Juventus

Serie A club Juventus must pay Cristiano Ronaldo $9.7 million euros, worth approximately $10.4 million, after losing a legal battle regarding wages deferred during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Jordi Archs of Mundo Deportivo and James Cohen of the Daily Mail.

The club will have to pay that sum plus interest, according to Gazetta's Marco Guidi.

The dispute involved 19.8 million euros, worth more than $21 million, that Ronaldo agreed to defer during the pandemic, according to Archs.

The Italian police seized a document in which Juventus agreed to pay Ronaldo that amount.

Juventus argued the document was no longer valid, as Ronaldo pursued the matter only after he left the club in 2021, according to Raimondo de Magistris of TuttoSport.

An Italian arbitration tribunal ruled Ronaldo partially responsible and mandated Juventus to pay back just half of the salary promised, according to Guidi and Cohen.

Juventus will have to pay the money out of the club's current budget because the team did not set aside funds in case of losing, Archs noted.

The case involving in Ronaldo is the latest legal battle the club has had to face regarding the way they handled salaries and internal accounting during the pandemic.

Last year Juventus agreed to pay a fine worth more than $750,000 in 2023 as part of a plea bargain for lying to players about receiving deferred salaries after the pandemic.

Ronaldo scored 101 times in 134 appearances through three seasons with Juventus.

The Portuguese star, who became the first active athlete in a team sport to reach $1 billion in career earnings in 2020 according to Forbes, currently plays for Al-Nassr in the Saudi Pro League.

The Italian Anti-Doping Organization (NADO) announced Thursday that Juventus midfielder Paul Pogba has been suspended from soccer for four years after failing a drug test.

According to Colin Millar and James Horncastle of The Athletic, Pogba initially failed the test following an Aug. 20 match against Udinese and was handed a provisional suspension. Pogba's B sample confirmed the original positive test from his A sample, and it was determined that he had elevated levels of testosterone that were not produced by his body.

The 30-year-old Pogba, who is in his second season at Juventus and is under contract through 2026, can appeal the decision.

After spending the bulk of his early professional career at Juventus, Pogba joined Manchester United in 2016 and played six seasons at Old Trafford.

Despite never winning an English Premier League or UEFA Champions League title during his time with United, Pogba enjoyed individual success, including when he scored a career-high 16 goals across all competitions in 2018-19.

Pogba also achieved perhaps the biggest accomplishment of his career in 2018, winning the FIFA World Cup with France.

In the World Cup Final against Croatia, Pogba scored what proved to be the winning goal in a 4-2 victory.

After winning three Serie A titles, two Coppa Italia titles and two Supercoppa Italia titles during his first stint at Juve, Pogba returned on a four-year deal in 2022.

Injuries and fitness concerns limited Pogba to 10 overall appearances and six league matches last season, and he appeared in just two matches this season as a substitute.

Meanwhile, Pogba has not appeared in an international match for France since March 2022.

Juventus have gotten almost nothing out of their investment in Pogba, and it is entirely possible that his career with the club is over since he will be 34 when his suspension expires, provided he doesn't win an appeal.

With 57 points, Juventus are second in Serie A to first-place Inter Milan and their 69 points this season, and if they want to win their first Serie A title since the 2019-20 season, they'll have to do it without Pogba.

Juventus and France midfielder Paul Pogba has been provisionally suspended after testing positive for testosterone following a 3-0 win over Udinese on Aug. 20, according to Fabrizio Romano.

ANSA previously reported the failed doping test.

Pogba, 30, could now be facing a multiple-year ban from the sport if he's indeed found guilty of doping.

Pogba has made two appearances for Juventus but no starts this season after making just one start in the 2022-23 campaign. Injuries largely kept him off the pitch both for Juventus and France, which included him missing the World Cup in Qatar.

He also was allegedly the victim of a €13 million ($13.9 million) extortion plot from his brother Mathias and friends from his childhood.

"Money changes people. ... It can break up a family," he told Al Jazeera's Generation Sport (h/t ESPN). "It can create a war. Sometimes I was just by myself thinking, 'I don't want to have money anymore. I just don't want to play anymore. I just want to be with normal people, so they will love me for me—not for the fame, not for the money.' Sometimes it's tough."

Pogba has starred for Manchester United, Juventus and the French national team, most prominently winning the World Cup in 2018 and four titles with Juventus.

But his second spell at Juventus has largely been a struggle, and Pogba was hoping to prove he was still one of the game's biggest talents.

