11 February 2026
“Juventus has always been at the forefront of innovation and this initiative is a clear demonstration of that. We must consider innovation as a strategic priority for the coming years.” These were the words with which Juventus CEO Damien Comolli opened the event Forward. In Play – Innovation Takes the Field.
Juventus therefore continues to redefine the concept of innovation in the world of sport. Today, in the prestigious setting of the Allianz Stadium, the Club shared the continuation of the journey launched by Juventus Forward, with the presentation of the latest collaborations and the new Forward Squad.
This initiative represents the beating heart of Juventus’ open innovation approach, a strategic bridge between the Club, startups, partners, talents and a community that constantly works on sport, technology and applied innovation. Juventus Forward was born from the awareness that innovation is no longer an option, but the only path to building lasting and sustainable value in modern football.
During the event, two outstanding partners were introduced, set to strengthen the Club’s innovation journey. CDP Venture Capital, which will move its vertical Accelerator dedicated to the Sportech & Wellness from Rome to Turin, turning the Allianz Stadium into a new national hub for sports startups and business acceleration, thereby consolidating a collaboration that over the years has significantly contributed to the growth of the Club’s innovation capabilities. This partnership has supported the development of the first PoCs and pilot projects between Juventus and startups and has served as a privileged observatory of a predominantly national market. In addition, The Players Fund will support Juventus as a strategic partner of the Innovation team, bringing an international perspective, benchmarks and expertise. Through global scouting activities, it will help identify priority needs, enable research and development collaborations and further strengthen the Club’s existing innovation capabilities, supporting Juventus in becoming venture-ready and in consolidating innovation as a distinctive competitive factor.
A central moment of the day was the presentation and activation of the Forward Squad: a true team made up of startups selected through a scouting process, which will collaborate with Juventus this season to experiment, validate, develop and showcase new projects. The Forward Squad will be the engine of innovation, structured across three levels (Player, Champion, Ally), designed to generate mutual value between the Club and its partners.
Adding further value to the day, a series of panel discussions offered a cross-cutting view of the sports innovation landscape, comparing Italian and international perspectives, scalability and new collaboration models. All participating startups were actively involved in the event and guests had the opportunity to test some of the selected technologies.
Juventus Forward responds to the changes and new challenges of international football: a structured platform that transforms vision into real impact, strengthening the Club’s reputation and generating measurable value through strategic collaborations and innovative projects.
With Forward. In Play – Innovation Takes the Field, Juventus positions itself as a pioneer of the future of sport, a journey where tradition meets technology and innovation finally takes the field.
