MILAN — When thinking of Italy in the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics, the national hockey team is rarely the first to come to mind.
Despite being the home team, The team concluded its 2026 Olympic experience with a 3–0 loss to Switzerland, a disappointing but somewhat expected finish.
Dating back to its first Olympic appearance in 1938, this marked just the 10th time the Italian men’s hockey team competed in the Games.
Each tournament features 12 countries, and Italy has never finished higher than seventh. In the past two Olympic appearances, Italy qualified only as the host nation — first in Turin in 2006 and again in 2026 — entering this year as the 18th-ranked team and surpassing stronger hockey markets, including Austria and Norway.
Italy competed in Group B, where it faced strong competition in Slovakia, Sweden and Finland before being eliminated by Switzerland in its only playoff game. The Italians lost all three round-robin matchups, scoring just four goals while allowing 19.
Near the historic Arch of Peace in Piazza Sempione in Milan, one of the Games’ two Olympic fan villages provides a gathering place for international supporters, with food stands, interactive exhibits, and a large outdoor screen broadcasting events.
Italian fans were recently interviewed to gather perspectives on the national hockey team and to find out which teams they were now supporting among the eight remaining quarterfinalists.
One of the first people interviewed was Enrico Pasquotti, who's traveled across Northern Italy to attend multiple events. He described what it meant to have the Games in his home country.
"Well, it’s emotional," Pasquotti said. "When there are athletes competing for Italy, I felt really proud, especially at the beginning of the Games."
Pasquotti said he wished the team would have performed better.
"I hoped that they wouldn’t finish last, but probably they did," Pasquotti said. "Even though yesterday I saw that the game against Switzerland was not that bad compared to the one against Finland, where they lost by more than ten goals."
Pasquotti also shared which teams he is cheering for now that Italy is out of contention.
"I’m cheering for Canada and Finland," he said. "I know that for Canada the Games have not gone well in terms of meeting expectations, so I hope they will accomplish what they are hoping for. And Finland beat Italy 12–0 or something — they deserve it."
Matteo Grigoletto, recognizable in his white Italian jacket, was more blunt in his assessment of Italy’s hockey team.
While Italy has experienced success in sports such as skiing and speed skating, Grigoletto emphasized that hockey “just isn’t their sport.”
"It’s just not for us, right? I think we’re only here — we have a team because we’re the hosting country," Grigoletto said. "I don’t think we would have made it through the qualifiers and stuff. There’s literally no vibe here. I’m really sorry to say that."
He also correctly noted that the absence of NHL players on the Italian roster was a clear indicator the team would face an uneven level of competition, as every other country — including France, which also finished 0–4 — featured players with NHL experience.
Moving forward, Grigoletto said he was cheering for Canada to win it all. He explained that he might have leaned toward Sweden or Finland as European teams, but between Canada and the United States, which he expects to meet in the final, he chose Canada.
“I just don’t like the U.S.," he said.
Alice Benassi, a Milan native working in social media for the Olympics, said hosting the Games has helped shine a spotlight on sports that traditionally do not receive much fan attention in Italy, including hockey. She said the increased visibility has been positive and expressed hope that Italy will host similar events again in the future.
Although Italian, Benassi said her hockey allegiance lies elsewhere.
“I’m Italian, but I cheer for the U.S.,” Benassi said. “I think it’s cool that there’s that distinction — fans who aren’t from here supporting teams, and locals supporting their own.”
When asked which team she is supporting among those remaining, her answer was immediate.
“USA, of course,” she said. “I like the U.S. a lot. I’d like to move there one day. It’s tricky, but I like it a lot.”
With these fans — and many others who were interviewed — it appears that many Italians are now adopting Canada as the team they hope will take home the gold medal this Sunday, Feb. 22.
This year's Olympic Games have given Italians the opportunity to rally behind athletes from across the country.
While the national hockey team is still working to establish itself on the international stage, Italy found significant success overall at the Games, finishing with 26 medals, including nine gold. T
he total marked a national winter record for both gold medals and in overall medals, surpassing the 20 medals won in 1994.
As winter sports continue to grow in Italy with more athletes competing each year, the hockey program is still developing and searching for its breakthrough moment on the Olympic stage.