2022 in Italy

Incumbents

• President: Sergio Mattarella
• Prime Minister: Mario Draghi, Giorgia Meloni

Events

Ongoing

• COVID-19 pandemic in Italy
• Protests over [COVID-19 policies in Italy]

January

• 1 January – Despite a public ban on the use of New Year's barrels, 14 people across Italy were seriously injured due to unauthorized fireworks.
• 3 January – A 40-year-old woman drowns her son in the sea off Torre del Greco.
• 8 January
• * The Scala dei Turchi monument in Agrigento, is vandalized.
• * Serie A announces the closure of football stadiums with a capacity of over 5,000 due to the spread of the Omicron variant.
• 13 January – The tenth anniversary of the sinking of the Costa Concordia, in which 32 people died.
• 15 January – In Turin, a man knocks a child off a balcony while playing a game with her, resulting in her death
• 16 January – Electric bicycle sales rose significantly in Naples, reportedly reaching 15,000 units in a single day.
• 17 January
• * Following the spread of the Omicron variant, the Aosta Valley is put in the orange zone.
• * An egalitarian marriage committee is created to speed up the approval process for same-sex marriage in Italy.
• 19 January
• * A man from Viareggio suffering from psychological disorders barricades himself at home with his elderly father and is arrested for attempted murder of a firefighter.
• * Interior Minister Luciana Lamorgese signs a security pact against crime in Naples.
• 20 January
• * A family from Syria with serious physical disabilities is taken to Siena to be cared for by Caritas.
• * The Royal Palace of Caserta celebrates the 270th anniversary of the start of its construction.
• 21 January
• * Construction work begins on the new Salerno Airport, which will be completed by 2024.
• * The 40th anniversary of the Italian debut of the Japanese cartoon Tiger Mask.
• * The European Court of Human Rights condemned Italy for having separated a mother from her daughter in the city of Brescia.
• 22 January
• * Silvio Berlusconi withdrew his candidacy a few days before the presidential election.
• * In Taranto, a man injures 2 officers who were chasing his car.
• * An 18-year-old boy dies while working as an intern in Udine.
• * Twenty-three people are arrested between Apulia and Calabria for participating in international drug dealing from Turkey and the Netherlands.
• * Starbucks closes its stores in Milan.
• * A few dozen people protest in Milan against vaccines and green passes.
• 23 January
• * In Brescia, an accident between a car and a bus kills 5 young people.
• * A survey is released naming Milan the most expensive city in Italy, with the cost of food 47% higher than in Naples. Naples, Palermo, and Pescara are named the cheapest cities.
• 24 January
• * The 2022 Italian presidential election occurs.
• * Following the spread of COVID-19, the Health Minister Roberto Speranza signs an ordinance that puts Piedmont, Sicily, and Friuli in the orange zone, while Apulia and Sardinia are put in the yellow zone.
• 26 January
• * A 12-year-old Jewish student in Livorno reported being assaulted by a group of peers, an incident condemned by the Minister of Education, Patrizio Bianchi.
• * The houses of illegal IPTV broadcasters, who provided free viewing of Sky channels, DAZN and films, are searched in the regions of Calabria, Campania, Emilia-Romagna and Tuscany.
• * The financial police confiscate 50 smartphones and shut down an illegal service where Sky's paid service was broadcast completely free of charge.
• 28 January – In Ostia, a girl denounces her parents to the Carabinieri.
• 29 January – Sergio Mattarella is re-elected as President for a second term.
• 30 January – A fire in an apartment in Reggio Emilia kills two children.