"I want to make them eat their words," he said of his critics. "... I want to show them I'm not weak. They can talk bad about me. I will never give up."

"Football is very beautiful, but is cruel. People can forget you in one day. You can do something great, but the next day you are nobody," he continued. "People are waiting for you, saying: 'He's done, his career is finished.' You get these comments after scoring goals, and winning the World Cup. People forget it. So you have to prove all the time."

Now, however, it's unclear if Pogba will ever feature in a Juventus shirt—or any other kit, for that matter—again.

The Italian Football Federation announced Friday that Juventus have been docked 15 points in Serie A for the 2022-23 season as punishment for multiple financial violations.

According to Goal.com's Thomas Hindle, Juventus were found to have artificially inflated the transfer value of players, leading to €90 million in savings.

The Italian Football Federation also announced that 11 current and former Juventus executives have been banned for periods ranging from eight to 30 months.

Fabio Paratici, who was the Juventus chief football officer from 2010 to 2021 and is the current managing director of football for Tottenham Hotspur, received the biggest punishment in the form of a 30-month ban.

Current Juventus CEO Maurizio Arrivabene and former Juventus chairman Andrea Angelli each received 24-month bans. Another notable punishment of an eight-month ban was given to former Juventus player and board of directors member Pavel Nedvěd as well.

Per Apollo Heyes of Football-Italia.net, the bans extend to FIFA and UEFA, meaning they are not merely limited to Serie A. Juventus and the executives will be able to appeal the decision which is expected to be explained in further detail "in the coming days," per Heyes.

Prior to the punishment, Juve had been tied for third in Serie A this season with Inter Milan at 37 points, behind only Napoli's 47 points and A.C. Milan's 38 points.

Now, Bianconeri have dropped to 10th place with 22 points because of the 15-point penalty.

That leaves Juventus 12 points out of a UEFA Champions League group stage spot, a Europa League group stage spot and a Europa Conference League qualifier.

Juventus are the winningest club in Serie A history, having won the league title 36 times. Their most recent title came in 2020, and they finished fourth in each of the past two seasons.

Every Serie A team has 20 matches left to play this season, meaning there is still time for Juventus to move up the table and secure a respectable finish.

Former Juventus star Gianluca Vialli died Thursday at the age of 58, per ESPN.

Vialli was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2017.

"Surrounded by his family, he passed away last night after five years of illness faced with courage and dignity," his family said in a statement. "We thank the many who have supported him over the years with their affection. The memory of him and his example will live forever in our hearts."

The forward won two Serie A titles and the Italian Cup three times during his career. In 1990-91, he led the league with 19 goals while helping Sampdoria top the table. The squad also won the Italian Cup three times After a move to Juventus in 1992, he helped his club win Serie A with 17 goals during the 1994-95 season.

During his final year with the club in 1995-96, Juventus won its second-ever Champions League title with a win over Ajax in the finals.

Vialli ended his career with Chelsea, becoming a player-manager and winning both the League Cup and FA Cup.

Vialla also played a significant role with the Italian national team, appearing in two World Cups and helping the squad finish in third place in 1990.

In 2019, he was hired by Italy as the delegation chief and helped the squad win the Euro 2020 title.

UEFA is investigating Juventus fans who traveled to Parc des Princes for Tuesday's Champions League game and allegedly participated in racist and antisemitic behavior.

Four people were also arrested.

According to Reuters, social media footage appeared to show some Juventus fans "making Nazi salutes and monkey gestures" during Paris Saint-Germain's 2-1 victory.

"In accordance with Article 31(4) of the UEFA Disciplinary Regulations, a UEFA Ethics and Disciplinary Inspector has been appointed to conduct a disciplinary investigation regarding allegations of discriminatory behaviour by Juventus supporters," UEFA said in a statement.

As for the arrests, Paris police released a statement saying, "Four individuals were identified by video and then arrested last night [Tuesday] by the police for public incitement to racial hatred in a sports venue, on the occasion of the PSG-Juve soccer match."

On the field, Paris Saint-Germain captured the Group H opener thanks in large part to individual brilliance by Kylian Mbappe.

The 23-year-old star scored two goals in the first half, which held up despite a second-half goal from Weston McKennie on the other side.

Paris Saint-Germain will face Maccabi Haifa in the UEFA Champions League on Sept. 14, while Juventus plays Benfica on the same date. Benfica leads Group H after one game thanks to its 2-0 victory over Maccabi Haifa.

