Juventus appeals verdict on 15-point penalty set for Thursday

ROME (AP) — Juventus and the rest of Serie A will have to wait until Thursday at the earliest for the verdict of the Bianconeri's appeal against a 15-point penalty for false accounting.

Italy’s highest sports court adjourned on Wednesday evening after a three-hour hearing without announcing a decision, although it seems increasingly likely Juventus will be given the points back pending another trial.

That would lift Juventus from seventh to third in Serie A and right in the mix for a spot in next season’s Champions League.

Prosecutors have asked for the matter to be sent to a different court for a new trial, which would see Juventus handed the points back at least temporarily. Juventus wants the case thrown out completely.

The storied Italian club was hit with the massive penalty in January while several members of its former board were also handed bans from soccer activities, including former president Andrea Agnelli.

Juventus denied wrongdoing and appealed to Italy’s highest sports court within the Italian Olympic Committee, known as CONI.

The Juventus board resigned en masse in November following an investigation by Turin public prosecutors into alleged false bookkeeping.

A sports trial in the case was then re-opened based on information from the Turin prosecutors, leading to the points deduction.

The preliminary hearing in a Turin court last month was postponed until May 10 for administrative reasons.

Juventus, Agnelli and 11 others face charges of false communications by a company listed publicly on the Milan stock exchange, obstructing watchdog agencies, false billing and market manipulation.

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