Manchester City claim partial win over Premier League on sponsorship rules
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A general view inside the Etihad Stadium before Manchester City's EPL match against Fulham on Oct 5.
PHOTO: REUTERS
LONDON – Manchester City claimed a partial win over the English Premier League on Oct 7 after an arbitration panel’s ruling into the club’s alleged violations of the league’s rules on associated party transactions (APT).
The league put its own spin on what some commentators saw as a landmark verdict, saying the panel’s redacted 165-page ruling endorsed the overall objectives and decision-making of the APT system.
The panel, however, found parts of the league’s APT rules broke British competition law and were also unlawful because clubs were unable to comment on the types of data the league would take into account.
The league’s decision in relation to two transactions in 2023, with First Abu Dhabi Bank and Etihad Aviation Group, were “reached in a procedurally unfair manner” and must be overturned, the panel ruled.
APT rules were designed to maintain the league’s competitiveness by preventing clubs from inflating the value of sponsorship deals with companies linked to their owners.
City, bought by Sheikh Mansour’s Abu Dhabi United Group in 2008, said that they had succeeded with their claim and the league was found, among other things, to have abused its dominant position.
“The tribunal has determined both that the rules are structurally unfair and that the Premier League was specifically unfair in how it applied those rules to the club in practice,” City added. “The rules were found to be discriminatory in how they operate, because they deliberately excluded shareholder loans.”
The league said the majority of City’s challenges had been rejected.
“The tribunal found that the rules are necessary in order for the League’s financial controls to be effective,” it added in a statement.
Champions City are also involved in a separate independent hearing into the club’s alleged breaches of league financial regulations, with a verdict expected before the end of the season.
The league introduced a temporary ban on clubs being sponsored by firms linked to their owners following the sale of Newcastle United to a consortium dominated by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund in 2021.
The rules were amended in March after consultation with clubs and were approved by the Football Association. According to the rules, each APT must be submitted to the Premier League Board to conduct a fair market value assessment.
Chelsea, Newcastle, Nottingham Forest and Everton were witnesses for City in the arbitration process.
Manchester United, Liverpool, Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur, Brighton & Hove Albion and West Ham United were witnesses for the Premier League. REUTERS
