Manchester City has enriched the history books of the English Premier League with their success over the years. At the very same time, the Cityzens are dealing with adversities, as they continue to battle 115 FFP charges. Notably, they haven’t been penalized yet, unlike fellow clubs like Everton and Nottingham Forest. But Pep’s employers have played a reverse card. They’ve launched a separate legal action against potentially the best soccer league in the world. That seems to have backfired on the club’s built reputation as they have been slammed for ‘damaging‘ the EPL.
A report from the Times stated that Manchester City initiating legal action has instigated a civil war between English and UAE parties, whose delegators are the financial backbone of the club. As it became an agenda on talkSPORT, soccer critic Rory Jennings claimed that there isn’t any justification for a ‘privileged‘ Man City to even employ the term ‘tyranny of the majority.’
“Ultimately, this I believe is due to trying to create as much chaos as possible and basically a league cannot function if the teams do not adhere to and respect the rules of that league,” Jennings asserted. The commentator insisted that City, challenging every rule, would result in the league not existing. “I think this is really damaging. This whole thing is really troubling. If somehow Manchester City wins this, the Premier League as we know it will cease to exist,” he added.
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Interestingly, co-host Hugh Woozencroft claimed that it’s hard to believe how Manchester City has been affected financially that they are suing EPL for damages. He questioned the Premier League holders for allegedly igniting a political war. Simultaneously, Jennings agreed and added, “If Manchester City weren’t about to face 115 charges, I wonder if this case would be bought.”
But sadly, they have. Speaking of which, why exactly are they going against the Premier League?
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Why is Manchester City taking legal action against the Premier League?
Manchester City is apparently trying to dispose of the Premier League’s Associated Party Transaction (APT) rules. The Cityzens claim that the 165-page document is not only unlawful but also ‘discriminatory‘, alleging it was introduced under the ‘tyranny of the majority‘. Implemented in December 2021 after the Saudi Arabia-led takeover of Newcastle, these regulations aim to prevent clubs from inflating commercial deals with entities connected to their owners, thereby limiting their ability to spend unlimited amounts on player transfers and infrastructure upgrades.
Furthermore, Pep Guardiola’s team is seeking damages and arguing that the process through which Premier League clubs vote for rule changes is flawed. If they win the case, then clubs wouldn’t be required to get their sponsorship agreements independently evaluated and sanctioned. However, it would also result in the teams potentially injecting substantial funds for use without violating financial fair play regulations. Notably, the dispute is set to be resolved through a private arbitration hearing commencing on Monday, June 10, and will take place for over two weeks. It remains to be seen what happens at this stage.
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But we would like to know your thoughts on Manchester City’s legal action over the Premier League.