Man City are set to sue the Premier League ahead of their own review of an alleged 115 breaches of the league’s FFP rules.
The Times has revealed that the club are aiming to put an end to the Premier League’s Associated Party Transaction (ATP) rules.
The ATP rules are in relation to clubs having commercial or sponsorship deals with companies who are owned or associated with that same club’s owners.
They were first put in action in December 2021, around the time that Newcastle United were purchased by the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund.
The rules dictate that such transactions must be assessed independently to ensure that they are of ‘fair market value’ and that there are no financial lines crossed.
The Times report that Man City are taking legal action against the Premier League, seeking damages for loss of earnings caused by the ATP rules, which they are said to view as ‘unlawful’.
It is also mentioned that the club are claiming that they are victims of discrimination in regard to those very same rules.
A two-week arbitration period will begin as of Monday the 10th of June this year to settle the legal dispute.
Sky Sports News chief reporter, Kaveh Solhekol said of the case:
“What is being reported is unprecedented. We’ve got a situation where a Premier League club, Manchester City, the champions of the Premier League, are basically suing the Premier League.
“What City are going to argue at this arbitration hearing, which will start on Monday, is that some of the league’s financial rules are unlawful and they are incompatible with UK competition law. The rules they are talking about are the Associated Party Transaction rules.
“These were brought in in 2021 and they are designed to make sure that if a club signs a commercial deal with a company that is linked to its owners that it has to be a fair value, and that is checked to make sure that it is of fair value.”
This case adds on top of the two separate cases being made against Man City by the Premier League, which involve over 115 alleged breaches of financial rules.
We recently reported that the Premier League is considering making changes to the FFP rules, which could see the club avoid any repercussions altogether. We will report more as the saga unfolds.
