16 January 2023
Unique. Unforgettable. Unrepeatable.
Three words to describe Andrea Agnelli's 13 seasons as president. An epoch-making moment that began on 19 May 2010. An era in which Juve changed, radically, and won, a lot. An era that we try to summarize, however difficult that may be, in 13 themes.
VISION
Because this is the foundation of everything. A vision not only linked to Juventus, but also to Italian and European football, which Agnelli expressed and implemented from the very beginning of his presidency. The vision of a club that constantly looked to the future, while continuing to pursue its most important goal: winning.
What follows captures the full realization of this vision.
HOME
Since 8 September 2011 home for all Bianconeri means our stadium. Juventus Stadium at the beginning, Allianz Stadium since 2017. The home of our being, of our pride, of our many triumphs, of countless evenings full of endless emotion. Thinking of the Allianz Stadium, whose ribbon was cut by Andrea Agnelli, means thinking of a place that is always new, modern, capable of offering at every match and more generally at every event, a modern look for a show that begins before kick-off and goes beyond the 90th minute.
THE J PLACES
Juve doesn't have just one home, the stadium, it has many. In the years of Agnelli's presidency, the Juventus Museum was built in the same area, the temple dedicated to Bianconeri history and innovation, as was J|Medical, a cutting-edge multi-specialist centre and then, in 2017, the whole Continassa area was developed. The new splendid Club Headquarters, but also the Continassa Training Center, and all the adjoining structures, such as the J|Hotel and J|College. And that's not all: the Vinovo Training Center has also undergone a makeover and has now been renovated and modernised to become the home of our youth teams, the Next Gen and Juventus Women.
And speaking of Next Gen and Juventus Women…
THE J WOMEN REVOLUTION
July 2017 Juventus Women were officially founded. Juve decided to hold back no longer and landed in the world of women's football, at the time still partly to be discovered. Since then, the story of the Bianconere has been a story of one success after another. On the pitch the team coached first by Rita Guarino and then by Joe Montemurro, always under the wise guidance of Stefano Braghin, have so far never failed to win the Scudetto. And in recent years they have also begun to become an esteemed, respected and feared opponent in Europe. All in such a short time.
But it's not just a question of events on the pitch. In 2019 for the first time in Italy, a women's match took place in front of more than 40,000 people at the Allianz Stadium. It was the Première, an incredible but not unrepeatable moment if you think that the Women's Champions League matches are played at the Allianz Stadium. There has also been the growth of the Italian national team built around a black and white backbone, and then their obtaining professional status... women's football in Italy is at a real turning point, and Juventus has undoubtedly been and is one of the driving forces behind this growth.
NEXT GEN AND THE ACADEMY, AN EYE ON THE FUTURE
From the summer of 2022, Juventus Under 23, the Bianconeri’s second team founded in 2018, changed its name to "Next Gen". A change that not only reflected the desire to give a new look or a new name but to explain what the real goal of the project was: to accompany the constant flux of a new generation of champions into the world of "grown-up” football. As has has always happened in the world of the Juventus Youth sector, which in recent years has generated both emotion and satisfaction (just think about the Under-19 team over the years, between reaching the Finals phase at a national level and the Final Four of last year’s UEFA Youth League in Nyon), it continues to happen with the Next Gen, where our boys take important steps on their path towards finally flowering in football for grown-ups, a transition phase, in a challenging, demanding league which is Serie C.
The proof? Firstly "Next Gen Day" on 27 November precisely recounted the project, culminating in their debut at the Allianz Stadium in front of more than 30,000 fans. Also, take a look at the First Team squad, the number of graduates from the Youth and Next Gen projects is constantly growing…
A STORY OF REBIRTH
Talking about Andrea Agnelli at Juventus means first of all contextualizing the moment in our history. His presidency began in 2010, a fundamental moment in which Juve was looking to find its place again after the Calciopoli tsunami and the immediate return to Serie A, but also after a generational change that swept over the team. There was a need to start over, after two seventh places in the league, and to do so Juve first of all had to take the first step towards rebuilding themselves. It happened almost immediately. Just over two years later, Juve stitched the scudetto on their shirts for the 30th time, the first of an incredible series of success.
ON THE FIELD: ONE RECORD AFTER ANOTHER
Nine Scudetti, one after the other.
This extraordinary figure, never achieved before, would be enough to certify the extent of what Agnelli's Juve has been able to do. Four consecutive league and Italian Cup doubles, and then the 102 point-total in one single season, and the two Champions League finals, not to forget about the Italian Super Cups... And again, Juventus Women's five league titles in a row - as mentioned before, they have never not won the scudetto. And the Serie C Italian Cup, the first trophy of the then Under 23, now Next Gen.
