Man City Premier League legal action could be crucial while the 115 charges decision is awaited.
The majority of this week’s football agenda has been dominated by Manchester City’s legal case against the Premier League.
On Tuesday, it was made public that City intended to challenge the Premier League’s “illegal” Associated Party Transaction (APT) regulations by suing for damages. This is in addition to the 115 rule violations that the Premier League has charged City with; a hearing may be held later this year.
According to The Times, the Blues have now assembled a 165-page legal document in an effort to overturn APT regulations designed to stop affiliated parties from agreeing to sponsorship deals that are more than fair market value, which the City claims violates competition law.
Although there has been a lot of response, what exactly is going on at City and how is it viewed by other teams? We consult the professionals.
READ MORE: City challenge to Premier League goes well beyond 115 charges as endgame nears
ALSO READ: Man City ‘sue Premier League’ in discrimination case that could impact 115 charges hearing
Simon Bajkowski (Man City writer, MEN)
In other words, if someone hasn’t read the 165-page legal document, they have no idea what City is doing, and we all ought to be aware of this. In 2018, it appeared from some hacked emails that City was passing off sponsorship money as equity. However, a judge determined that there was no proof of that.
However, that didn’t stop the moralising around it, and that still holds true today. We’re not sure if City is attempting to completely invalidate APTs or if their legal case is limited to the most recent versions that were introduced in February, but all of a sudden, everyone is on the same team and City is the Premier League’s antagonists.
Some of City’s language is dismal, and the fact that they are at such odds with one another is a depressing reflection of the relationship between the Premier League and its champions. It is also depressing that many would prefer that a specialised financial regulation that they had no interest in prior to this week stay illegal, if that is actually the case, than for City’s case to succeed.
It’s also unique in that City would still have to follow UEFA regulations even if they were to totally abolish APTs—which is improbable given that there wasn’t much opposition when they were first implemented, suggesting that this is more of a technicality relating to a recent amendment. Anyone claiming that the game will be destroyed by just one hearing is obviously ignorant.
This is by no means an excuse for City to act in this way, but I find it difficult to criticise too harshly in the absence of more comprehensive information. Sadly, a lot of other people don’t appear to have that issue.
Read more news on https://sportupdates.co.uk/
Leave a Reply