February

• 1–5 February – The Sanremo Music Festival 2022 takes place in Sanremo.
• 1 February
• * Russian president Vladimir Putin speaks by phone with Prime Minister Mario Draghi seeking reassurances on gas supplies for Italy.
• * In the city of Agrigento, a policeman kills his son with a service pistol.
• * In Cagliari, a newborn is hit by a hijacker in front of his mother; the man is later sentenced.
• 2 February
• * In Rome, a group of activists vandalizes the headquarters of the Ministry of Ecological Transition.
• * In Grumo Nevano, Naples, a man strangles a 23-year-old woman to death; He was arrested afterwards.
• 3 February – Sergio Mattarella is sworn in as President of Italy, starting his second term.
• 5 February
• * Milan is classified as a Major European city, with a total of 20 skyscrapers.
• * CBS broadcasts the Derby di Milano to promote football in the United States. The match was broadcast live from San Siro.
• 8 February
• * Carabinieri search a Roma camp in Giugliano, Naples, finding ultra-light aircraft engines stolen the night before.
• * In Como, an elderly woman who had died two years earlier is found by the police sitting on a chair in a state of complete decomposition.
• 9 February – Following an investigation into corruption in Salerno, five people are arrested, including the PM Roberto Penna.
• 11 February – Mount Etna erupts during the night.
• 15 February – A man from Rome finds a note inside a COVID-19 mask, allegedly written by an African slave in China. However, there is no evidence to confirm its authenticity.
• 18 February
• *In Turin, during a demonstration for the protection of young interns, a group of students attacks the confindustria building and throws eggs at the police; seven injuries are recorded.
• * A ship traveling between Italy and Greece is damaged by a fire.
• 19 February – Protesters consisting mainly of university students and activists protest the Green Pass in Milan.
• 24 February – Prime Minister Mario Draghi and Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio condemn Russia following its invasion of Ukraine.
• 27 February
• * Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Prime Minister Mario Draghi announces that Italy aligns itself with the harsh sanctions during the Russian invasion of Ukraine|sanctions] of the European Union against Russia.
• * The Italian government closes its airspace to Russian planes.
• 28 February
• * The first Ukrainian refugees arrive, mostly by bus, at Italian cities such as Trieste, Milan, Rome and Naples.
• * The Italian government sends weapons and equipment to Ukraine, while Italian soldiers are positioned in Romania alongside other NATO forces.

March

• 1 March
• * Prime Minister Mario Draghi announces the reopening of coal factories due to the ongoing gas crisis.
• * The 40th anniversary of the first broadcast of Lady Oscar is commemorated.
• * The Italian embassy in Ukraine is moved from Kyiv to Lviv for security reasons.
• 5 March – A demonstration against the war in Ukraine is held in Rome with over 50,000 people taking part; some demonstrators protest against NATO.
• 6 March – The police seize villas, yachts and luxury goods from Russian oligarchs present in Italy following the economic sanctions imposed on Russia after the invasion of Ukraine.
• 7 March – Due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the prices of wheat and gasoline rise throughout Italy and Europe.
• 12 March – Foreign Minister Luigi di Maio visits Angola and the Republic of the Congo to find new agreements on gas supplies to Italy.
• 16 March
• * In Vicenza, a 25-year-old man kills his parents to steal their money and investments.
• * Schools in Somma Vesuviana, Naples, welcome Ukrainian children who have escaped from the war.
• 17 March – The 161st anniversary of Italian unification is commemorated.
• 24 March – The Italy national football team failed to qualify for the FIFA World Cup for the second consecutive time after Russia 2018, losing 1–0 in the playoff match against North Macedonia in Palermo.
• 29 March – Mario Draghi visits the city of Naples, where protestors demonstrate against unemployment and COVID-19 vaccinations.
• 30 March – Mario Draghi and Russian president Vladimir Putin discuss peace in Ukraine.
• 31 March
• * The state of emergency related to the COVID-19 pandemic officially ends.
• * A storm in Palermo damages buildings in the city.

