The Administrative Court of Lazio (TAR) has declared inadmissible an appeal filed by the Associazione Club Napoli Maradona and Codacons seeking to revoke Juventus’ 2018-2019 Scudetto and award it to Napoli.
The controversy stemmed from allegations that Juventus had manipulated player values in their financial statements during the 2018-2019, 2019-2020, and 2020-2021 seasons. This alleged manipulation supposedly allowed Juventus to maintain an appearance of financial balance and acquire players of higher competitive level than their actual financial capabilities would permit.
Calciomercato report how the ‘Associazione Club Napoli Maradona’ and ‘Codacons’, interested in seeing the 2018-2019 Scudetto awarded to Napoli, approached the TAR seeking to establish the illegitimacy and subsequent annulment of the Federal Court of Appeal of FIGC’s decision from January 30, 2023.
They contested this decision, arguing that despite acknowledging Juventus had altered the regularity of the 2018-2019 championship, the court did not impose sanctions such as revoking the Scudetto, relegating Juventus to the bottom of the league, or deducting 15 points, which would have resulted in the title being awarded to the second-placed team, Napoli.
The TAR has now upheld the preliminary objections raised by Juventus, citing a “lack of conditions for action by the appealing associations.” The court noted that the Associazione Club Napoli Maradona and Codacons were attempting to act on behalf of SSC Napoli SpA to secure the 2018/2019 Scudetto, a benefit strictly pertaining to the club itself.
The court ruled that these associations were not acting in their own substantial interest but rather attempting to assert a subjective legal situation belonging to another entity, thereby violating the principle prohibiting procedural substitution as outlined in the Code.
This decision effectively puts an end to the fans’ attempt to overturn the 2018-2019 Serie A title results through legal means.
