The Premier League issued a defiant statement after Manchester City won a landmark legal case relating to commercial rules that govern top-flight clubs in England.
On October 7, it was announced that an independent panel had found in favour of the reigning champions regarding a legal challenge they brough against what are known as Associated Party Transactions (APT) rules. This case is separate to the charges the league brought against City for allegedly breaking financial rules between 2009 and 2018.
City argued that the Premier League's regulations — which were developed to prevent sponsorship deals between clubs and entities related to their owners from being inflated beyond their fair market value, and were intended to safeguard "the financial stability, integrity, and competitive balance" of the league — went against competition law. The club also claimed it was unjust for the league to have blocked two proposed sponsorship deals because of these regulations.
The independent panel found that those sponsor agreements, with First Abu Dhabi Bank and another with Etihad Aviation Group, had been blocked unfairly. It also agreed with City's claim that the APT rules as written broke competition law in specific ways.
Both City and the Premier League released statements in which they welcomed the findings of the panel. City felt they had been vindicated in their argument that APT rules were "structurally unfair", and that the Premier League had "abused its dominant position"; the league said arbitration panel's decision had "endorsed the overall objectives, framework and decision-making of the APT system".
Here's what each side said in full.
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Man City statement on challenge to Premier League APT regulations
"Following today's publication of the Rule X Arbitral Tribunal Award, Manchester City Football Club thanks the distinguished members of the Arbitral Tribunal for their work and considerations and welcomes their findings:
"- The Club has succeeded with its claim: the Associated Party Transaction (APT) rules have been found to be unlawful and the Premier League’s decisions on two specific MCFC sponsorship transactions have been set aside
"- The Tribunal found that both the original APT rules and the current, (amended) APT Rules violate UK competition law and violate the requirements of procedural fairness.
"- The Premier League was found to have abused its dominant position.
"- The Tribunal has determined both that the rules are structurally unfair and that the Premier League was specifically unfair in how it applied those rules to the Club in practice.
"- The rules were found to be discriminatory in how they operate, because they deliberately excluded shareholder loans.
"- As well as these general findings on legality, the Tribunal has set aside specific decisions of the Premier League to restate the fair market value of two transactions entered into by the Club.
"- The tribunal held that the Premier League had reached the decisions in a procedurally unfair manner.
"- The Tribunal also ruled that there was an unreasonable delay in the Premier League's fair market value assessment of two of the Club’s sponsorship transactions, and so the Premier League breached its own rules."
Premier League statement on Man City APT case
"The decision of an Arbitration Panel has been published following a legal challenge by Manchester City FC against the Premier League's Associated Party Transaction (APT) Rules.
"The Premier League welcomes the Tribunal's findings, which endorsed the overall objectives, framework and decision-making of the APT system. The Tribunal upheld the need for the APT system as a whole and rejected the majority of Manchester City's challenges. Moreover, the Tribunal found that the Rules are necessary in order for the League’s financial controls to be effective.
"The decision represents an important and detailed assessment of the APT Rules, which ensure clubs are not able to benefit from commercial deals or reductions in costs that are not at Fair Market Value (FMV) by virtue of relationships with Associated Parties. These Rules were introduced to provide a robust mechanism to safeguard the financial stability, integrity and competitive balance of the League.
"The Tribunal did, however, identify a small number of discrete elements of the Rules which do not, in their current form, comply with competition and public law requirements. These elements can quickly and effectively be remedied by the League and clubs.
"In the meantime, the Premier League will continue to operate the existing APT system, taking into account the findings made by the Tribunal."
