less than 10 years ago, Juventus was battling for survival in the second division, tainted by an Italian football scandal. The comeback has been spectacular and could be crowned by the biggest prize in club competitions when Juve tackles Barcelona in the Champions league final on Saturday. Juventus is back in the final for the first time since 2003, having completed a domestic double by winning the Italian championship and the national cup competition. The Italian team is also playing its first Champions league final since being demoted to Italy’s second-tier competition in the wake of the “Calciopoli” match-fixing scandal in 2006. After being revealed to have influenced referees’ decisions, Juventus was stripped of its 2005 and 2006 Serie A titles and relegated from the topflight.
Veteran Gianluigi Buffon, still keeping goal for Juventus today, returned home in 2006 after winning the World Cup with Italy at the Berlin Olympic stadium — the venue of Saturday’s final — to play in the second division with Juventus. Alessandro Del Piero, another star of the time, also stood by his team and Juventus was back in the top flight after one season. The reputation of the northern Italian team has gradually been restored, with the club winning the last four Italian tiles. It now has a shot at lifting the European Cup for the first time since 1996. It has won 31 league titles, 10 Italian Cup trophies, and UCl twice.