April

• 1 April
• * A bill that would legalize same-sex marriage in Italy is presented for the first time in the Senate.
• * After a year, the parliamentary commission closes the Denise Pipitone case, ending without progress.
• 3 April – Bari Calcio returns to Serie B after 5 years.
• 5 April – Thirteen earthquakes are recorded in the Phlegraean Fields.
• 11 April – Catania Calcio is expelled from the Serie C championship and declares total bankruptcy.
• 16 April – Mario Draghi and Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio travel to Angola for an agreement on the import of gas.
• 17 April
• * An attack in Piazza San Carlo near the Diego Armando Maradona stadium in Naples kills a 25-year-old man.
• * Numerous attacks take place in Trieste and Trento; a 14-year-old boy is seriously injured in a stabbing.
• 18 April – During the Napoli-Roma football match, 91 cars are seized, 135 reports are made, and 27 squatters are apprehended.
• 21 April – Foreign minister Luigi Di Maio signs an agreement for gas supplies to Italy with the Republic of the Congo.
• 24 April
• * For the first time in the history of Italian football, a team from Trentino Alto Adige, Is Südtirol, lands in Serie B.
• * Modena F.C returns to Serie B.
• 25 April: Liberation Day
• * A brawl occurs between "baby gangs" in Naples, reflecting the growing problem of "baby gangs" in main Italian cities such as Naples and Milan.
• * Crotone Calcio definitively collapses, ending a cycle of alternating between Serie A and Serie B, and returns to Serie C after 13 years.
• * The secretary of the PD Enrico Letta is harshly contested by a far-left group that calls for Italy to leave NATO.
• 27 April
• * In Nola, Caritas welcomes around 120 Ukrainians who fled the war.
• 28 April
• * A 60-year-old bartender from Pesaro is sentenced to three years in prison for pedophilia.
• * Football prosecutor Mino Raiola is hospitalized urgently for lung disease; rumors about his death begin to circulate and are immediately denied.
• 30 April
• * The court of cassation canceled the acquittal of Simone Pillon; after 6 years, the Senator of the Lega will return to trial for homophobic discrimination.
• * Reports are made that, according to a former Russian minister, Russia is preparing an attack on the NATO countries and a target to hit would be in Aviano.
• * After two days of speculation, the death of Mino Raiola is announced by his family.

May

• 1 May
• *The government lifts all major restrictions against COVID-19 except for mask requirements.
• * Some owners of a fishmonger in Naples are attacked while opening the shop.
• * Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov threatens Italy, saying it would be in the front row against Russia.
• 2 May – The Roman rock group Måneskin joins the Spotify Billions club.
• 4 May
• * A woman from Macerata is brutally beaten by her husband after he discovers her divorce intentions.
• * The Samarate massacre occurs.
• * Postal police and Save the Children recommend greater attention to online games, as pedophile victims have risen 47% across Italy.
• * Car thefts occur in Somma Vesuviana, with the carabinieri arresting two people.
• 5 May
• * In Milan, a 90-year-old woman is robbed by thieves who had offered to help her with an ATM.
• * Roma becomes the first Italian team to reach the UEFA Conference League final.
• 6 May
• * Cremonese returns to Serie A after 26 years.
• * Lecce returns to Serie A after two years.
• 7 May
• * Dimitri Roveri, a provincial footballer for Mantova 1911, dies on the pitch following a cardiac arrest.
• * The dead body of a boy is found in Milan.
• * An illegal Labrador puppy mill in the city of Sessa Aurunca is closed.
• 8 May
• * A man from Somma Vesuviana manages to escape from a robbery attempt while thieves shoot at his car.
• * In the city of Alessandria, a lesbian woman is beaten and sent to the emergency room.
• * San Donato Tavarnelle arrives in Serie C for the first time. Its promotion confirms the best period for the provincial teams since 2010.
• 10–14 May – Eurovision Song Contest 2022 is held in Turin, and won by Ukrainian folk rap group Kalush Orchestra with the song "Stefania".
• 10 May – A drug dealer from Rome escapes on a scooter after being chased by the police, and is subsequently arrested inside a McDonald's.
• 11 May – 2021–22 Coppa Italia final Inter-Juventus. Inter win 2–4.
• 13 May – Milan becomes the first city in Italy to use QR codes to pay bills in restaurants without waiting.
• 14 May
• * A retirement home in San Vitaliano gives expired drugs to the elderly.
• * The Filadelfia Stadium in Turin is reopened.
• 15 May
• * Two boys are stabbed while walking in the maritime area of Naples.
• * After 15 years in Serie A, Genoa are relegated to Serie B.
• 16 May
• * Rome is put on red alert zone for swine fever spread because of boars.
• * In the town of Brusciano, 17 representatives are arrested from groups linked to Camorra.
• 17 May – Milan is proclaimed an area of freedom for LGBT people, and also recognizes the sex change of trans people.
• 20 May – Monkeypox arrives in Italy.
• 22 May
• * Milan wins Serie A after 11 years.
• * Salernitana becomes the first team not to be relegated to Serie B with 31 points.
• 23 May
• * The 30-year anniversary of the Capaci massacre, where the anti-Mafia judge Giovanni Falcone was killed.
• * First hospitalization for monkeypox in Arezzo.
• 24 May
• * In Turin, the police seize an orange truck containing drugs; the two drivers are arrested.
• * The first positive cases of monkeypox in Lombardy.
• 29 May – A shooting takes place in the comune of Qualiano.
• 30 May
• * In a school in Bergamo, a cylinder explodes and 5 children are burned.
• * Two sisters are scarred with acid in Naples.

