• Italy misses the World Cup for the third consecutive time after losing to Bosnia on penalties.
• Moise Kean scored Italy's only goal before they were reduced to ten men.
• Bosnia's Haris Tabakovic equalized, leading to a penalty shootout victory.
• Italy's failure marks a historic low for the four-time champions.
• Bosnia secures their place in Group B of the World Cup, joining Canada, Qatar, and Switzerland.

Italy’s agonizing World Cup absence extends as they fell to Bosnia and Herzegovina in the qualification play-off final held on March 31. After finishing the match at 1-1, Bosnia triumphed 4-1 in the penalty shootout held in Zenica, which means the four-time champions will miss their third straight World Cup, a historical first for the team, who last competed in 2014 according to Al Jazeera, Reuters, Le Monde, Channel News Asia, and SCMP.

The match began with Italy taking an early lead through Moise Kean's goal in the 15th minute. However, disaster struck just before halftime when Alessandro Bastoni was sent off for a major foul, leaving Italy to play with ten men. Despite their numerical disadvantage, the Italians managed to hold on until the closing stages when Haris Tabakovic found the equalizer for Bosnia in the 79th minute, forcing the match into extra time according to Reuters, Le Monde, and SCMP.

Ultimately, the match was decided by a penalty shootout where Italy faltered significantly. Pio Esposito missed the first penalty, blasting it over, while Bryan Cristante’s shot hit the crossbar. Bosnia, on the other hand, capitalized on their chances, with Esmir Bajraktarevic successfully scoring the decisive kick, sending their fans into a frenzy and marking their second World Cup appearance, first since 2014 according to Al Jazeera, Le Monde, and Channel News Asia.

Italy’s coach Gennaro Gattuso expressed his pride in the team's effort despite the disappointing result, stating, “I don’t think the boys deserved to suffer such a blow," responding to the intense disappointment following their elimination. Gattuso noted that discussions regarding his future were not important at the moment, supported by Gabriele Gravina from the Italian Football Federation urging him to remain in his role following this historic loss according to Channel News Asia and SCMP.