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UEFA is reportedly planning to expel Juventus from European competitions due to alleged falsified capital gains.
La Gazzetta dello Sport reports that UEFA has been closely following the Bianconeri’s legal issues over the past year. It also ran its own investigation into the club’s accounting procedures after receiving a ton of documentation from the Public Prosecutor’s Office of Turin.
Juventus successfully argued against their 15-point deduction at CONI’s Collegio di Garanzia. As a result, the deduction was temporarily reversed pending the outcome of a new sporting trial. UEFA expects an Italian court to rule by the end of June. But they are ready to take action if it takes longer than they expect.
Financial Fair Play is the real threat to Juventus. UEFA fined the club €3.5 million in September 2022 for violating these rules. They signed various agreements to avoid a further €19.5 million fine. These agreements were based on balance sheets provided by the Old Lady. Those are now the subject of investigations by the Turin Public Prosecutor’s Office and FIGC.
UEFA won’t have to wait for the Italian justice system if Juventus is denied entry into the Champions League, Europa League, or Europa Conference League. For the Bianconeri, this would be a problem because it would delay the possibility of exclusion from competition until the 2024–2025 campaign.
If the Old Lady were to be eligible for a European club competition, UEFA would need to take action quickly. Probably it was before the end of July or the start of August. Because the plea deal in September was based on the suspicious balance sheets, exclusion from these competitions is a likely outcome.
UEFA: Juventus current situation, an April 19 appeal
Juventus currently has a 15-point deduction for financial rule violations. Serie A’s governing body, FIGC, has received the team’s appeal. That filed on the grounds that the decision constitutes a clear disparity of treatment against Juventus and its managers compared to any other company or member. The Collegio di Garanzia, the highest sporting court in Italy, will hear the appeal. But they will only review the technicalities of the procedure.. On those terms, they can either overturn the decision completely or it will stand. On April 19, a decision on the appeal will be made. If that fails, the club’s next and final option is to go to the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne, Switzerland.
