Juventus Reshapes Power Structure with Massara and Chiellini
Juventus have moved decisively to redraw their football hierarchy, confirming Frederic Massara as Chief Football Officer and handing Giorgio Chiellini a newly created executive role at the heart of the club’s institutional power.
The announcement, which followed a swirl of reports linking Massara with the Turin giants barely a month after his Roma exit, underlines a clear strategy: tighten the sporting structure, sharpen the decision-making, and restore Juventus to the sharp end of European football.
Massara handed the keys to men’s football
Massara, 57, steps in as Chief Football Officer and will report directly to Chief Executive Officer Giovanni Carnevali. His mandate is broad and unapologetically central: oversee the management and development of the men’s football division and help define and execute Juventus’ sporting strategies.
He will work closely with Sporting Director Marco Ottolini, effectively becoming the figure who connects boardroom ambition with what happens on the pitch. For a club that has lurched between projects in recent seasons, this is a move towards a more defined chain of command.
Juventus did not need to embellish Massara’s CV. His work at AC Milan and AS Roma has already earned him a reputation as one of the most respected executives in the European game, particularly in squad building and long-term planning. The club’s statement highlighted his “significant contribution” to the development of several “prestigious clubs,” a line that doubles as both praise and a clear expectation of what he is now required to deliver in Turin.
Chiellini becomes the club’s institutional heavyweight
If Massara is being asked to shape the team, Chiellini is being asked to shape the club’s voice.
After a year as Director of Football Strategy, the former Juventus captain moves into the role of Chief Club Affairs Officer. It is a title that may sound corporate, but the job itself is anything but cosmetic.
Chiellini will be responsible for strengthening Juventus’ ability to engage and negotiate with key institutions, strategic stakeholders and sporting organisations, in Italy and abroad. In plain terms: he becomes one of the club’s primary power brokers, a bridge between the dressing room culture he once led and the political arenas where the modern game is increasingly decided.
For a figure who spent his career marshalling defences and embodying the Juventus identity, it is a natural evolution. The club is betting that his credibility, both domestically and internationally, will carry weight in rooms where reputation matters as much as any balance sheet.
Carnevali’s blueprint takes shape
These appointments also shine a light on Giovanni Carnevali’s early blueprint since taking over as CEO and General Manager last month, replacing Damien Comolli after a brief spell at the Allianz Stadium.
Carnevali did not hide his intentions in the official communication. “I am convinced that we are building a solid, competent and cohesive structure, capable of supporting our ambitions both now and in the future,” he said, describing Massara’s arrival as an “added value” that dovetails with the skills already inside the club.
The message is clear: Juventus want alignment. A CEO with a defined vision, a seasoned operator in Massara to run the sporting side, and a club legend in Chiellini to carry influence beyond the touchline.
This is not just about titles on office doors. It is about restoring a sense of order after years of turbulence on and off the pitch.
Early moves on the market
The new structure is already being paired with action in the transfer market. Juventus have confirmed their first signing of the summer, landing Italy winger Jeff Ekhator in an €18m deal, including add-ons.
It is an early statement that the sporting project will not wait for the ink to dry on the organisational chart. With Massara now officially in place, every subsequent move in and out of the squad will be viewed through the prism of his track record and Carnevali’s promise of a “cohesive structure.”
Juventus have put their new power triangle in full view: Carnevali at the top, Massara shaping the football vision, Chiellini guarding the club’s wider interests. The question now is simple and ruthless, just as it always is in Turin: can this structure deliver trophies, or will it be judged as just another reshuffle on the road back to the top?
