The ‘trial of the century‘ has finally begun and in the week three (out of expected 10), we already have one huge controversy. According to Manchester City, the tribunal made a big decision in their favor by proclaiming the the associated party transaction (APT) rules are ‘unlawful‘ which can have big consequences for other clubs and the league itself. The Associated Party Transactions (APTs) regulations are intended to prevent companies associated with the owners of football clubs from deliberately paying over the odds for deals with the clubs themselves and they were introduced when Saudi Arabia PIF fund took over Newcastle United. The other clubs were essentially scared that the Magpies will now be full of money and will pass all other clubs from the self-proclaimed ‘Big six‘, but the panel decided that that law by the league is ‘unlawful‘.Club statement— Manchester City (@ManCity) October 7, 2024 City launched legal action against the associated party transaction (APT) rules earlier this year on the grounds they were anti-competitive. The case is separate from an ongoing hearing involving City, with the club fighting 115 charges relating to alleged breaches of Premier League financial rules. Manchester City said the panel found the APT rules were “structurally unfair” and that the panel had set aside specific decisions of the Premier League to restate the fair market value of two transactions entered into by the club. This could have a large implications for the league, as they rejected two sponsorship deals according to the rules which are now branded ‘unlawful‘ (new sponsorship deal with Etihad late in 2023, as well as a second agreement with an Abu Dhabi-based bank). This rule is huge, as it will have consequence for the future deals. It will change the direction of the league’s future financial governance, and it could even affect future results by making it easier for clubs with super-rich owners to arrange lucrative sponsorship deals, as well as making it easier to buy and sell players between clubs with the same owners.🚨🚨| NEW: Clubs who gave evidence IN FAVOUR of the Premier League against Manchester City over Associated Party Transaction rules… ▫️Arsenal▫️Manchester United▫️Liverpool▫️West Ham▫️Brentford▫️Bournemouth▫️Fulham▫️Wolves[@MailSport via @City_Xtra]— Vitalis Wanzala (@Vitaliswanzala) October 7, 2024 City had argued that loan payments made by other owners to their clubs were unfair and not at market value as they were often at zero or no interest or did not have to be repaid at all. If commercial rates are now applied – and those loans included in club’s profit and sustainability accounts – many could find themselves in breach of financial regulation in what could be a nightmare scenario that would heap pressure on Premier League bosses. The verdict could also open the door for City and others to pen significantly higher deals with related parties. City are expected to seek costs and damages while the Premier League are expected to have to amend or dump the system entirely. Other clubs could also seek damages should they believe they have been impacted.‘Every club wants us to lose the trial with the Premier League‘But then the Premier League released its own statement during the day, saying that City were “unsuccessful in the majority of (their) challenge” and that the tribunal considering the case had determined the APT rules were necessary and pursued a legitimate objective. The Premier League said the tribunal had supported the legitimacy of the regulations and said it had found them essential to make the profitability and sustainability rules (PSR) effective. It said the tribunal had agreed with the Premier League that if a transaction was evidently not at fair market value, that would distort competition within the league. The league also said the panel had rejected City’s argument that the purpose of the rules was to discriminate against clubs with ownership from the Gulf region.##NAJAVA_MECA_8389009##
