Italy

Juventus: Italian Prosecutors Call For Club's Board to Face Trial

NOV 30 2022·Updated DEC 2 2022

Story

Image credit: EPA [via BBC News]

The Facts

Turin-based prosecutors stated on Thursday that they're seeking indictments for former Juventus Football Club SpA Chairman Andrea Agnelli and a dozen other board members on charges ranging from market manipulation to false accounting and obstruction of regulatory activities.
Bloomberg.com
This request follows the en masse resignation of the Board of Directors, including Agnelli, earlier this week and comes as the northern Italian club's accounting and statements made to financial markets have been investigated over the past three years.
Reuters
Italian news outlets report that Juventus, which is listed on the Milan stock exchange and declared a €254.3M record loss last season, has allegedly made artificial capital gains from transfers and provided investors with false accounting information, including claims of fictitious players' salary cuts.
BBC News
Though Juventus denies any wrongdoing, UEFA – the European soccer's governing body – has also announced an investigation into potential breaches of club licensing and financial fair play regulations.
BBC News
Juventus — which has seen its stock drop by more than 40% in the past year — has announced plans to share fresh financial statements for the 2021-22 season after obtaining "new legal and accounting opinions from the independent experts to assess the issues raised by (Italian market regulator) Consob."
www.ft.com
Agnelli succeeded Jean-Claude Blanc as Juventus chairman in 2010 and rebuilt the club, which was still recovering from the infamous Calciopoli scandal at the time. He moved Juventus to a new stadium and balanced the team’s finances — Juventus then went on to win nine league titles in a row.
The Athletic

Sources Split

LEFT

CENTER

RIGHT

ESTAB
CRIT

CENTER

PRO
ESTAB

The Spin

Narrative A

Juventus has long been accused of violating UEFA financial rules, and the resignation of its board of directors came with an admission that it had committed accounting irregularities. Authorities must impose sanctions on the Italian club to protect soccer and ensure that sustainability rules are adhered to.

Laliga

Narrative B

There should be no hurry to punish Juventus before a trial has been held, especially because the soccer world is going through tense moments across Europe. In addition, these allegations aren't aligned with the findings contained in the Consob resolution of October this year, neither in terms of assumptions nor as to conclusions.