Dimarco and Italy teammates divide opinions after celebrating Bosnia penalty win
Federico Dimarco and a handful of his Italy teammates have divided opinions online after appearing to celebrate Bosnia and Herzegovina’s penalty victory shootout against Wales in their World Cup play-off semi-final on Thursday evening, with some accusing the Azzurri stars of being too ‘arrogant’.
Italy beat Northern Ireland 2-0 in Bergamo in their World Cup play-off semi-final on Thursday evening and will now go on to face Bosnia and Herzegovina in Zenica in the final on Tuesday night after Edin Dzeko and his compatriots beat Wales in a penalty shootout in Cardiff.
Italy stars accused of being too arrogant after Bosnia celebrations
Footage has emerged of a handful of Italy players including Dimarco, Guglielmo Vicario, Pio Esposito and a number of non-playing staff members celebrating Bosnia’s penalty shootout victory over Wales on Thursday evening, which happened just over half an hour after the game in Bergamo had come to an end.
The Italy representatives were seen pumping their fists as Kerim Alajbegović converted the winning spot kick, sealing a 4-2 victory in the shootout.
The reason behind the players’ celebrations is not entirely clear, but many feel that it is due to the fact that Italy will now face a lower-ranked opponent, given that Wales are currently 35th in the FIFA world rankings, while Bosnia and Herzegovina come in at 66th.
This theory has drawn some negative comments towards the Italy players, with some supporters accusing them of being too arrogant ahead of the play-off final away against Bosnia and Herzegovina on Tuesday night.
“Look at this disrespect and arrogance by Italy. They were already celebrating after we won penalties. We will take this to account in Zenica,” wrote the account named Bosnian Football on X.
Look at this disrespect and arrogance by Italy. They were already celebrating after we won penalties. We will take this to account in Zenica!pic.twitter.com/P8DCNvpb39
— Bosnian Football (@BosniaNTBall) March 27, 2026
“It’s not right to celebrate now. We celebrate on Tuesday. We need respect for Bosnia and for the opponent we still have to face. We have to stay focused, we never go in convinced that we’re stronger,” an Italian supporter wrote.
There have, of course, been other theories. Some suggest that the Italy players might have been relieved to not have to play away against Wales in Cardiff, while some claim that the Inter players spotted in the footage were simply pleased for their former teammate, Dzeko, and his colleagues.