Italian soccer crisis worsens with Bologna and Fiorentina losses in Europe

ROME (AP) — First it was the Champions League. Then came the national team. Now it’s the Europa League and Conference League.

Italy’s soccer crisis is worsening with Bologna and Fiorentina risking European exits.

Bologna’s 3-1 loss to Aston Villa in the first leg of the Europa League quarterfinals and Fiorentina’s 3-0 defeat at Crystal Palace in the same stage of the Conference League make it likely that Italy won’t have any clubs in a European semifinal for the first time in seven years.

The latest losses came after Atalanta — the only Italian club to reach the Champions League round of 16 — was eliminated by a whopping 10-2 on aggregate by Bayern Munich last month.

Inter Milan — which was humiliated in a 5-0 rout by Paris Saint-Germain in last season’s final — and Juventus were eliminated by Bodø/Glimt and Galatasaray, respectively, in the Champions League playoffs.

Defending Serie A champion Napoli finished 30th in the 36-team league phase and didn’t even make the playoffs.

The only goal scored by an Italian club on Thursday came from Bologna’s English winger Jonathan Rowe.

“At this level experience counts and Aston Villa probably had more, as they made fewer mistakes and made the most of ours,” said Bologna winger Federico Bernardeschi.

Ollie Watkins completed a brace for Villa in stoppage time.

“The third goal changes everything for the return leg,” Bernardeschi said. “We can’t concede in the last minute of added time and that should teach us a lot. We need to grow.”

The difference was even greater between Palace and Fiorentina even though their positions in the Premier League (14th) and Serie A (15th) are similar.

The latest defeats came 10 days after Italy’s penalty shootout loss to Bosnia-Herzegovina meant that the four-time champion will miss a third consecutive World Cup.

Italian soccer federation president Gabriele Gravina and coach Gennaro Gattuso resigned after Italy’s loss.

The only Italian coaches who will take part in the World Cup in North America are in charge of Brazil (Carlo Ancelotti), Turkey (Vincenzo Montella) and Uzbekistan (Fabio Cannavaro).

Gravina is staying on in a caretaker role until elections in June and this week released a detailed report on the system-wide failure of Italian soccer.

Among Gravina’s findings are that with an average age of 27, Serie A has older players than the leagues in England, Germany, France, Netherlands, Portugal, Norway and Belgium.

The average ball speed of 7.6 meters per second in Serie A is drastically lower than the 9.2 average of Europe’s most important leagues and even further behind the 10.4 in the Champions League.

Italy’s problems include the lower divisions, with nearly 200 clubs excluded from their leagues for financial difficulties since 1986-87 and a total of 519 penalty points inflicted in the last 13 years.

Italy is also not among the top 10 European nations in terms of building or modernizing stadiums over the past two decades.

“For the good of Italian soccer, it’s more than evident that the only way to intervene is to do it in a radical manner … with fundamental support from the government,” Gravina said. “No single person can create a complete reconstruction.”

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

Bologna's Jonathan Rowe, left, and Aston Villa's Matty Cash in action during the Europa League soccer match between Bologna and Aston Villa in Bologna, Italy, Thursday April 9, 2026. (Massimo Paolone/LaPresse via AP)

Crystal Palace's Ismaila Sarr scores during the Europa Conference League first-leg quarter-final soccer match between Crystal Palace and Fiorentina in London, Thursday, April 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Ian Walton)

Fiorentina's Roberto Piccoli receives a yellow card during the Europa Conference League first-leg quarter-final soccer match between Crystal Palace and Fiorentina in London, Thursday, April 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Ian Walton)

Fiorentina's goalkeeper David de Gea stands among paper rolls thrown by fans during the Europa Conference League first-leg quarter-final soccer match between Crystal Palace and Fiorentina in London, Thursday, April 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Ian Walton)

A stairwell roof at a parking garage being built in Philadelphia collapsed suddenly, killing one person, while two others are missing and presumed dead, authorities said.

The section of roof at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia's garage fell Wednesday, triggering a “progressive collapse of connected sections across all seven levels,” Mayor Cherelle Parker told reporters.

“Let me be very clear about something at this moment: We are not, we will not give up on these individuals and we will not rest until everyone is accounted for from this tragedy,” she said.

By Thursday, she said search dogs hadn't found any signs of life at the collapse site.

Crews had initially rescued three people, including one who was critically injured and later died at the hospital, said Philadelphia Fire Commissioner Jeffrey Thompson. Two others were treated and released.

The building is unstable, so crews need to take it apart in order to search the entire structure, Thompson said.

“We’re actually going to deconstruct and de-layer this building, and that will make it safe for my members to get inside and get down to the lowest levels to ensure that we don’t have any survivors down there,” he said.

All of the project's required permits were properly issued and inspections were up to date, according to Parker. She said the city will investigate the collapse.

The hospital said in a statement that it is prioritizing the construction workers' safety and working closely with the city and its construction partners.

First responders gather near a partially collapsed parking garage in Philadelphia, Thursday, April 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)

First responders inspect a partially collapsed parking garage in Philadelphia, Thursday, April 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)

First responders walk near a partially collapsed parking garage in Philadelphia, Thursday, April 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)

First responders inspect a partially collapsed parking garage in Philadelphia, Thursday, April 9, 2026. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)

Damage is seen to a parking garage under construction after it collapsed on Wednesday, April 8, 2026, in Philadelphia. (WPVI-TV/6ABC via AP)