Tether, the issuer of the stablecoin USDT, has announced two nominations to the board of Italian football club Juventus.
The company selected its deputy chief investment officer, Zachary Lyons, and orthodontist Francesco Garino, a lifelong Juventus supporter, as board candidates.
Tether holds a 10.7% stake in Juventus following investments earlier this year in February and April.
“Since announcing our investment in the Club, Tether has listened carefully to the voices of fans from Italy and across the whole world, receiving invaluable suggestions, feedback, and calls for deeper engagement,” Tether stated in its Thursday announcement.
The company said it has proposed changes to be voted on at the shareholder assembly.
“We have made suggestions to be voted in the assembly in order to make certain changes to the by-laws and to adopt best-in-class corporate governance and representation of minorities,” the statement added.
Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino also reiterated a slogan inspired by former U.S. President Donald Trump, calling to “Make Juventus Great Again.”
Ardoino previously visited the White House in July to attend the GENIUS stablecoin bill signing ceremony.
The board nominations come as Juventus continues to recover from leadership controversies.
In November 2022, all board members resigned amid allegations of financial fraud involving player salaries.
Former board Chair Andrea Agnelli and two other executives later accepted plea deals, resulting in suspended sentences from Italian authorities.
Tether’s investments in sports are part of a broader strategy.
The stablecoin company invested $775 million in video-sharing platform Rumble and, alongside Rumble, proposed a $1.17 billion joint acquisition of AI infrastructure company Northern Data.
Despite being primarily a stablecoin issuer, Tether holds substantial Bitcoin reserves.
As of September, it owned approximately 100,000 BTC, valued at over $11 billion at the time of reporting.
USDT, Tether’s stablecoin, had a market capitalization exceeding $181 billion as of the announcement.
Tether’s growing footprint in sports and technology highlights the company’s ambitions beyond crypto markets.
