Juve out of UCL after a 10-point penalty cut

The Italian Football Association said that Juventus was given a further 10-point penalty deduction by an Italian court on Monday, which will hurt their chances of competing in the Champions League the following year.

Juventus was demoted from second place in Serie A to seventh as a result of the most recent penalty for incorrect accounting in the team’s transfer operations.

As a result, AC Milan moved into fourth position in Serie A and the final Champions League qualifying spot, leaving the Bianconeri five points adrift.

In the aftermath of the news, Juventus lost 4-1 to struggling Empoli. Then, with two games left in the Serie A season, Juventus will play AC Milan in a game that will be essential in their attempt to avoid missing the Champions League for the first time.

Juventus stated on Twitter that they “take note” of the court’s ruling and “reserve the right” to appeal it once more to Italy’s highest sports body.

In addition to receiving a 15-point penalty in January, several former Juventus board members—including former president Andrea Agnelli—also received soccer activity bans.

The Italian Olympic Committee’s top sports court upheld the appeal last month, suspending the points deduction and remanding the case for further consideration to the soccer federation’s appeals court.

It happened on Monday. Federation prosecutor Giuseppe Chine asked for an 11-point fine against Juventus during the three-hour session. In January, he had requested for nine.

Seven former Juventus directors, including Pavel Nedvd, were also asked to serve eight-month suspensions, but they were freed on Monday.

Last month, Agnelli and three other people had their appeals denied.

Following a probe into alleged dishonest bookkeeping by the public prosecutors in Turin, the Juventus board of directors resigned in large numbers in November.

On the basis of the information provided by the Turin prosecutors, the case’s sports trial was reopened, which resulted in the points deduction. The sports court had initially given Juventus the go-ahead in April.

Juventus, Agnelli, and 11 other people have also been accused by the prosecutors in Turin of making false communications on behalf of a company that is publicly traded on the Milan Stock Exchange, impeding watchdog organizations, billing falsely, and manipulating the market.

The Italian soccer association also punished Juventus and seven former team directors with alleged fraud last week for the manner they handled player compensation reductions during the coronavirus pandemic. This only made Juventus’ legal woes worse.