Juventus FC's shares suffered the biggest decline in five months after the Italian team was eliminated from the European Champions League on Monday. Despite beating Olympique Lyonnais by two goals to one, the Italian champions were eliminated due to the double value of the goals in the opposite half. Shortly after the surprising departure, the Agnelli family announced the dismissal of the coach, Maurizio Sarri, who will be relieved by former player Andrea Pirlo, with no experience on the bench.
The shares fell as much as 11.5%, the biggest decline since March 12, on the Milan floor, giving the firm a market value of 1.1 billion euros ($ 1.3 billion). Reaching the quarterfinals would have given the club an additional income of 10.5 million euros, according to Uefa regulations, opting for 12 and 15 million, respectively, which represent access to the semifinals and the final.
"The premature exit from the competition will weigh on already weak finances, making it more difficult to rejuvenate the team with new player hires," Jacopo Ceccatelli, CEO of Italian broker Marzotto SIM, told Bloomberg. Juventus has presented three of the 10 oldest squads in this edition of the Champions League, a figure only surpassed by Galatasaray. The star of the team, Cristiano Ronaldo, has turned 35.
"The purchase of Cristiano Ronaldo has not been profitable, and the hiring of an inexperienced coach adds uncertainty about the future of the team," adds Marzotto. Pirlo, 41, who has no coaching experience, has signed a one-year contract.
Juventus, like many other European teams, reached an agreement with players in March to cut salaries in the face of falling income from the coronavirus pandemic, with the aim of saving € 90 million. The team, although listed on the stock market, is 64% owned by the Agnelli family, top shareholders of Fiat Chrysler and Ferrari.
Shares in another Italian club, Roma, the soccer team that American billionaire Dan Friedkin agreed to buy earlier this week, are also falling sharply. Specifically, their titles lose 25% after the team was expelled from the Europa League, the second continental club competition, by Sevilla.
The Olympique de Lyon shares, by contrast, barely fluctuated on the Paris Stock Exchange.
