Former Juventus president Andrea Agnelli was banned from soccer for another 16 months after he was charged with fraud for the way he handled player salary cuts during the coronavirus pandemic.
It adds to a two-year ban already inflicted on Agnelli, who stepped down from his position with the Serie A giants in November, for a false accounting case.
Agnelli was also fined €60,000 ($65,000) by the Italian soccer federation on Monday after being judged responsible for wrongdoing in relationships with player agents and partnerships with other clubs.
Juventus and seven other former club directors agreed to a plea bargain with the federation in May over the salary case, while Agnelli was the only figure in the case who decided to be judged.
At the start of the pandemic, Juventus said 23 players agreed to reduce their salary for four months to help the club through the crisis. But prosecutors claim the players gave up only one month’s salary.
Juventus, who were docked 10 points last season for false accounting in a separate legal case, risked a further points deduction. As part of the same case, Juventus agreed to pay a fine of €718,000 in May and not challenge a 10-point penalty for the past Serie A season, in a settlement it reached with Italy’s soccer authorities
It’s developing into a busy week of legal cases for Agnelli, whose latest appeal over the two-year ban stemming from the false accounting case is due to be heard on Tuesday.
Also, UEFA is expected to decide soon if Juventus should be banned from the Europa Conference League next season due to their legal troubles.
