Juventus on Thursday announced they had hired Luciano Spalletti as their head coach, tasking the former Napoli and Italy manager with making the record 36-time Serie A champions title contenders again.
Spalletti has been signed to an eight-month contract that Italian media reported will be automatically renewed for two years if Juventus qualify for the Champions League.
The move comes three days after Igor Tudor was fired following three straight losses and an eight-match winless run that had dated back to Sept. 13. The slide ended with a 3-1 win over Udinese on Wednesday under interim coach Massimo Brambilla.
"We are delighted to welcome a coach with such expertise and experience to the Bianconeri family: welcome to Juventus and good luck, coach!" Juventus said in a statement.
Spalletti, who will hold his first press conference on Friday, becomes Juventus' third full-time coach since Massimiliano Allegri was fired in May 2024. Including caretakers, he's the club's fifth coach in that span.
Thiago Motta was fired by Juventus in March and replaced by Tudor, who helped the club secure Italy's last Champions League spot with a fourth-place finish last season.
Juventus haven't won Serie A since 2020, when they concluded a run of nine straight titles.
They are currently seventh in the standings, six points behind leaders Napoli and Roma.
In the Champions League, Juventus have drawn two and lost one and sit in the elimination places.
The 66-year-old Spalletti is best known for leading Napoli to the Serie A title in 2023. Then he had an unsuccessful run with Italy and was fired in June when the Azzurri got off to a poor start in World Cup qualifying.
Spalletti has also coached Empoli, Sampdoria, Venezia, Udinese, Ancona, Roma, Zenit St. Petersburg and Inter Milan.
At Juventus, Spalletti will join his son, Federico, who is a scout for the club.
Spalletti's first game in charge will be at Cremonese in Serie A on Saturday. Juventus then host Sporting Lisbon in the Champions League three days later.
