Paolo Maldini named FIGC technical director and Club Italia president

Paolo Maldini has agreed to become the Italian Football Federation’s new technical director and president of Club Italia, the FIGC announced Monday.

Maldini, the former AC Milan captain, accepted an unprecedented offer from FIGC president Giovanni Malagò. The role combines oversight of the senior national team’s coaching search with management of the entire youth supply chain. Leonardo, the Brazilian icon, will serve as Maldini’s advisor. Malagò told Tg2 the pair form “two sides of the same coin” and share a four-year commitment through the 2030 World Cup, including the next European Championship.

At 57, Maldini steps into a job that stretches beyond the Azzurri’s first team. He will shape the technical direction of every Italian youth side and help pick the next head coach. Malagò said the projects were finalized in two weeks and that Maldini immediately proposed bringing Leonardo aboard for the heavy workload ahead. The president added he had always viewed Maldini as the ideal candidate to run the federation’s technical department.

Maldini’s tenure begins immediately. The first major task is selecting the next Italy manager, a process Malagò said will be a shared decision. The federation’s stated goal is to build a cohesive blueprint from youth ranks to the senior side, with Maldini and Leonardo overseeing every rung. Malagò framed the mandate as a four-year cycle that ends at the 2030 World Cup.