July 18 – Italian prosecutors have requested that former Juventus chairman Andrea Agnelli, one of the most powerful figures in European football in his heyday, and other former executives of the club stand trial over allegations of false accounting during their tenure.
The move follows a prolonged investigation into the financial practices of Italy’s most successful and storied club.
In November 2022, Agnelli and the entire Juventus board resigned when an investigation was announced into alleged false accounting. Juve were then docked 10 points in May 2023 while two months later Agnelli received a second lengthy ban for the way he handled player salary cuts during the coronavirus pandemic.
Prosecutors are now requesting that Agnelli, who once fronted the European Clubs Association, and the likes of Pavel Nedved, Maurizio Arrivabene and Fabio Paratici be sent to trial for alleged financial wrongdoings committed while they were in charge.
The case centres on alleged inflated values assigned to some transfer dealings in the club’s balance sheets and also irregularities in an agreement between the club and players for salary cuts.
Juve announced at the start of the pandemic that players had agreed to take a pay cut for four months to enable the club to make ends meet. The club, however, allegedly made secret payments to players, who only gave up one month’s salary.
Juventus have repeatedly denied wrongdoing and said its accounting is in line with industry standards.
A judge will now evaluate the prosecutors’ request to determine whether the case should proceed to trial.
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