Italy have qualified for EURO 2024 and will have four friendly tests in the build-up to the tournament, with suggestions one could be played in the United States against a South American team.
The Azzurri booked their spot in the competition, which will be played in Germany next summer, and are placed in a group with Spain, Croatia and Albania.
There will be two slots for pre-tournament friendly matches, allowing for them to be played in March 2024 and then just before the June 14 kick-off.
According to La Gazzetta dello Sport and Tuttomercatoweb, the FIGC and coach Luciano Spalletti are hoping to make the opponents as tough as possible to act as genuine tests for this relatively new squad, as the CT only took over from Roberto Mancini in September.
Possible opponents include Austria, Serbia, Hungary, Scotland and Czechia.
More intriguing still is the suggestion Italy could play one friendly in the United States against a team from South America, as it would allow the Federation to bring in a large cash sum with considerably more fans than they’d be likely to get in Europe.
The dates for those games would likely be between May 27 and June 10, with the opening game of the tournament against Albania in Dortmund on June 15.