Italy’s 64-year wait for a home victory over France ended in Milan on November 12, 2026, with a 21-year-old striker scoring twice. Francesco Pio Esposito helped turn an early deficit into a 3-1 Nations League win at San Siro, adding a personal milestone to a long-awaited national result.
The Italian federation’s official match report and Daniella Matar’s Associated Press report both confirm the remarkable home record. Italy had last beaten France on Italian soil in May 1962, in a friendly that finished 2-1 in Florence. Football Italia’s historical preview supplies that earlier score and setting.
Why the home venue matters
That location is central to the statistic. Italy had beaten France away in Paris in the 2024 Nations League. The long gap concerned home meetings. The Milan result therefore ended a particular run within the rivalry, giving the date and venue as much significance as the final margin.
The breakthrough initially looked some distance away. Michael Olise put France ahead in the 10th minute after Gianluigi Donnarumma lost possession while playing out from the back. Pio Esposito equalised in the 26th minute, finishing Nicolò Cambiaghi’s low delivery. The first half ended 1-1, leaving Italy’s opportunity to break the sequence unresolved.
Two brothers, two different penalties
DPA’s independent account records how a missed penalty made the second half more complicated. Sebastiano Esposito, Pio’s older brother, fired wide on the hour while the scores were level. Three minutes later, Davide Frattesi put Italy ahead from a Federico Dimarco assist. Italy had recovered from both conceding first and missing a chance from the spot.
When Italy received another penalty, the younger Esposito took it. His successful kick in the 75th minute completed the scoring and his two-goal performance. Susy Campanale’s Football Italia match report documents the contrasting penalties. The brothers had each taken one, with Pio converting after Sebastiano’s earlier miss.
Nine goals in fourteen appearances
Those two goals brought Pio’s senior international tally to nine in 14 appearances, according to the federation. AP independently confirms that tally and his age. He achieved it at the home ground of his club, Inter Milan, giving the night a familiar setting as well as an unusual historical backdrop.
The result also had an immediate competitive consequence. Italy and France finished the evening level on 10 points in their Nations League group, with Belgium one point behind. Italy moved into first place. A night framed by a result from 1962 thus mattered to the current campaign too: the two goals from Esposito helped change both a historical pattern and the present standings.
Sources and further reading
- FIGC: official Italy-France report
- Daniella Matar, Associated Press via Yahoo Sports
- DPA International via Yahoo Sports
- Susy Campanale, Football Italia via LiveScore: match report
- Peter Young, Football Italia via LiveScore: historical preview
