Luzzani/Aldo Liverani/Imagn Images
The first iPhone had not yet been released. Barack Obama had not yet been elected President of the United States. That’s how long it’s been since the Italian national soccer team played in a World Cup knockout game — which was actually the final of the 2006 World Cup, which the Azzurri won.
As for qualifying for the World Cup in general, it’s been 12 years since Italy played in the world’s biggest sports tournament, with their last game being against Uruguay in the 2014 group stage, when striker Luis Suarez famously bit defender Giorgio Chiellini. Donald Trump hadn’t even entered the world of politics yet — that’s how long it’s been.
Between 1978 and 2006, Italy reached the knockout stage of eight consecutive World Cups. They failed to make it past the group stage in both 2010 and 2014, and failed to qualify at all for the 2018, 2022, and 2026 tournaments.
Here is some context behind just how long it’s been since four-time champions Italy played in a World Cup knockout game
Italy have not played in a World Cup knockout match since the creation of the iPhone in January 2007.
— Colin Millar (@Millar_Colin) March 31, 2026
The last world cup game Italy played was Suarez biting Chiellini
— bob (@Robbie_OR) March 31, 2026
The last time Italy made the World Cup was the year Guardians of the Galaxy came out in theaters.
— Sickos Committee (@SickosCommittee) March 31, 2026
Here is a more extensive list of how the world has changed since the Italians last played in a World Cup knockout game:
— The iPhone was invented, released, and is now on its 18th generation
— Barack Obama was elected, served two full terms, and left office
— The entire Marvel Cinematic Universe was created
— Twitter was founded, went viral, nearly died, got bought by Elon Musk, and rebranded as X
— Italy won Euro 2020 (and still couldn’t qualify for the next World Cup)
— Four different popes have led the Catholic Church (Benedict XVI, Francis, and now Leo XIV)
— Kevin Durant was drafted by the Seattle Supersonics, who no longer exist, and has since built a Hall of Fame career over 18 seasons
— The entire run of Game of Thrones, from premiere to finale
— Snapchat, Instagram, TikTok, and ChatGPT were all invented
— Three different U.S. presidents have taken office
— The Chicago Cubs broke their 108-year World Series drought
— Lionel Messi went from a 19-year-old prospect to the greatest player of all-time
Instead of Italy, Bosnia and Herzegovina advanced to the World Cup final in North America and will compete in Group B alongside Canada, Switzerland, and Qatar.