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Agnelli was the son of Edoardo Agnelli (1892-1935) and Virginia Bourbon Del Monte (1899-1945) and grandson of Giovanni Agnelli, the founder of the Italian automobile industry. When he was 14 years old, his father died in a plane crash. In 1945 his mother died in a car accident. He then grew up with his grandfather of the same name, who founded the "Fabbrica Italiana Automobili Torino" (FIAT) in 1899. At the beginning of the Second World War, the young Agnelli initially reported for military service to fight for the fascist dictator Benito Mussolini on the Russian and African fronts. After 1943, however, the tank officer moved to the anti-fascist resistance camp. In the same year he joined the FIAT company. After 1945, Agnelli studied law at the University of Turin, which he completed with a doctorate. In the post-war period he became the playboy of high society. While still studying, he joined FIAT headquarters as Vice President following the death of his grandfather in 1946.
However, the automobile company was initially expertly managed by manager Vittorio Valletta as president until Agnelli became more involved in the company's management. In 1963, Agnelli joined the company's management as general director, and in 1966 he replaced Valletta as president. Agnelli held this position until 1996. The new company boss led FIAT beyond the actual automotive sector with the product range from Fiat, Lancia, Alfa Romeo and Ferrari to a group with a wide range of technologies, ranging from machines of all kinds, to chemical and biotechnology, industrial equipment and aviation technology, to press publishing. In addition to large Italian daily newspapers, the FIAT company also included department stores, financing companies and iron and metal processing companies.
Agnelli also bought the professional football club "Juventus Turin". In addition, the CEO served as President of the Italian Employers' Association from 1974 to 1976. In May 1987, Agnelli founded the superholding "Giovanni Agnelli & Co." for the management of the group, which was the responsibility of the council of limited partners. In addition to Agnelli, who secured a majority shareholding, it also included his younger brother Umberto Agnelli (born 1934) and FIAT CEO Cesare Romiti. After managing several FIAT subsidiaries, Umberto Agnelli headed the group's international activities from 1968 onwards. From 1970 to 1976 he was CEO of FIAT. At the same time, he had also been involved with the Italian Christian Democrats since the mid-1970s, for which he entered the Senate in 1976. In 1980, Umberto Agnelli handed over the role of chairman of the board to Cesare Romiti to run the family holding company "Istituto Finanziario Industriale" (IFI).
In 1990, Giovanni Agnelli, in competition with Daimler-Benz AG, achieved the 60% takeover of the Spanish commercial vehicle manufacturer "Enasa". In the first half of the decade he was able to avert the group's crisis by taking on partners for the first time who, such as Deutsche Bank, did not belong to the Agnelli family. In 1995, the Agnelli family became the main shareholder in the "Club Méditerranée". In 1996, Agnelli resigned as chairman of the FIAT board of directors in favor of Cesare Romiti. After three decades, he formally handed over the FIAT corporate management. However, as FIAT honorary president and boss of the Agnelli clan, he was able to maintain his decision-making power in the group. Agnelli was also represented on the supervisory boards of several companies and in several international economic advisory committees and cultural institutions. He continued to be a life member of the Italian Senate. He has also been a member of the International Olympic Committee since 2000.
In 1998, Paolo Fresco, former vice president of General Electric (GE), became the successor to Chairman Romiti. In the same year, Agnelli's grandson, John Elkann, a son from his daughter Margherita's first marriage, was appointed to the board of directors and the executive board of FIAT AG. Agnelli was married to Princess Marella Caracciolo di Casstagneto since 1953, who gave him two children; the son committed suicide in 2000; the daughter became a writer and painter. Therefore, John Elkann was considered the designated crown prince of the family and corporate patriarch, who was supposed to ensure the continuity of the family ownership in the future. In 2001, Agnelli also appointed his grandson as his successor in FIAT management. In October 2002, however, the traditional group hit the headlines due to another serious crisis, which was triggered by a slump in sales in the automotive sector and the company's enormous debt.
Involved in negotiations between the Italian government of Silvio Berlusconi and the FIAT management tried to restructure the company from ten banks. There was a threat of the closure of several of the group's production facilities, particularly in Termini Imerese, Sicily. The group sold off several subsidiaries in order to reduce its debt.
Giovanni Agnelli died on January 24, 2003, at the age of 81, at his estate in Turin.
