Juventus head into their first FIFA Club World Cup with decades of domestic dominance behind them and a point to prove on the global stage. After years of Champions League heartbreak and recent managerial instability, la Vecchia Signora arrive in the United States hoping to reset their international legacy.
Could Juventus become world champions this summer?
1) Who will Juventus face at the Club World Cup?
Juventus have been drawn into Group G and these are their group stage fixtures:
18 June: vs Al Ain. Audi Field, Washington DC.
22 June: vs Wydad Casablanca. Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia.
26 June: vs Manchester City. Camping World Stadium, Orlando.
2) Italian dominance
Juventus are, by quite some distance, Italy's most-successful club. To date, la Vecchia Signora have won 36 Serie A titles, which is 16 more than Inter, who sit second on the all-time list. This includes their recent period of domination, picking up nine successive Scudetti between 2012 and 2020; before this, the longest streak of titles any team had ever enjoyed was five.
Meantime, I Bianconeri are also the record 15-times Coppa Italia winners and are nine-times Supercoppa Italiana champions too, also a competition record.
3) European glory and heartbreak
On top of all this, Juventus have twice been crowned champions of Europe, beating Liverpool in the 1985 European Cup Final in Brussels, before defeating Ajax in Rome 11 years later. However, la Fidanzata d'Italia also hold the unwanted record for most Champions League Final defeats, having been runners-up seven times, five of which have come since their most-recent triumph.
During their period of domestic domination in the 2010s, Juve reached two Champions League Finals in three seasons, but were beaten by Barcelona in Berlin and Real Madrid in Cardiff.
4) A season of ups and downs
A year ago, Juve decided to end Massimiliano Allegri's second spell as head coach, with the club wanting to play more attacking, adventurous and front-foot style, hence why they appointed Thiago Motta, after he had guided Bologna to Champions League qualification.
Well, Motta's tenure in Turin lasted a mere 42 matches, sacked in March following a 4-0 hammering at the hands of Atalanta, the club's biggest home defeat in Serie A since October 1967. I Bianconeri had already been ignominiously dumped out of the Coppa Italia by Empoli, who would go onto be relegated, on penalties, also exiting the Champions League at the hands of PSV Eindhoven.
So, Igor Tudor was hired during the March international break and, after losing just one of his nine matches in charge, led Juve back into the Champions League, pipping Roma to fourth place on the final day following a come from behind 3-2 victory over Venezia at the Pier Luigi Penzo.
5) Past Club World Cup expirence
This will actually be Juventus' debut at the FIFA Club World Cup, but they did feature in the competition's precursor the Intercontinental Cup on three occasions. In 1973, la Vecchia Signora were defeated 1-0 by Independiente, before getting their hands on the trophy in 1985 and 1996, beating Argentinos Juniors on penalties, before a 1-0 victory over River Plate, also in Tokyo.
6) Juventus players to watch: Dušan Vlahović
He still very much divides opinion, but Dušan Vlahović remains Juventus' main man for goals.
Since joining from Fiorentina for a reported fee of €75 million in January of 2022, the Serbian international striker has scored 56 goals in 142 appearances for I Bianconeri, 15 of which came this season. Nevertheless, those in Turin were certainly expecting better from Vlahović when they made him the fourth-most expensive signing in the club's history, behind only Matthijs de Ligt, Gonzalo Higuaín and Cristiano Ronaldo. So, can he repay some of that fee stateside this summer?
7) Juventus players to watch: Weston McKennie
There will be plenty of excitement to see Juventus' two USMNT stars in action. While Tim Weah is a bit in and out, accumulating only 2,296 minutes across all competitions, starting just 24 matches, Weston McKennie has established himself as a key figure.
The 26 year old midfielder started 19 of Juve's last 20 Serie A matches, so is expected to be a regular this summer too, and the American public will be delighted to see him.
8) Juventus players to watch: Michele Di Gregorio
If Juventus are going to be considered genuine candidates to win this tournament, they'll need better from their goalkeeper Michele Di Gregorio. This was his debut campaign in Turin, after arriving from Monza, but he ranked fifth-bottom in Serie A this season for post-shot xG - goals allowed, according to FBref.com, which essentially means he let in four goals he shouldn't have, which is not ideal
9) Manager Igor Tudor: will he keep his job?
As already outlined, after being appointed on a short-term deal in March, Igor Tudor guided Juventus into the Champions League, suggesting he did a terrific job. On the other hand, he did only beat Genoa, Lecce, Monza, Udinese and Venezia, none of whom finished higher than 12th.
Right now, the Juve hierarchy have told Tudor they're reviewing his performance, which essentially means they're seeing if they can find someone better, but it does appear as though he'll remain in charge for this tournament at least. Thus, perhaps this is a practical interview process for him.
10) Could Juventus win the Club World Cup?
La Vecchia Signora kick off their Club World Cup campaign against Al Ain at Audi Field, before taking on Wydad Casablanca in Philadelphia and then Manchester City in Orlando.
While the two European teams are expected to advance, that final group game in Florida could be key, because the runners-up will more than likely run into Real Madrid in the round of 16.