Juventus first half financial loss widens to 95 million euros

A ban from lucrative European competition this season over financial irregularities weighs heavily on the Italian club's revenue

Football - Serie A - Juventus v Parma - Allianz Stadium, Turin, Italy - January 19, 2020. General view of the corner flag inside the stadium before the match. REUTERS

Juventus said on Friday its net loss widened to 95.1 million euros ($102 million) in the first half of its 2023-24 fiscal year as its ban from lucrative European competition this season over financial irregularities weighed on the Italian club's revenue.

The result compares with a loss of 29.5 million euros in the same period of the previous fiscal year.

Revenue fell almost 26 percent to 173.3 million euros between July and December last year, Juventus said in a statement.

To shore up its cash-strapped finances, the Serie A club has announced a 200 million euro capital increase, which is expected to be launched by the end of April.

Exor, the investment arm for the Agnelli family, which has been controlling the Turin-based club for over a century, already covered the proportion of the cash call matching its 64 percent stake and will also act as a guarantor for the remaining part.

Juventus was hit by an accounting scandal linked to player trading and salary payments in late 2022, whose consequences included a ban from this season's European competitions.

Juventus reiterated on Friday it forecast another loss in the current full fiscal year after it reported a consolidated loss of 124 million euros in to Jun 30, 2023, bringing its cumulated losses to over 700 million euros in six years.

It last posted a net profit in 2016-2017.