Italian soccer president resigns

Italian football federation president Carlo Tavecchio resigned Monday, a week after the Azzurri failed to qualify for the World Cup.

The announcement came following calls for a complete overhaul of the nation’s most popular sport, from amateur leagues right up to Serie A and the national teams.

Sweden’s playoff win over Italy kept the four-time champion out of the World Cup for the first time in six decades.

The Azzurri finished second in their qualifying group behind Spain, then were beaten by Sweden 1-0 on aggregate.

Italy coach Gian Piero Ventura was fired two days after the loss.

Tavecchio initially resisted calls to step down, but he lost the support of the federation’s board of directors.

At a summit to address the failed qualification, Tavecchio told the board that political manoeuvres “have prevented us from discussing the reasons for this result,” according to the ANSA news agency.

“I’ve taken note that some of you have changed your stances,” Tavecchio added.

Former federation chief Giancarlo Abete said as he left the board meeting that a new election would be held within 90 days.

Abete said due process needs to be respected so a candidate “supported by the majority can be freely elected as the new president as soon as possible.

“We don’t want a leader who is left all alone,” Abete said.

A Gazzetta dello Sport poll showed 73 per cent of adults in Italy wanted Tavecchio to step down.

Former president Abete and former coach Cesare Prandelli both resigned after Italy’s first-round loss in the 2014 World Cup.

UEFA banned Tavecchio for six months after he made a reference to bananas when discussing the presence of foreign players in Italy.