Manchester City have ended their dispute with the Premier League over rules that govern sponsorship deals involving companies linked to club ownership. The settlement closes a legal battle that had threatened to test the foundations of the league’s regulations.
At the centre of the row were the associated party transaction rules which restrict the extent to which clubs can strike commercial deals with firms connected to their owners. These regulations were seen as crucial to preventing clubs from inflating revenues in order to meet financial fair play requirements.
In a joint statement issued on Monday both parties confirmed that proceedings had been terminated. “The Premier League and Manchester City FC have reached a settlement in relation to the arbitration commenced by the club earlier this year concerning the Premier League’s associated party transaction rules and as a result have agreed to terminate the proceedings. This settlement brings an end to the dispute between the parties regarding the APT rules. As part of the settlement Manchester City accepts that the current APT rules are valid and binding. It has been agreed that neither the Premier League nor the club will be making any further comment about the matter.”
The case had already delivered one significant ruling in October when an arbitration panel judged elements of the earlier framework to be discriminatory. The panel found that shareholder loans to their own clubs should have been included within the scope of APT and that there were flaws in the process used to determine fair market value in commercial agreements.
In response the Premier League amended its rulebook and argued that the concerns had been addressed. City however launched fresh arbitration this year to contest the revised system. That challenge has now been dropped with both sides recognising the validity of the current framework.
While the matter is settled City remain entangled in a wider disciplinary process that looms far larger. The club face more than 130 charges of alleged breaches of Premier League financial rules. That case continues and is expected to dominate the landscape of English football governance in the months ahead.