Juventus earthquake, D’Onofrio’s lawyer: “Fines and possibly penalties, but certainly not relegation”

Paco D’Onofrioa professor at the University of Bologna and an expert lawyer in sports law, spoke to All Juventus earthquake and possible repercussions:

What can Juventus risk regarding the file opened by FIFA regarding salaries?
“In respect of accounting infractions, however serious they may be from a criminal point of view, which relate to a legal system different and distinct from the federal system, the penalty envisaged is the disqualification of the guilty directors and a fine, i.e. a monetary fine, for the club involved. Just in case the infraction leads to the registration In a tournament in which a club would otherwise not be able to participate, then relegation is envisaged, but this is certainly not the case.Furthermore, Article 31, Paragraph 3 of the FIFA Code of Sporting Justice states the hypothesis in which accounting irregularities relate by paying the players’ wages, which, also in this case, is punishable by a fine or, in the most serious case, by one or more penalty points.

Can there be any kind of condemnation?
“The basis for the conviction, in the latter case, is that the company violated an existing federal provision, which, as far as I know, has not been specifically deliberated on. It does not appear to me that, at the time, there were no rules adopted to regulate the health (and accounting) emergency period.” For the second part of the 2019/20 Championship, which was supposed to organize the exceptional situation of a sports season that extended for two months and previously stopped for a long time and which led to the need for clubs to reformulate the salaries of players.It would be useful, in fact, to know the accounting methods used by the clubs other in the Premier League.

So if you want to reassure a slightly anxious Juventus fan over the past few hours, as he has previously about capital gains?
“The FIFA Attorney General’s Office did a good job in deciding to open an investigation file, because it undoubtedly deserves further investigation, which the Federation has the power and duty to do. However, it must also be added that if the conditions I did not meet the aforementioned and which, In my opinion, it is not very clear from what I was able to learn from the news circulating in the media only, that the liability of the company does not appear clearly defined, such as what happened in the case of capital gains that ended without making sure that there was an actual wrongdoing.

Did you find a correct modus operandi for the board of directors who resigned entirely on Monday?
“Undoubtedly, the gesture I imagine was motivated by a sense of responsibility, and perhaps also in order to keep the team calm in the vicinity of the resumption of the championship, which would allow the former administrators to focus on the procedural defense that they would have to face, in the face of formal disputes by the public prosecutor and perhaps also by the Federal Prosecutor.