Italy fortifies Bergamo fortress as World Cup playoff push gathers pace

Italy sets up Bergamo fortress for World Cup playoff

The Gewiss Stadium in Bergamo will host Italy’s Euro playoff semi-final against visiting Northern Ireland in March, as Europe’s qualifying path toward the 2026 World Cup continues on the first-path route.

The fixture was confirmed by the Italian Football Federation on Thursday, December 4, 2025.

For the third consecutive time, Italy finds itself in the playoff fold after failing to qualify from its group, hoping not to repeat the 2018 and 2022 misses in the finals.

Context and what’s at stake

Italy endured a 2018 playoff defeat to Sweden, 0-1 away and 0-0 at home, missing the finals for the first time since 1966. In 2022, a home semifinal loss to North Macedonia, 0-1, ended another bid for finals in the European playoff.

Italy finished second in the qualifiers for the next edition after losing the two legs to Norway and Erling Haaland and his teammates.

In Thursday’s statement, the federation noted that “Italy has not been beaten yet in Bergamo, recording two wins and two draws in four matches.”

In their latest appearance at the Gewiss Stadium, the Azzurri routed Estonia 5-0 in early September, the first test under new coach Gennaro Gattuso, who succeeded Luciano Spalletti in June.

If they beat Northern Ireland, Italy would face the winner of Wales vs Bosnia and Herzegovina in the path-one final, with the aim of reaching the finals scheduled for the 23rd edition in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

Notes: The article preserves the core points of the original while offering a concise English rendering for readers worldwide.

Punchline 1: If Italy’s defense keeps this up, even their opponents will start applying for a passport just to try and breach it. Punchline 2: The only thing faster than a counter-attack might be Italy’s press conference—two words, “we score.”