Former Juventus President Andrea Agnelli has seen his ban reduced from 16 to 10 months on appeal due to the so-called ‘salary manoeuvres.’
The club patron had been given a 16-month ban for his part in the rather creative accounting scheme.
While others largely accepted their punishment, Agnelli took the matter to the FIGC Court of Appeal and it was partially successful.
The ban was reduced to 10 months and the fine cut from €60,000 to €40,000.
During the first wave of the COVID pandemic in 2020, when the football world ground to a halt and matches were suspended, Juventus announced that their players and staff had agreed to give up four months of wages to help out the club.
However, evidence including WhatsApp messages between players showed that they were always aware it was going to be only one month of their salary left behind.
The rest would be given back through other avenues, such as bonuses and sponsorship deals, effectively trying to ‘disguise’ the payments.
Along with the scandal over transfer fees artificially inflated to boost capital gains, this all prompted a 10-point Serie A penalty and their exclusion from UEFA competitions for the 2023-24 season.