John Elkann, the president of Exor and head of the Agnelli family, discussed Juventus’ legal issues in a statement to shareholders, noting that the club ‘deny any wrongdoing’.
The Bianconeri will hear the result of their appeal against their 15-point deduction at CONI’s Collegio di Garanzia on April 19, a decision that’ll have important ramifications for their season and near-future.
Juventus are also facing other legal battles, with the Prisma investigation headed by the Turin Public Prosecutor’s Office still quietly rumbling on. The club have been accused of falsifying capital gains and misleading the stock market with hidden player salary payments.
Speaking in a statement to shareholders, Elkann first discussed Juventus’ legal issues and how it’s affected the club’s management.
“To a greater extent than many of our clubs, in 2022 Juventus was faced with increasing internal and external difficulties, which put the club under great strain.
“It was the legal actions against the club that ended up occupying the company’s board of directors, which met 18 times during the year.
“The level of pressure has increased so much that the board of directors decided to resign in order to allow the club to protect itself in the most effective way against accusations ranging from alleged accounting irregularities to inaccurate communications to the financial markets relating mainly to the buying and selling of players and agreements on their salaries.
“Juventus denies any wrongdoing.”
The Exor CEO then thanked his cousin Andrea Agnelli, who was the president of Juventus from 2010 to 2022, resigning amidst the various legal issues.
“I would like to thank the Board of Directors of Juventus for having acted responsibly and in particular President Andrea Agnelli, who led Juventus through a phase full of changes and victories.
“The club has collected extraordinary successes, winning everything in Italy and internationally, and has counted as many as 27 world champions among its players, more than any other club in history.
“However, this level of sporting success, which brings great joy to our fans, also creates a lot of animosity, which can arise when the club faces challenges.”
Finally, Elkann discussed the new era at Juventus with the new president and board of directors.
“Juventus now has a new President, Gianluca Ferrero, and a new CEO, Maurizio Scanavino, who is also at the helm of our media company Gedi, where he is successfully implementing a relaunch plan.
“At Juventus, Gianluca and Maurizio will be helped by a new Board of Directors, and they have made a good start, ensuring that Juventus can face the many current challenges, while protecting its reputation so that it can come back stronger both on and off the pitch.”