What’s going on with Italian football? After a dramatic penalty shootout loss to Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Italian team will be watching from home for the third straight World Cup. In this article for sports lovers, Xinhua News (China’s largest state media outlet) breaks down this historic collapse, and lists out which teams did make the cut for 2026.
Key vocab
无缘 – wúyuán – to miss out on; to be denied
晋级 – jìnjí – to advance; to qualify
点球大战 – diǎnqiú dàzhàn – penalty shootout
红牌罚下 – hóngpái fáxià – to be sent off with a red card
转折点 – zhuǎnzhédiǎn – turning point
攻势如潮 – gōngshì rú cháo – attacks coming in waves
扳平 – bānpíng – to equalize (the score)
加时赛 – jiāshísài – extra time; overtime
阔别 – kuòbié – to be separated for a long time
险胜 – xiǎnshèng – to narrowly win; to edge past
意大利再次无缘世界杯，连续三届缺席创历史
新华社柏林3月31日电（记者赵建通）整整三届，12年的时间，球迷无法在世界杯舞台见到意大利队。在31日进行的2026美加墨世界杯预选赛欧洲区附加赛决赛中，意大利队点球大战不敌波黑队，再次饮恨。
当天这场对决在波黑队主场进行。第15分钟，意大利队凭借基恩的进球取得领先，但中后卫巴斯托尼在第41分钟鲁莽铲球后被红牌罚下，成为本场的转折点。
少打一人的意大利队随后深度收缩阵型，但波黑队攻势如潮，塔巴科维奇在第79分钟将比分扳为1:1。双方在常规时间未分胜负，之后的加时赛也均无建树，比赛来到点球大战。意大利队的皮奥和克里斯坦特分别在第一轮和第三轮踢丢点球，随着波黑球员第四轮主罚命中，意大利队最终落败。
世界排名第12名的意大利队，历史上曾四次夺得世界杯冠军，最近一次是2006年。但如今，意大利队已经阔别世界杯许久，上一次他们出现在世界杯正赛还要追溯至2014年的巴西，那一届他们小组赛未能出线。
当天同样通过点球大战晋级的还有捷克队，他们与丹麦队在120分钟内战成2:2平。捷克队在点球大战中更胜一筹，拿到世界杯正赛门票。
瑞典队以3:2险胜波兰队晋级。双方上演了紧张的拉锯战，瑞典队两度领先，波兰队两度扳平。最终凭借哲凯赖什在第88分钟的补射破门，瑞典队挺进世界杯决赛圈。
土耳其队以1:0战胜科索沃队，锁定世界杯席位，阿克蒂尔科奥卢在第53分钟打入制胜球。
至此，世界杯预选赛欧洲区比赛全部结束，16个参赛席位各有归属。
2026美加墨世界杯将于6月11日至7月19日举行，共有48支队伍参赛。
Italy Misses World Cup Again, Making History with Three Consecutive Absences
BERLIN, March 31 (Xinhua) – For three full cycles, spanning 12 years, fans have been unable to see the Italian national team on the World Cup stage. In the UEFA playoff final for the 2026 FIFA World Cup held on March 31, Italy lost to Bosnia and Herzegovina in a penalty shootout, suffering heartbreak once again.
The match took place at Bosnia and Herzegovina’s home stadium. In the 15th minute, Italy took the lead through a goal by Kean, but center-back Bastoni was shown a red card for a reckless tackle in the 41st minute, marking the turning point of the match.
Down to ten men, Italy subsequently retreated into a deep defensive formation, but Bosnia and Herzegovina’s attacks came in waves. Tabakovic equalized to make it 1-1 in the 79th minute. Neither side could break the deadlock in regular time, and extra time also ended scoreless, sending the match to a penalty shootout. Italy’s Pio and Cristante missed their penalties in the first and third rounds respectively. When Bosnia and Herzegovina converted their fourth penalty, Italy’s fate was sealed.
Italy, ranked 12th in the world, has won the World Cup four times in history, most recently in 2006. However, Italy has now been absent from the World Cup for quite some time – their last appearance in the tournament finals dates back to Brazil 2014, where they failed to advance past the group stage.
The Czech Republic also advanced through a penalty shootout on the same day, after drawing 2-2 with Denmark over 120 minutes. The Czech Republic prevailed in the shootout to secure their World Cup finals ticket.
Sweden edged past Poland 3-2 to qualify. The two sides engaged in a tense back-and-forth battle, with Sweden taking the lead twice and Poland equalizing twice. Ultimately, Gyokeres’ follow-up goal in the 88th minute sent Sweden through to the World Cup finals.
Turkey defeated Kosovo 1-0 to secure their World Cup spot, with Akturkoğlu scoring the winning goal in the 53rd minute.
With this, all UEFA World Cup qualifying matches have concluded, with all 16 participating spots now determined.
The 2026 FIFA World Cup in the USA, Canada, and Mexico will be held from June 11 to July 19, featuring a total of 48 teams.