June

• 3 June – Milan becomes the first municipality to approve a gender registry.
• 10 June – The case of Chievo Verona, which could return to Serie B, is reopened.
• 18 June – In Catania, an 11-year-old girl is killed by her mother.
• 21 June – The political party Movimento 5 Stelle splits following the departure of Luigi Di Maio, who will form a new party.
• 27 June – After the Caserta pride parade, homophobic graffiti and attacks were recorded.

July

• 3 July – 2022 Marmolada serac collapse.
• 3–6 July – Olympics of the Real Neapolitan pizza are held.
• 8 July
• * A storm strikes Naples, causing major inconvenience and damage.
• * Teramo Calcio and Campobasso Calcio are excluded from the 2022–23 Serie C season.
• 11 July – The first convictions for the attacks on the CGIL headquarters in autumn are issued; all Forza Nuova participants are sentenced to six years in prison, except the two leaders, who receive to house arrest.
• 13 July
• * In Lecce, the gender registry for trans and non-binary people is approved; it is the second Italian municipality to do so.
• * The Catania football club is re-founded and will restart from Serie D.
• 14 July – The 2022 Italian government crisis of the Draghi government begins.
• 16 July – The West Nile virus returns to Italy, with the first cases in Veneto and Emilia-Romagna, and one death registered.
• 20 July – The Senate votes with 95 of the senators in favor of the trust in Mario Draghi, who is rejected.
• 21 July – Prime Minister Mario Draghi announces his resignation while President Sergio Mattarella dissolves the chambers and calls for new elections.

August

• 9 August – Domino's Pizza announces that it will pull out of the Italian market after seven years.

September

• 6 September – The investigation into the 1996 disappearance of Angela Celentano is reopened.
• 9 September – Brothers of Italy causes controversy after criticizing the cartoon Peppa Pig for including a lesbian couple.
• 15–16 September – The 2022 Marche flood occurs.
• 25 September – The 2022 Italian general election takes place.
• 26 September – The students of the Manzoni high school in Milan occupy the building to protest Meloni's victory.

October

• 13 October – Ignazio La Russa becomes Senate of the Republic (Italy)|president of the Senate of the Republic]. He is the first politician with a neo-fascist background to hold the position of President of the Senate, the second highest-ranking office of the Italian Republic.
• 14 October – Ultraconservative Lorenzo Fontana becomes president of the Chamber of Deputies.
• 19 October – Volleyball player Paola Egonu decides to leave the Italian national team after various racist insults.
• 20 October
• * In Naples, the NAS closes the pizzeria that invented the pizza Margherita due to poor cleaning.
• * The Salerno police and the financial police arrest a drug dealer for selling drugs on the seafront.
• 21 October
• * Giorgia Meloni receives the task of forming a new government from President Sergio Mattarella; she becomes the first female prime minister in Italian history.
• * An illegal immigrant from The Gambia who had been selling drugs for six years in Salerno is arrested and repatriated.
• * Six people are put under house arrest after stealing fish from Salerno markets.
• 22 October – The Meloni Cabinet becomes operational. It is variously described as a shift to the political right, as well as the first far-right-led coalition in Italy since World War II.
• 27 October – A man stabs five people, including the Monza Calcio player Pablo Marì in the city of Assago.
• 27–29 October
• * The 100th anniversary of the March on Rome.
• * Thousands of supporters of Benito Mussolini parade.

November

• 16 November – Italy is officially a candidate to host Euro 2032.
• 26 November – 2022 Ischia landslide.

December

• 7 December – In Verona, 13 people from groups linked to the fascist extreme right use sticks and iron chains to attack a group of Moroccan families celebrating Morocco's victory over Spain.
• 22 December – In the Denise Pipitone case, former prosecutor Maria Angioni is arrested for making false claims about the investigation to find the girl who disappeared 18 years earlier.