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Italy was crowned the champions of the Fifa World Cup 2006 in Germany. Earlier, for a long time the Italian football scenario was mired in controversy as some of the top clubs of Italy were involved in match-fixing. This was the fourth time the Azurri, as the Italian team is popularly known as, lifted the crown. They had previously won this title in 1934, 1938 and 1982.
Italy was placed in Group E along with Ghana, USA and the Czech Republic. They started their campaign against Ghana posting a 2-0 win over the African Giants. However, this was followed by a lackluster performance against the USA, where they could only manage a 1-1 draw. De Rossi of Italy earned himself a ban of four matches for elbowing Brian McBride in a match which saw as many as three red cards. The three-time champions came back strongly to top the group with a 2-0 victory over the mighty Czech Republic.
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In the second round, Italy overwhelmed Australia by a solitary goal. Fransesco Totti scored the solitary goal after Italy was awarded a controversial penalty in stoppage time. The Azurri then overwhelmed Ukraine 3-0 in the quarter-final to set up a semi-final clash against the hosts Germany. The semi-final match was probably the best match of the 2006 World Cup, with Italy emerging victorious by a margin of 2-0. Incidentally both the goals came in the last two minutes of extra time.
The final between Italy and France will always be remembered for the infamous head butt incident, which saw the legendary Zinedine Zidane being sent off in his final international appearance. France opened the scoring through Zidane while Materazzi restored parity for the Italians. The match remained locked at 1-1 and went onto penalties. As Gennaro Grosso calmly placed the ball in the net Italy erupted in joy as they beat France 5-3 on penalties. Gianluca Buffon was adjudged the best goalkeeper of the 2006 World Cup and was honored with the Lev Yashin award.
Italian Soccer Team General Information
Country - Italy
Capital City - Rome
Continent - Europe
Manager - Marcello Lippi
Captain - Fabio Cannavaro
Star Man - Luca Toni
Italian Soccer Team History
Founded 1898
WC participations 15 (1934, 1938, 1950, 1954, 1962, 1966, 1970, 1974, 1978, 1982, 1986, 1990, 1994, 1998, 2002, 2006)
WC honours World champions (1934, 1938, 1982, 2006)
Continental Titles European champions (1968)
First International: Italy 6 - 2 France (Milan, Italy; 15 May 1910)
Largest win: Italy 9 - 0 USA (Brentford, England; 2 August 1948)
Worst defeat: Hungary 7 - 1 Italy (Budapest, Hungary; 6 April 1924)
European Championship
Appearances: 6 (First in 1968) Best result Winners, 1968
World Cup Record:
| Year | Host | Performance |
| 1930 | Uruguay | - |
| 1934 | Italy | Winners |
| 1938 | France | Winners |
| 1950 | Brazil | Second, Pool Three |
| 1954 | Switzerland | Group Four Play Off |
| 1958 | Sweden | - |
| 1962 | Chile | Third, Group Two |
| 1966 | England | Third, Group Four |
| 1970 | Mexico | Runners up |
| 1974 | West Germany | Third, Group Four |
| 1978 | Argentina | Fourth place |
| 1982 | Spain | Winners |
| 1986 | Mexico | Second Round (last 16) |
| 1990 | Italy | Third place |
| 1994 | U.S.A. | Runners up |
| 1998 | France | Quarter finals |
| 2002 | S.Korea/Japan | Second Round (last 16) |
| 2006 | Germany | Winners |
ITALY Football Team for 2006 FIFA World Cup
Coach:
Marcello Lippi
Goalkeepers:
Gianluigi Buffon, Angelo Peruzzi, Marco Amelia.
Defenders:
Cristian Zaccardo, Fabio Grosso, Fabio Cannavaro, Andrea Barzagli, Alessandro Nesta, Gianluca Zambrotta, Massimo Oddo, Marco Materazzi.
Midfielders:
Daniele De Rossi, Gennaro Gattuso, Francesco Totti, Mauro German Camoranesi, Simone Barone, Simone Perrotta, Andrea Pirlo.
Forwards:
Alessandro Del Piero, Luca Toni, Alberto Gilardino, Vincenzo Iaquinta, Filippo Inzaghi.
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The team is known as 'Azzuri'
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| Jersey No. | Name of the Player |
| 1 | Gianluigi Buffon |
| 2 | Cristian Zaccardo |
| 3 | Fabio Grosso |
| 4 | Daniele De Rossi |
| 5 | Fabio Cannavaro |
| 6 | Andrea Barzagli |
| 7 | Alessandro Del Piero |
| 8 | Gennaro Gattuso |
| 9 | Luca Toni |
| 10 | Francesco Totti |
| 11 | Alberto Gilardino |
| 12 | Angelo Peruzzi |
| 13 | Alessandro Nesta |
| 14 | Marco Amelia |
| 15 | Vincenzo Iaquinta |
| 16 | Mauro German Camoranesi |
| 17 | Simone Barone |
| 18 | Filippo Inzaghi |
| 19 | Gianluca Zambrotta |
| 20 | Simone Perrotta |
| 21 | Andrea Pirlo |
| 22 | Massimo Oddo |
| 23 | Marco Materazzi |
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