On Wednesday, departing Juventus president Andrea Agnelli directed one final speech before officially leaving office, addressing the club’s shareholders, and to a larger extent, the Bianconeri supporters all over the globe.

The former chairman of the board took charge of the club back in 2010 and oversaw a period of great success and domestic dominance between 2012 and 2020.

Nonetheless, the club’s fortunes took a turn to the worse following the Covid-19 pandemic, causing a major legal and financial turmoil, culminating with his resignation on November 28.

Nonetheless, the the departing president seemed unapologetic while staunchly defending some of the policies which had ultimately contributed in his demise.

For instance, Agnelli insisted that the controversial European Super League project remains a necessity for football clubs who won’t be able to sustain the financial burdens in the future.

The 47-year-old also praises Juve’s Next Gen project, believing that half of the club’s team will be comprised of youth products in the future.

Here is the chairman’s full speech as published by ilBianconero.

“Recently, We have witnessed changes in ownerships at big clubs such as Chelsea, Milan, Newcastle, Atalanta and Leeds.

“These are numbers that make you think. LaLiga has reached an agreement on 50 years, valuing it, with operations made by CVC. In Serie A, after the agreement with CVC, we received two more letters, the Bundesliga itself is evaluating its situation.

“We are witnessing an expanding phenomenon, such as timeshare. The City Group, RedBull, RedBird, 777. We don’t have an exact data, but Goldman & Sachs is investing 1 billion in football while QSI is trying to enter football.

“So there is interest in this domain. In my opinion, there is no response from the governors, who have not evolved and fail to understand the difference between gaming and industry.

“As ECA president and a UEFA member, The analysis was clear: there was unsustainability of the System, non-profitability of the Clubs, who are the only ones to take risks. The disaffection on the part of the fans was already evident at the time.

“Those who work at the intermediate level are realizing this. The proposal was an ecosystem creation for the major European leagues, which would increase stability and the risk of access is among the greatest; that maintained the symbiosis between the domestic and international championships.

“Since Serie A has been a single league, almost 100 years, only 68 teams have played in almost 100 years.

“So based on sporting competitiveness. It was proposed by UEFA and ECA together in 2019. Then I don’t want to remember what happened. If I had wanted to maintain a privileged position, maintaining my office, in UEFA, in the FIGC as an adviser, I would not have made the decisions taken in 2021.

“But I believe that European football needs structural reforms for the future, otherwise we would see the decline of football in favor of the Premier League, which in a few years will attract all European talent.

“It seems clear to me that the current governors do not want to listen, preferring to maintain their position of privilege. They are the monopolists, they are the gate-keepers of the competition.

“From this point of view, the European Court of Justice is called to make the right decision and define this sport as an industry. The turnover of football is 55 billion and it employs 700,000 people. It seems to me that Article 165 of the EU treaty should be taken seriously, I hope that this ruling will pave the way for a different management.

“I want to thank Real Madrid and Barcelona for their courageous stance against UEFA’s threats in spring 2021, based on article 51 of their statutes. We would have been sanctioned because we found ourselves in a room thinking about a better future, without consulting UEFA. We are a few days away from a possible change.

“There has been a lot of activity carried out within Juventus, with great pride. There’s been a couple of interventions, the club’s property development. 400 million in the last decade: the Stadium, the JTC, the Museum, the shops, the J-Village and the improvements on Vinovo.

“One of the results was the creation of the logo, has has been a turning point to the image of the clubs globally. The courage of this dimension will bear fruit over time, it will give wide recognition to the club, even among those who are not football supporters. It makes you extend the brand in different areas.

“Sports results are a source of great pride. The first team, the Women, especially the Next Gen, which brought a trophy to the Museum. They are now introducing first team talents.

“With perseverance, dedication and passion, they can make up 50 to 60% of the first team in 5 to 8 years with clear, great benefits, while maintaining competitiveness at national and international levels.

“Surely I have forgotten to mention many [while listing his former collaborators], but know that everyone has my deep sense of gratitude.

“The last part is personal. Having closed such an important part of my life, my will is to find a blank page in front of me that I can re-attack and face with passion, evidently after a little vacation.

“It was my personal decision to leave, with the meetings I preside over (companies listed on the Stock Exchange, ed), I will take a step back. I do it in agreement with John Elkann, with whom I have a very close relationship, also Ajay Banga (President of Exor) and Carlos Tavares (CEO of Stellantis).

“I want to face the future with a blank page, I consider it essential to have freedom of thought to face this new part which I can’t wait to start with.”