Viscidi. ‘Several players are establishing themselves from the Under 15s or Under 16s and are called-up year after year. We accompany them through their club work and that of Club Italia to grow, eventually facilitating their inclusion in the Senior Team, having already experienced the Coverciano atmosphere and understanding the importance of the Azzurri shirt.” 

WOMEN’S NATIONAL TEAMS. Excluding the ongoing World Cup taking place in Australia and New Zealand, the Women’s National Teams have played 50 matches in the 2022/23 season, with a tally of 23 victories, 7 draws and 20 defeats. In the 11 matches played by the Senior Women’s Team, they have collected 5 wins, 5 losses and 1 draw, whilst the Women’s Youth National Teams (Under 23, 19, 17 and 16) have played 39 matches, registering 18 victories, 6 draws and 15 defeats. Whilst the Senior National Team managed to secure passage to the World Cup, the Under 19s and 17s failed to qualify for the final phase of their respective European Championships. Both teams were eliminated in the second phase of qualification: Selena Mazzantini’s Under 19s suffered defeat in the final match against Austria (1-2) after comfortable victories against Greece (4-0) and Bosnia and Herzegovina (3-0). Jacopo Leandri’s Under 17 team finished in third place, behind France and Ireland, only keeping their place in the A-League of qualifications thanks to victory in the third and final match against Kosovo. The Under 23s and Under 16s engaged only in friendly matches this season, ending with a tally of 3 wins, 1 draw and 3 defeats for the Under 23s, and 5 wins and 2 defeats for the Under 16s.

Besides the missed qualification for the final phase of the Under 19 and Under 17 European Championships, the Women’s Youth National Teams have proven to be a valuable reservoir for Milena Bertolini’s national team, with many young players making their way to the senior national team. Three of them, amongst the youngest called up for the World Cup: Chiara Beccari, Giulia Draconi and Emma Severini. They are an expression of the work carried out by the Youth and Scholastic Sector of the FIGC through the Territorial Federal Centres where they were trained.  

“The synergy between club Italia and the Youth and Scholastic Sector is fundamental,’ underlined Enrico Sbardella, the UEFA Pro coach who, after managing more than 200 Under 19 and Under 17 Womens’ games, has become the Co-ordinator of the Women’s Youth National Teams from the Under 16s to the Under 19s. 

“The Federal Territorial Centres - Sbardella continued - allo girls to gain that crucial international experience which is vital for their growth. It is a winning path.” The priority is to build a valuable pool for the Senior Team: “It has been a year of great chances. The Youth Teams have changed coaches and staff and a rebalancing was necessary on both an organisational and technical level. We began on a path that could have been yielded better results, but we decided to prioritise the growth of the girls that we can now see as stars in the Senior Team. There is talent and there is a lot of it, even if we still have to grow in terms of numbers.” 

NATIONAL FUTSAL TEAMS. The Men’s and Women’s National Futsal teams took to the pitch on 39 occasions, with 18 victories (46%), 7 draws (18%) and 14 defeats (36%), which 115 goals scored and 99 conceded. 

The Men’s Under 19 National Team led by Massimiliano Bellarte have earned passage to the final phase of the European Championships in Porec, Croatia (3-10 September) by winning the group hosted by Italy in Policoro. A few days later, on the 15 September, the National A Team’s Elite Round of qualification for the 2024 Uzbekistan World Cup will begin: Italy are in a group with Spain, Slovenia and the Czech Republic.

NATIONAL BEACH SOCCER TEAM. The Men’s and Women’s National Beach Soccer teams played 32 matches, with a final tally of 20 victories (63%), one draw (3%) and 11 defeats (34%), with 142 goals scored and 93 conceded.

In Baku (Azerbaijan), the National Team led by Emiliano Del Luca, have recently secured their ticket to the final phase of the World Cup in Dubai, from 15 to 24 February.

eNATIONAL TEAMS. Last but not least, the exciting journey of the FIFA eNational Team (eSports), who reached the semi-finals of the FIFAe Nations Cup. For the Azzurri, it is the second consecutive semi-final in the world’s most prestigious national eFootball tournament. 

All the National Teams' Numbers from the 2022/23 Season

	Victory	Draw	Defeat	Total Matches	Average Points
Senior Men's Team	5	0	3	8	1,88
Under 21	3	1	4	8	1,25
Under 20	9	2	2	13	2,23
Under 19	9	3	3	15	2,00
Under 18	4	0	4	8	1,50
Under 17	9	2	5	16	1,81
Under 16	11	5	4	20	1,90
Under 15	10	2	3	15	2,13
Senior Women's Team	5	1	5	11	1,45
Under 23 F	6	2	3	11	1,82
Under 19 F	3	1	3	7	1,43
Under 17 F	4	3	7	14	1,07
Under 16 F	5	0	2	7	2,14
Futsal A	3	3	2	8	1,50
Futsal Under 19	8	1	9	18	1,39
Futsal A womens	7	3	3	13	1,85
Beach Soccer M	13	0	6	19	2,05
Beach Soccer F	7	1	5	13	1,69
Totale	121	30	73	224	1,75

Men's National Teams

	Victory	Draw	Defeat	Total Matches	Average Points
Senior Men's Team	5	0	3	8	1,88
Under 21	3	1	4	8	1,25
Under 20	9	2	2	13	2,23
Under 19	9	3	3	15	2,00
Under 18	4	0	4	8	1,50
Under 17	9	2	5	16	1,81
Under 16	11	5	4	20	1,90
Under 15	10	2	3	15	2,13
Total Mens 11-a-side	60	15	28	103	1,89

Women's National Teams

	Victory	Draw	Defeat	Total Matches	Average Points
Senior Women's Team	5	1	5	11	1,45
Under 23 F	6	2	3	11	1,82
Under 19 F	3	1	3	7	1,43
Under 17 F	4	3	7	14	1,07
Under 16 F	5	0	2	7	2,14
Total Women's 11-a-side	23	7	20	50	1,52

National Futsal Teams

	Victory	Draw	Defeat	Total Matches	Average Points
Futsal A	3	3	2	8	1,50
Futsal Under 19	8	1	9	18	1,39
Futsal A women	7	3	3	13	1,85
Futsal Total	18	7	14	39	1,56

National Beach Soccer Teams

	Victory	Draw	Defeat	Total Matches	Average Points
Beach Soccer Men	13	0	6	19	2,05
Beach Soccer Women	7	1	5	13	1,69
Totale Beach Soccer	20	1	11	32	1,91