Andrea Pirlo's coronation as the new coach of Italy looked all but done a day ago. By Saturday, ONE reports, it had been put on ice by the federation's own president over the World Cup-winning midfielder's commercial ties to a Russian betting company.

According to the report, FIGC president Giovanni Malagò moved to suspend sign-off on Pirlo's appointment after it emerged the former Juventus and Milan playmaker is a paid global ambassador for Fonbet, one of Russia's largest bookmakers, a role he has held since October 2025.

The issue is not the gambling sponsorship in isolation — Italian regulations already bar national-team figures from any betting-industry advertising, direct or indirect, and that clause alone would require Pirlo to sever the tie before taking the job. What has escalated the story into a political affair is Fonbet's nationality, given Italy's continued diplomatic freeze with Moscow since Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

Pirlo reportedly attended a Fonbet promotional event in Moscow as part of the ambassadorship, a detail that Italian outlets say has amplified domestic criticism of the timing and optics of his prospective appointment.

ONE's report notes that Pirlo's legal team frames the Fonbet arrangement as a byproduct of his current coaching job in the United Arab Emirates rather than a standalone deal — pointing out that the club's owner, Sergey Lomakhin, holds substantial interests in the betting company, and arguing that ending Pirlo's Emirati contract would automatically dissolve the sponsorship with it.

Pirlo is said to be seeking a direct meeting with Malagò to explain his position, but the federation has signalled it does not intend to negotiate terms with a coach still under contract elsewhere — leaving the timeline for any resolution unclear.

The appointment had been driven not by Malagò himself but by technical director Paolo Maldini and advisor Leonardo, who according to Italian media pushed for Pirlo once Pep Guardiola turned down approaches to take over the Azzurri. Malagò, elected FIGC president in June after Gabriele Gravina resigned in the wake of Italy's failure to qualify for the 2026 World Cup, had reportedly leaned toward Roberto Mancini before deferring to his technical staff.

Reports in the Italian press this week had Pirlo signing a deal running to 2030, worth roughly €1.5 million a year with bonuses tied to qualifying for the European Championship, reaching the knockout rounds, and qualifying for the World Cup — terms that were expected to be ratified at an FIGC council meeting scheduled for Tuesday, July 28.

That meeting's outcome is now in doubt. Politically, the affair has drawn in figures well beyond football: European Parliament vice-president Pina Picierno has publicly accused Pirlo of lending his prestige to an effort to normalise the Kremlin internationally, according to Italian reporting cited alongside ONE's account.

For now, Italy remains without a permanent coach as it looks toward the next World Cup cycle, with Pirlo's candidacy paused rather than withdrawn — and Maldini and Leonardo still said to be backing him as their first choice once the Fonbet question is resolved.