Manchester City have accused the Premier League of ‘misleading’ clubs in a letter sent to all 19 other top-flight sides following a tribunal into the current commercial rules governing clubs.
The reigning Premier League champions claimed victory from the landmark case as some elements of the Associated Party Transaction rules were ruled ‘unlawful’.
City also felt that the Premier League had abused its position under competition law.
But the Premier League also claimed a small victory and welcomed the findings of the independent panel.
Manchester City have accused the Premier League of misleading teams
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The legal dispute has now taken a fresh turn with City’s general counsel, Simon Cliff, writing a letter to the other 19 clubs slamming the Premier League’s statement.
According to The Times, Cliff wrote that the Premier League gave ‘misleading’ information and their summary ‘contained several inaccuracies.
There were also ‘great concern’ raised over suggestions that the Premier League will be pushing for brand new APT rules to be introduced within two weeks.
Cliff said: “When the PL consulted on and proposed the original APT Rules in late 2021, we pointed out that the process (which took several weeks) was rushed, ill-thought-out and would result in rules that were anti-competitive. The recent award (conclusion of the panel) has validated those concerns entirely.
“The tribunal has declared the APT rules to be unlawful. MCFC’s [Manchester City’s] position is that this means all of the APT rules are void, and have been since 2021.
“In recent correspondence, the PL agreed with MCFC that this is an issue which will need to be resolved by the tribunal. It is therefore remarkable that the PL is now seeking to involve the member clubs in a process to amend the APT rules at a time when it does not even know the status of those rules.”
The league revised its APT rules earlier this year, which focus on making sure any deal a club does with a company associated to its owner is done at a fair market value.
City were blocked from making deals with Etihad Aviation Group and First Abu Dhabi Bank due to the application of the APT rules.
Richard Masters has some big decisions to make
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Cliff went on to issue a warning to other Premier League clubs not to rush into a decision over revising the current APT rules.
“We will be writing separately about this to the PL but in the meantime, given the findings in the award, this is the time for careful reflection and consideration by all clubs, and not for a knee-jerk reaction,” he added.
“Such an unwise course would be likely to lead to further legal proceedings with further legal costs.
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Manchester City sent the letter to all other 19 teams
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“It is critical for member clubs to feel that they can have trust in their regulator.”
Premier League clubs will hold an emergency meeting next week to discuss the verdict of the independent panel.
The case is separate to the 115 alleged breaches of financial rules City are facing in their bitter legal fight with the Premier League.