Juventus midfielder Paul Pogba paid €100,000 ($100,000) to a group that attempted to extort him, French officials said Tuesday, per Julien Laurens of ESPN.

The group allegedly includes his brother, Mathias Pogba, and childhood friends from near Paris.

Mathias recently released an Instagram video where he promised to announce "big revelations" about Paul, per Laurens. The situation reportedly stems from a claim that Paul hired a witch doctor to cast a spell on fellow French international Kylian Mbappe.

Paul addressed the issue in a statement Sunday:

"The recent declarations of Mathias Pogba on social media are unfortunately not a surprise. They are coming after threats and attempts of extortion by an organised gang against Paul Pogba.

"This has been referred to the appropriate authorities both in Italy and in France a month ago."

The group had allegedly taken Paul in an armed confrontation in March, demanding €13 million ($13 million), per Zach Lowy of Breaking The Lines. The blackmailers allegedly returned at Manchester United training in April and then again at Juventus training in July after Paul transferred to the Serie A club.

Juventus officials notified authorities, and there has been an ongoing investigation.

According to Laurens, Paul told French authorities the group wanted to discredit him and repeatedly intimidated him as retaliation for not supporting them after he became an international star. Though he said he gave a six-figure sum to the group, it was clearly not enough to end the situation.

The 29-year-old is beginning his second stint with Juventus after spending the previous six years with Manchester United. He also helped France win the World Cup in 2018.

Mathias played professionally in several countries but is now a free agent.

Juventus midfielder Paul Pogba said he is the subject of an extortion attempt after his brother, Mathias, promised "big revelations" against the world football star, per Julien Laurens of ESPN.

In an Instagram video posted Sunday, Mathias said he would reveal secrets about Paul and fellow French international Kylian Mbappe.

"The whole world deserves to know certain things so the public can decide if [Paul Pogba] really deserves the admiration, the respect, his place in the France team, if he is a trustful person and worth representing the world's youth, working-class areas and big brands," Mathias said.

Pogba responded to the threats in a statement:

The recent declarations of Mathias Pogba on social media are unfortunately not a surprise. They are coming after threats and attempts of extortion by an organised gang against Paul Pogba.

This has been referred to the appropriate authorities both in Italy and in France a month ago.

According to Zach Lowy of Breaking the Lines, Mathias was among gang members who took Paul in an armed confrontation last March and demanded €13 million for discreetly protecting him for 13 years.

Juventus' lawyers eventually notified the police after they showed up at the club's training grounds in July, per Lowy.

Paul spent the past six years with Manchester United before coming to Juventus on a free transfer this summer. It's his second stint with the Serie A club after winning four straight league titles from 2012-13 to 2015-16.

The 29-year-old also helped France win the 2018 World Cup alongside Paris Saint-Germain star Mbappe.

Mathias, 32, has played in several leagues across Europe, but he is currently unsigned after leaving Belfort, a fourth-division team in France.

Paul Pogba is reportedly returning to Juventus, where he played from 2012 through 2016, on a free transfer following the conclusion of his contract with Manchester United.

ESPN's Julien Laurens reported Wednesday that Juve agreed to a four-year deal with the 29-year-old midfielder, who will formally announce the reasons behind his decision Friday on the Amazon documentary, The Pogmentary.

It's the second time Pogba will complete the United-to-Juventus switch. He started his senior career with the Red Devils in 2011 before joining the Italian club the following year.

The France international enjoyed ample success during his first stint with the Vecchia Signora, including four consecutive Serie A titles, before returning to Old Trafford.

Pogba's second stint with United didn't yield nearly as much success as the club raised just two trophies, the Europa League and EFL Cup titles in 2017, and his role diminished throughout the 2021-22 season. He tallied one goal and nine assists in 20 Premier League matches and no goals or assists in six Champions League appearances.

Last week, the midfielder explained on Uninterrupted (h/t ESPN) he was using his opportunity to move on a free transfer to find the best personal situation.

"I need to enjoy what I do because otherwise I cannot perform well," Pogba said. "I don't want to be thinking negatively. We can be losing games, trophies but you have to be happy and enjoy yourself—that's what I'm looking for."

The 2018 World Cup champion, who's expected to help France defend that title in Qatar starting in November, opted for Juventus amid reported interest from Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain.

He'll attempt to provide a boost to the Juve attack. In 2021-22, the club finished fourth in the Serie A table and got knocked out of the Champions League in the round of 16.

Pogba, who's scored 34 goals in 178 matches across all competitions for Juventus, is a strong bet to produce a bounce-back term starting in August.