'Truly unusual' - Why Man City have taken on Premier League in legal challenge

Simon Bajkowski
·2-min read

Manchester City are arguing against 'truly unusual' measures installed by the Premier League in their latest battle over Associated Party Transaction (APT) rules.

City and the Premier League are already involved in a seismic contest, with a hearing to take place later this year on the charges levelled at the champions by its regulator concerning nearly a decade of allegedly misrepresenting their financial position. Before that potentially game-changing decision is made by an independent commission, the Blues have also challenged the Premier League over the legality of their APT rules.

A two-week hearing has just occurred in private, and had details of the case not been leaked to The Times a few weeks ago would never have been known about in the first place. While it is not clear what exact aspects City are challenging, the fact that stricter regulations were enforced in February 2024 would suggest that these have been questioned.

ALSO READ: Man City and Pep Guardiola facing major transfer gamble

ALSO READ: 'I understand' - Man Utd owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe wades in on Man City legal action vs Premier League

"Within the latest set of APT rules, the ones City have objected to, are a set of rules that require a director of the sponsoring company to make a declaration that the sponsorship is fair market value. It's truly unusual that a counter party is required to make that declaration," explained football finance expert Stefan Borson on the We're Not Really Here podcast.

"The club has to make it as well but they want the other side to make it as well and that is something City have said it's a step too far. That's the way you should look at it. City started this process when the original rules came in in 2021 around APT and raised the flag they weren't happy with them and suggested they may be subject to challenge down the road.

"In February 2024 City again said we think the rules have gone too far and too wide and if you put them through we will challenge them. What ultimately happened in February is they were passed only by 11 clubs voting in favour because the necessary two-thirds majority was gained by certain clubs abstaining from the vote so the way it works is that it is two-thirds of those that actually vote.

"City have in their view good grounds for challenging and that's why they are. We will see if they're lawful after the lawyers have had a good argument about competition law but the idea that is some kind of trigger for the end of football or the Premier League is vastly overdone in my opinion - it's very simply a point around lawfulness of the extension of rules."

  • Up next
  • Up next
  • Up next
  • Up next

Latest stories

  • Man United legend Wayne Rooney handed first major blow of new job as bumper contract refused

    Manchester United great Wayne Rooney is having to deal with his first major headache in charge of Plymouth Argyle having taken over at the club in May

  • India manipulating the draw for own benefit has turned T20 World Cup into a farce

    There really is no excuse for India this time if they fail to win the World Cup. The game’s financial behemoth has been handed an advantage by the structure of a tournament skewed in favour of one team for financial reasons.

  • Gary Lineker and Alan Shearer renew attack on ‘baffling’ Gareth Southgate decision

    Gary Lineker and Alan Shearer have launched another attack on Gareth Southgate’s team selection and tactics after England were booed off in their final European Championship group game against Slovenia.

  • The England player who should start in the last 16 - and two who badly underperformed

    How did the players fare in England’s goalless draw with Slovenia in their final group game at the Euros?

  • Gareth Southgate: ‘I am the problem’

    Gareth Southgate has admitted being England’s major problem at the European Championship, plunging his future as manager in doubt beyond the tournament.

  • Cristiano Ronaldo made instant dressing room change – the young players were gobsmacked

    One footballer has described the instant dressing room change that Cristiano Ronaldo implemented later in his career, which had younger stars in the squad flabbergasted

  • Paul Scholes proven right over England plea and says who must play in Euro 2024 KO games

    Paul Scholes was proven right after several positive cameos in England's 0-0 draw against Slovenia which saw them top Group C at Euro 2024

  • 'ITV's Euro 2024 coverage is wiping the floor with the BBC'

    As the Euros reach the knock-out stages, it's clear that ITV's coverage is leagues ahead of the BBC's.

  • David de Gea sends three-word transfer message as former Man United player seeks summer move

    Former Manchester United goalkeeper David de Gea hasn't played a competitive football match since May 2023

  • Rangers address Ibrox venue switch after SPFL release Premiership fixtures

    Rangers have released a statement to supporters regarding the alternative arrangements for their first matches of the new campaign.

  • Watch: Serbia fans chant Vladimir Putin’s name amid violent clashes with German police

    There were violent clashes between Serbia fans and riot police before the country’s final European Championship group game against Denmark.

