Storm at RAI: Petrecca out of RAI Sport after the Olympic debacle

In recent days, a decisive chapter has unfolded in the troubled saga involving Paolo Petrecca, an executive at the center of one of the most spectacular crises in the recent history of Italian public broadcasting. The news of his resignation as director of Rai Sport, announced yesterday and effective at the end of the 2026 Milan-Cortina Olympics, comes after weeks of internal and external controversy that are far from isolated incidents.

The spark that ignited unprecedented protest in Rai’s sports newsroom was the commentary of the Winter Olympics opening ceremony, which Petrecca himself had taken on. That prime-time broadcast was riddled with gaffes and inaccuracies hard to overlook: from confusing actress Matilda De Angelis with international singer Mariah Carey, to wrongly identifying the president of the International Olympic Committee as “the daughter of the President of the Republic,” to failing to highlight prominent Italian athletes during the national parade.

More than individual mistakes, it was the human and professional context that was called into question. Journalists in Rai’s sports department decided to withdraw their bylines from Olympic coverage and announced a strike of services after the Games, calling that commentary “the worst performance ever” for public broadcasting.

Criticism went beyond language errors or verbal slips: internal figures openly challenged Petrecca’s decision to personally assume the role of commentator, arguing that he lacked the specific expertise to handle an international-scale event such as the Olympic opening ceremony, despite prior warnings.

This storm was not just a superficial controversy. It raised broader questions about Rai’s internal governance, the relationship between newsroom and management, and what many critic, including national and international commentator, saw as a reflection of political tensions and the perceived politicization of top appointments within the company.

Petrecca’s decision to step down, formalized by handing over his mandate to CEO Giampaolo Rossi, thus marks the end of a difficult period in which the management of Italian public television appeared under pressure as rarely seen in recent years.

In the meantime, Marco Lollobrigida has been appointed as interim director, while the debate over Rai Sport’s role and the responsibilities of public broadcasting remains open, with many questions likely to continue emerging even after the conclusion of the Games.

Klevis Gjoka