Paratici forced to step down at Tottenham after FIFA extends ban
Paratici joined Tottenham in June 2021
Written by Training Ground Guru — March 29, 2023
FABIO PARATICI, Tottenham’s Managing Director of Football, has been forced to step down from his role after FIFA extended a ban imposed in Italy.
In January, Paratici was banned from working in Italian football for 30 months after his former club, Juventus, was found guilty of false accounting, market manipulation and filing misleading financial statements. Now that suspension has been extended worldwide.
“FIFA can confirm that following a request by the Italian FA (FIGC), the chairperson of FIFA disciplinary committee has decided to extend the sanctions imposed by FIGC on several football officials to have worldwide effect,” world football’s governing body told The Guardian.
Yesterday, Paratici responded publicly to Antonio Conte’s recent departure as Tottenham’s Head Coach. In an extended interview with the club’s website, the Italian described Conte’s departure as “the right decision” and called on everyone at the club to focus on a successful end to the season.
The Italian FA’s investigation had centred on Juventus’s published accounts for the three years to 2021, with "capital gains declarations" under particular scrutiny. Paratici was Juve's Managing Director, Football for 11 years prior to joining Tottenham in the same position in June 2021.
As a result of the ruling, Juventus were hit with a 15-point deduction in Serie A and former President Andrea Agnelli and former CEO Maurizio Arrivabene were banned from Italian football for two years. Current Sporting Director Federico Cherubini was given a 16-month ban and board member Pavel Nedved an eight-month ban.
In 2021, the Italian federation launched an investigation into 62 transfers involving various clubs, to establish whether player valuations had been artificially inflated. This could, potentially, have enabled clubs to dodge Financial Fair Play rules. Eleven clubs, including Juve, were cleared of wrongdoing in April 2022, but an investigation led by Turin’s public prosecutor continued and uncovered additional evidence.
At the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, Juventus had stated that 23 players had agreed to reduce their salaries for four months to help the club through the crisis. However, prosecutors found that players only gave up one month’s salary. According to reports in Italy, prosecutors have also discovered "secret payments" to former player Cristiano Ronaldo.
The club have denied all accusations of wrongdoing.
Paratici has deputies in Performance Director Gretar Steinsson and Assistant Performance Director Andy Scoulding, while Rebecca Caplehorn is Director of Football Administration and Governance.
