Italy are playing at their sixth consecutive European Championship tournament this summer and will be hoping to improve on their group stage exit last time out at Euro 2017.

Women’s football in Italy was historically strong in the 1980s and 1990s, but is now starting to rise again. That upward trajectory will only be helped from next season onwards when Serie A turns fully professional and the overall standard of and competition within domestic football improves.

This is everything you need to know about Italy at Euro 2022 this summer…

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Italy didn’t win their qualifying group, finishing second behind Denmark after taking 25 points from 10 games overall. But it was still enough for an automatic place at Euro 2022.

As well as the nine qualifying group winners, the three best-performing runners-up also got guaranteed passage instead of having to go through the playoffs. Italy were among them.

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Italy were an early European powerhouse of women’s international football, consistently reaching the early continental championships, which were only four-team tournaments in those days. They also got to the final in both 1993 and 1997 but have yet to taste the ultimate glory.

Euro 1984: Semi-finals
Euro 1987: Third place
Euro 1989: Fourth place
Euro 1991: Fourth place
Euro 1993: Runners-up
Euro 1995: Did not qualify
Euro 1997: Runners-up
Euro 2001: Group stage
Euro 2005: Group stage
Euro 2009: Quarter-finals
Euro 2013: Quarter-finals
Euro 2017: Group stage

Italy’s international prowess began to fade in the late 1990s and they failed to qualify for four consecutive World Cups from 2003 to 2015. But they returned to the global stage in 2019 and impressed by topping a tough group and then winning a last 16 tie against China.

1991 World Cup: Quarter-finals
1995 World Cup: Did not qualify
1999 World Cup: Group stage
2003 World Cup: Did not qualify
2007 World Cup: Did not qualify
2011 World Cup: Did not qualify
2015 World Cup: Did not qualify
2019 World Cup: Quarter-finals

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For goals, Italy will be looking to 32-year-old Juventus star Cristiana Girelli, who has been a permanent fixture of tournament squads since 2013 and has scored almost a goal per game at club level over the last 17 years.

She has won Serie A with Bardolino, Brescia and Juve, while her record on the international stage is just as impressive. The 32-year-old has 46 goals in just 72 appearances for Italy, and she netted as many times in Euro 2022 qualifying (9) as Netherlands superstar Vivianne Miedema.

Italy generally have an older squad than most – all except four players are aged 24 or older – but keep an eye on 22-year-old midfielder Arianna Caruso. She plays her club football at Juventus and helped them to the Champions League quarter-finals at the expense of Chelsea in 2021/22.

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Italy coach Milena Bertolini was a legend as a player during the 1980s and 1990s and is one of only seven women in Italian football’s hall of fame.

She managed at club level in Italy for 15 years before being appointed by Le Azzurre in 2017 and oversaw the successful 2019 World Cup campaign, as Italy progressed to the knockout stages for the first time in 18 years.

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No country has played at more European Championship tournaments than Italy, who hold the joint record for appearances (12) with Norway. That is more than Germany, Sweden (both 11), Denmark (10) and England (9). They have also conceded most goals (67) in European Championship history – partly because they have been there so often.

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France vs Italy

Date & time: Sunday 10 July, 20:00 (BST)
Venue: New York Stadium
How to watch on TV: BBC Two (UK)

Italy vs Iceland

Date & time: Thursday 14 July, 17:00 (BST)
Venue: Academy Stadium
How to watch on TV: BBC Two (UK)

Italy vs Belgium

Date & time: Monday 18 July, 20:00 (BST)
Venue: Academy Stadium
How to watch on TV: BBC iPlayer (UK)

Having gradually improved over recent years, Italy will expect to qualify for the knockout stages at a Euro tournament for the first time since 2013. That is most likely to be as Group D runners-up behind France and would mean a quarter-final against the winners of Group C – potentially Sweden or the Netherlands

Victory in the last eight is not expected, but if Italy do upset the odds, that side of the knockout bracket would mean a semi-final encounter with likely England, Germany or Spain.

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Goalkeepers: Francesca Durante (Inter), Laura Giuliani (AC Milan), Katja Schroffenegger (Fiorentina).

Defenders: Elisa Bartoli (Roma), Valentina Bergamaschi (AC Milan), Lisa Boattin (Juventus), Lucia Di Guglielmo (Roma), Maria Luisa Filangeri (Sassuolo), Sara Gama (Juventus), Martina Lenzini (Juventus), Elena Linari (Roma).

Midfielders: Arianna Caruso (Juventus), Valentina Cernoia (Juventus), Aurora Galli (Everton), Manuela Giugliano (Roma), Martina Rosucci (Juventus), Flaminia Simonetti (Inter).

Forwards: Barbara Bonansea (Juventus), Agnese Bonfantini (Juventus), Valentina Giacinti (Fiorentina), Cristiana Girelli (Juventus), Martina Piemonte (AC Milan), Daniela Sabatino (Fiorentina).

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Italy will have enough about them to get the better of Belgium and Iceland to make it to the knockout stages. But how far they can go beyond that is going to be limited because of the quality of the opposition that will be up against them in the quarter-finals.

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