Manchester City claim victory over Premier League rules: report

Manchester City has emerged victorious in their legal dispute with the Premier League over the Associated Party Transaction Rules (APT).

That's according to the Mail, who understand that clubs were due to discuss changes to the APT rules at a summit in London this morning – only for the vote to be dropped “at the last minute”.

Manchester City are opposed to the laws, which Pep Guardiola described as “discriminatory”. The report adds that the recent bombshell could yet have a significant impact on the case into City's alleged breach of 115 financial regulations – which is currently ongoing. 

Manchester City appear to have beaten the Premier League with this recent update

In June, it emerged that Manchester City had sued the Premier League over the APT rules, which are aimed at stopping clubs from signing inflated sponsorship deals with companies linked with their ownerships. This was an unprecedented move, which City claimed was aimed at curtailing their dominance.

While it's still unconfirmed as to whether the Premier League have backed down and dropped the laws, the Mail claims that by dropping the vote to change the APT rules this morning, it can “be interpreted as a heavy indication” that City have succeeded in their legal challenge. 

The APT rules were brought in back in December 2021, following the Saudi-led takeover of Newcastle United. What seemed like a takeover with unlimited potential for the Toon has since been scaled back in ambition somewhat, with the Magpies having to sell homegrown assets like Elliot Anderson to comply with the Premier League's own Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR).

Newcastle signed a deal with Saudi-based entertainment and events group, Sela, at the start of last season, while e-commerce business Noon appears on the Magpies' sleeves as part of another deal. Should the Premier League drop its APT laws, however, some have speculated that there would be little against the Magpies having more money to spend in the transfer market, thanks to an expansion of the sponsorship deals on offer to them. 

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According to the Mail, “Clubs were set to vote on whether to restrict access to the databank and prevent bodies such as tribunals from doing so before judging on fair market value. The databank is seen as a pillar of the APT rules. However, it did not take place after an amendment was pulled from the agenda.”

City declined to comment on the report – but it remains to be seen as to whether the dropping of this vote and City's victory in this ruling will affect their other ongoing battle with the Premier League.

Will this ruling affect the ongoing court case into City's alleged 115 charges?

It remains to be seen. There's a likelihood, however, that the two are at least partly linked.

Many of the 115 charges that City face involve allegations over sponsorships with companies linked to the club's Abu Dhabi ownership. The club face a potential points deduction and heavy fines, should they be found guilty.

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Most notably, City are accused of failing to provide accurate and up-to-date financial information from 2009/10 to 2017/18. There are 54 charges relating to this breach – the most of any type of breach among the 115, while another 14 relate to the failure to provide accurate financial reports for player and manager compensation during this period. 

There are 35 charges relating to the club's failure to cooperate with the Premier League's investigations between December 2018 and the present day, while failures to comply with Premier League PSR and European Financial Fair Play (FFP) laws are also included in the charges. 

City's trial began on September 16 2024 and is expected to conclude next year.