A story of incredible successes, however we must not dwell on them too much because the real legacy is Agnelli's favourite concept, which is that the most important victory is the next one...
THE WATCHWORD: INNOVATE. ALWAYS
Launching Juve into the third millennium, on and off the pitch. This has always been the major focus of the Agnelli Presidency. Juventus in 2022 is a completely different proposition to that of 12 years ago, and not only in terms of victories and records. There is a new corporate identity that saw the light in 2017 with a massive rebranding operation, the likes of which had never been seen before in the world of football; a constant look at "other" worlds outside of football, from art to fashion, from social commitment to culture. In recent years Juventus Football Club has become, and is continuing along this path, a truly global brand, which goes beyond Italy and beyond Europe, to always win over new fans around the globe.
AN ENDLESS LIST OF CHAMPIONS
Over the club’s 124 years, the history of Juventus has always been a story of great champions.
So it has also been over the 12 years of the Agnelli Presidency. The list of champions who have worn the black and white stripes is so long that there is the risk of a faux pas by forgetting someone. So, apologies in advance because here we mention only a few, just to recall what has happened these seasons: Andrea Pirlo, Carlitos Tevez, Gonzalo Higuain, Mario Mandzukic, Arturo Vidal, Alvaro Morata, and then of course Cristiano Ronaldo, and more recently Angel Di Maria and Dusan Vlakhovic.
And then the flag bearers: Alessandro Del Piero, Gigi Buffon, Claudio Marchisio, Andrea Barzagli, Giorgio Chiellini, Leonardo Bonucci, Juan Cuadrado. And then the youngsters, who became champions right here, from Paulo Dybala to Paul Pogba, not to forget the lads that have come through the Bianconeri ranks in recent months by landing in the First Team with the hope (and ambition) of following in the footsteps of their predecessors.
And the champions on the Women’s side. There has been so much of Juventus Women in the Italian national team and there are still many players involved today that embraced the Bianconere project from the beginning, such as Sara Gama, Martina Rosucci, Barbara Bonansea, Cecilia Salvai, Arianna Caruso, Valentina Cernoia and Lisa Boattin, not forgetting about who, like Cristiana Girelli, arrived soon after. Another splendid collection of historic shirts adorned with the famous black and white stripes.a
A EUROPEAN LOOK
Entering the upper echelons of European football has always been key to Andrea Agnelli's project. A project built year after year that was one very small step away from reaching its definitive completion, in Berlin in 2015 and in Cardiff in 2017. Two nights in which Juve, beyond the final score, was close to their opponents, Barcelona first and then Real, only conceding at the end. In doing so, the message was sent out that the European journey is alive and concrete.
A path that in recent years has been stumbled upon only a few times, as can happen, but which must necessarily continue, starting with the Europa League which offers the opportunity to shine, starting with the match against Nantes in a few weeks.
A WORLD AND SOCIAL CLUB
Alongside the triumphs on the pitch, there is a Juve that has begun to grow, beyond the borders of Europe, year after year. In 2019 the black and white branch was born in Hong Kong, the basis for relationships and partnerships, which are constantly growing, with the APAC world. And then the USA, where the Bianconeri went last time just a few months ago, for the first tour after the pandemic. But they are just two examples of the attention to fans from all over the world, confirmed by the continuous growth on all social channels, which today have a participation base of over 140 million fans in total.
A CLOSE PRESIDENT
First Vinovo, then Continassa, Juventus HQ, the Stadium. Agnelli's presence has always been constantly close to the team, the teams and the people of Juve. Since the first day. There isn't a club employee who hasn't crossed paths with him in the corridors of the Headquarters, first in Corso Galileo Ferraris and then at Continassa.
And this has always been one of his secrets - being a Juventino together with the people at Juventus. Being there. Present in body and mind, and something that never hurts, with the heart.
BEING JUVE
Finally, the last of the twelve themes is the one that encompasses them all.
Juve under the Agnelli presidency has been... Juve - deep down, in its soul, on the pitch and in the stands, in national and European assemblies, in all the competitions that have been taken part in. Being Juve means having the DNA of someone who never gives up, someone who looks ahead immediately after a defeat and gets back to work immediately after a victory, someone who sees the future when others limit themselves to the present.
The people of Juve, as Andrea fondly calls them, from the very beginning, from that night when he cut the ribbon that officially opened the Allianz Stadium, know all this and live it. And it is recognisable by simply looking each other in the eye.
For this reason, the people of Juve know one thing for sure: Andrea Agnelli will not always be a huge and fundamental piece of our history, but above all he will be one of us.
Thanks again for everything, Mr President. It has been incredible.
