A judge on Monday approved a plea bargain deal for former Juventus president Andrea Agnelli, handing him a 20-month suspended sentence in a false accounting trial – a decision that could pave the way for his return to football once his sports ban expires next month.
The trial, launched after prosecutors began investigating Juventus in 2021, played a central role in Agnelli’s fall from power at Italy’s record 36-time Serie A champion.
Former vice president Pavel Nedved and former sporting director Fabio Paratici also struck deals, receiving suspended sentences of 14 and 18 months, respectively.
Former CEO Maurizio Arrivabene, however, was cleared of wrongdoing by the Rome court, which took over the case after it was moved from Turin.
“The decision to request that this suspended sentence be applied, without recognizing responsibility – and therefore consistent with my position of innocence – was quite difficult,” Agnelli said in a statement to Italian media.
Agnelli added that since the trial is still in the initial phase with preliminary hearings, “the alternative would have been remaining in limbo for a very long time.”
“My love for Juventus remains total and unaltered,” Agnelli said. He has been living in Amsterdam for more than two years and said he plans to “carry out his future plans” in the Dutch city.
Juventus, which is listed on the Milan Stock Exchange, was fined 156,000 euros ($183,000) and also reached a settlement with about 75 investors, agreeing to pay slightly more than 1 million euros ($1.2 million).
All of the parties involved denied wrongdoing.
Juventus said in a statement reacting to the ruling that “while reiterating the correctness of its conduct and the soundness of its defensive arguments,” the club “has deemed it appropriate to resort to this instrument in the best interest of the company itself, its shareholders and all stakeholders.”
The case prompted Agnelli and Juventus’ entire board of directors to resign in 2022. Agnelli was then given two separate bans by sports authorities, the last of which expires in October.
Agnelli was also considered the mastermind behind the failed Super League project and resigned as head of the European Club Association when the doomed breakaway plan was revealed in 2021.
Juventus was docked 10 points in the 2022-23 season and later banned by UEFA from the Conference League for financial irregularities.
Juventus and its managers were investigated for taking illegal commissions from transfers and loans of players and for illicit handling of salaries. The case also examined whether investors were misled with invoices issued for non-existent transactions, which could be deemed false accounting.
