Referendum results

Is Italy's referendum result the first step toward leaving the EU?

Whatever shorthand word the media settle on -- "Itexit," "Quitaly" or "Italexit" -- the stage is slowly being set for a battle over Italy's place in the EU. Far-right parties will want to capitalize on the momentum of the referendum victory and call for Italy's exit from the eurozone repeatedly in the coming months.

And while the loss of Renzi's reforms proposal hands Italy's EU skeptics a stronger mandate, it's not yet enough, Piccoli said.

"This was a vote against Renzi so it shouldn't be read as a vote against the euro, against the establishment," he said. "It is clear that the alarm bells have gone off in Italy now. ... There is going to be a certain sense of alarmism, but this is not a vote that will necessarily change the projection of Italy in the short term."