Italy’s Head of Delegation and football legend Gianluigi Buffon has strongly criticised the people in charge of Italian football. In an interview with Gazzetta dello Sport, he stated that Italian football is in crisis due to years of poor planning and because politicians prioritise short-term results over long-term goals.

Buffon spoke about his famous warning after the 2010 World Cup, when he said Italy would soon be celebrating just qualifying for tournaments instead of winning them. He explained that he saw problems early and that Italy was not adapting fast enough. He said he wanted people to stop pretending everything was fine when it wasn’t.

Buffon said Italy is stuck in the past, while other countries, such as France and Spain, have modernised and remained strong for many years. He said Italy became too proud of its old stars like Buffon, Cannavaro, and Totti, and believed success would last forever. Because of this, Italy did not update its football systems, tactics, or youth development.

He blamed a lack of long-term planning. Buffon said real change requires brave decisions, but politicians focus only on getting votes and pleasing people right now. They do not support deep reforms that take time.

Buffon ended the interview with a serious warning. He said that if Italy does not fix these problems with patience and stability, nothing will improve. He predicted that in ten years, someone else would give the same interview, talking about the same issues.