Napoli President De Laurentiis to Stand Trial Over Osimhen Transfer

Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis is set to face trial over alleged false accounting tied to Victor Osimhen’s 2020 move from Lille. According to prosecutors in Rome, Napoli used “fictitious capital gains” in their financial statements between 2019 and 2021 — inflating the value of several players involved in the Osimhen deal to improve the club’s books.

De Laurentiis is not the only one implicated: CEO Andrea Chiavelli and Napoli itself are also listed in the indictment. The investigation centers on how Napoli structured the Osimhen transfer. Prosecutors allege four players were sent to Lille including the veteran goalkeeper Orestis Karnezis and three young academy players and their valuations (collectively more than €20 million) were artificially inflated.

The first hearing has been scheduled for 2 December 2026. Napoli strongly denies any wrongdoing. De Laurentiis’ legal team argues the judgment is “astonishing,” claiming independent audits support their case and that there was “no financial advantage” from the transactions.  Notably, FIGC (the Italian football federation) previously reviewed a related investigation and closed its disciplinary inquiry in 2022, meaning Napoli faces no immediate sporting sanctions.

Editorial 

In the elegant but relentless theatre of European football, few figures stand as large  or as controversial as Aurelio De Laurentiis. His indictment for alleged false accounting over the Victor Osimhen transfer is not simply a legal drama; it is a stark reminder of how the business of football often complicates the beauty of the game.

That Napoli now confront such serious charges is neither trivial nor surprising. This is a club that has long balanced on the tightrope between financial pragmatism and footballing aspiration. Yet, the scale of the alleged manipulation using inflated valuations of lesser-known players to mask the true cost of a marquee signing reveals a system at risk of moral compromise.

If the prosecution’s case holds, it would suggest that Napoli’s climb to the summit of Serie A has a financial underbelly that demands scrutiny. The legal architecture of modern football is built to reward success, but it also encourages creativity in accounting. De Laurentiis, with his dual identity as cinema mogul and club president, has always operated in the realm of showmanship. Now he faces his most serious role yet not as impresario, but as defendant.

For Osimhen once the African footballer electrifying Naples this could be a bittersweet legacy. His arrival was celebrated; his departure, inevitable. But the way his transfer is now legally framed raises uncomfortable questions about consent, valuation, and the human cost behind blockbuster deals.

Football authorities have previously let off Napoli for similar accusations, opting for regulation over punishment. But this time, the stakes feel higher. A trial beginning in December 2026 is not just a reckoning for De Laurentiis it is a test for a sport that must reconcile its financial ambitions with its ethical responsibilities. In the end, Napoli may yet pay a different price for its success — one measured not in trophies, but in accountability.

Did You Know?

1. The alleged accounting scandal involves two major transfers not only Victor Osimhen from Lille (2020), but also Kostas Manolas from Roma in 2019.
2. Prosecutors claim the four players sent to Lille in the Osimhen deal were overvalued to generate a paper profit, even though three of them never made competitive appearances for Lille.
3. The trial will begin more than a year from now, on 2 December 2026.
4. Napoli’s legal team argues that independent reports and audits back their account valuations, saying they “acted legitimately and in compliance with Italian accounting principles.”
5. Despite the criminal case, Napoli has not been penalised by the FIGC, as the federation closed its disciplinary probe in 2022.