Juventus File Fresh Appeal as Cristiano Ronaldo's €9.8m Unpaid Wages Dispute Drags On

Juventus refuse to back down in decade-old wage saga

Juventus and former striker Cristiano Ronaldo remain locked in a legal battle over unpaid wages, with no sign that the dispute is nearing a resolution. According to a report by La Gazzetta dello Sport, the case is still very much alive, with the Serie A side refusing to accept the outcome of earlier proceedings.

The Italian newspaper reports that two rulings have already gone in favour of the Portuguese forward, who has been handed a figure of €9.8 million plus interest and revaluation as a result. Yet Juventus are not backing down and have sent forward a further appeal to contest the matter. That appeal has already been submitted, and the club are now awaiting a hearing date.

How the dispute began

The affair dates back to the Covid era, when Juventus reached an agreement with their players regarding the alleged fictitious forgoing of some monthly salaries in order to cope with the pandemic and the financial impact it had on the club.

In 2021, Juventus executives are said to have reached an agreement with the former Real Madrid and Manchester United forward through a document known as the 'Ronaldo card'. That document, cited in the investigation involving the Bianconeri's top management, referred to a deferred payment of €19.5 million as the player's gross salary. The probe ultimately led to the resignation of president Andrea Agnelli and the former board of directors.

The sum, however, was never recorded in the club's financial statements. Wiretaps related to the Prisma investigation reportedly revealed that the written agreement theoretically should not exist.

Missing signatures and arbitration

Ronaldo later sued Juventus in 2023, and the document was indeed found as part of the investigations. But the player's signatures were missing from it, leading the parties to agree to an arbitration process — a process whose outcome the club is now seeking to challenge once again.

With the appeal filed and a hearing date still pending, the long-running saga between the five-time Ballon d'Or winner and his former employers looks set to continue.