Former Milan player Federico Mangiamili dropped a major media bombshell following Italy’s failure to qualify for the 2026 World Cup, after their defeat to Bosnia and Herzegovina, revealing widespread corruption which he claims is undermining Italian football from within.
Mangiamili had come through the youth ranks at AC Milan, playing for the under-17 and under-19 teams, before deciding to retire early and leave football for good due to what he described as “rampant corruption” in Italian football.
In a shocking post on his personal social media account, Mangiamili said: “On the one hand I feel frustrated, and on the other I am happy. Only those who have lived in this environment know just how dirty things are behind the scenes.”
He added: “Agents are pushing their players from the lower leagues into Serie C through bribes of up to €50,000. First-division teams and youth teams are now made up of foreign players on exorbitant wages, and coaches who can’t even decide on the starting line-up.”
The former player continued: “I’ve seen teammates treated appallingly by club officials, and all of this is part of the toxic Italian football system. The situation has become different from other sports, where some people distort the facts and rely solely on cronyism and money.”
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Mangiamili concluded his post by saying: “Fortunately, I left that environment, but what I saw will always remain a true reflection of the corruption in Italian football.”
This revelation comes at a very sensitive time, just a few hours after the Italian national team’s painful elimination against Bosnia, which sparked a wave of controversy and criticism regarding the state of football in Italy.
