Francesco Schettino is an Italian former shipmaster who commanded the cruise ship Costa Concordia when she struck an underwater rock and capsized off the Italian island of Giglio on 13 January 2012. Thirty-two passengers and crew died. In 2015, he was sentenced to sixteen years in prison for his role in the incident. He began serving his sentence in 2017 after exhausting his appeals.

Costa Concordia was a cruise ship operated by Costa Crociere. She was the first of her class, followed by sister ships Costa Serena, Costa Pacifica, Costa Favolosa and Costa Fascinosa, and Carnival Splendor built for Carnival Cruise Line. When the 114,137-ton Costa Concordia and her sister ships entered service, they were among the largest ships built in Italy until the construction of the 130,000 GT Dream-class cruise ships.