  • Newcastle's Anthony Gordon left wounded after England bike accident

    Newcastle's Anthony Gordon was left bloodied and bruised after falling off a bike in Germany

  • Voices: Don’t blame Southgate – England’s dire performance at the Euros isn’t down to him

    COMMENT: After being held to a goalless draw against Slovenia, the England boss – who was bottled off the pitch and faces calls for his sacking – pointed the finger at fans for creating an ‘unusual environment’. So whose fault is it really, asks Gemma Abbott

  • England player ratings vs Slovenia: Kobbie Mainoo and Cole Palmer make impact after Conor Gallagher nightmare

    Substitutes offer only bright points in another hugely laboured Three Lions performance at Euro 2024

  • Denmark go through in second – thanks to a yellow card shown to Slovenia coach

    In a bizarre turn of events in Group C, Denmark finished in second place because of a yellow card shown to a member of Slovenia’s coaching staff earlier in the tournament.

  • Nan has shock reaction to 130mph motorbike racing

    A man captured his nan's amazing reaction during a motorbike racing event. Ollie Wildsmith, 29, took his nan Sheila Goodwin, 78, to see the TT Races, an annual motorcycle racing event in the Isle of Man. Video shows Sheila's shocked reaction as motorbikes whiz past her at 130mph. Ollie, a marketing manager from Derby, Derbyshire, said: "She was left speechless after all the bikes had gone by and you can see how strongly she's reacting in the video! "I do really think that you can't put into words what it's like to experience the TT races unless you've been before.

  • Emma Raducanu v Jessica Pegula LIVE: Tennis result and reaction after Briton’s impressive win at Eastbourne

    Raducanu and fellow Briton Katie Boulter both reached the quarter-finals of the Rothesay International at Devonshire Park

  • England’s route to the final: Possible opponents in the Euro 2024 knockout stages

    Should England miraculously transform into a tournament threat at these Euros, their path to the final in Berlin is at least inviting

  • Why Finns are deadly serious about hobby horsing

    A buzz of excitement crackled through the hushed arena as the rider gripped the reins of her stuffed steed.Welcome to the strangely exacting world of hobby horsing, the Finnish sport guaranteed to put a smile on your face. Immaculately-coiffed equestrians leap athletically over fences just like in horse jumping, going as fast as they can against the clock straddling their stick steeds.Things are more stately in the dressage, with riders trotting their stick horses with intricately decorated stuffed heads before the discerning eyes of the judges.Some 260 riders from 22 countries -- most women and girls aged between 10 and 20 -- turned up to compete at the 11th annual Finnish championship held in the town of Seinajoki.But despite its vast international reach, from the Arctic to Argentina, hobby horsing is a sport that dares not speak its name.- 'Insane' athleticism -Despite its soaring popularity, it is not officially recognised as a proper sport in its birthplace."We have faced so much bullying and judgement," rider Nara Arlin, 24, told AFP."We know what everyone in the hobby horsing has been through... I think that is the main thing that pulls us together."First invented in Finland more than a decade ago, hobby horsing has taken off at a gallop across the globe. "It is growing every year," said Julia Mikkonen, the chair of the Finnish hobby horse association.This year's championship was "the biggest we have had so far", she added.Beyond the whimsy, great strength and skill is required to jump the obstacles while holding the hobby horse. Some top competitors could give elite hurdlers or gymnasts a run for their money."If you jump over obstacles your hip mobility has to be absolutely insane," said Mikkonen, 20, with some fences up to 110 centimetres (3.6 feet) tall. - 10,000 enthusiasts -"Of course we are all dreaming of having a world championship one day," said Mikkonen, who estimates there are around 10,000 hobby horsers globally."I am still a bit breathless but I am happy with my performance", said 19-year-old Jojo Hanninen as she sat down after her dressage event. To succeed in the sport you have to channel your inner centaur, she said."In hobby horsing, my legs are the horse... I am both horse and human," she said. Hanninen's hobby horse is a grey called Toope, with glittery reins and pink ribbons adorning its white mane.- Welcoming community -Competitors go to great lengths with their horses -- which are also exhibited and judged -- modelling and sewing the heads and adorning them with decorations.  "Hobby horses are art," said Arlin, who makes her own.With the cheers of the crowd still ringing in her ears after an impressive show jumping round, she hailed the sport as "the best hobby ever"."You are doing so many things with your hands, brain and the whole body."Like many of her peers, Arlin found hobby horsing through play as a child. "But the older I became, it became more serious," said the rider, who trains by riding real horses, working out in the gym and doing pole dancing.Rainbow flags in the arena reflected the tolerant values underpinning the community.   "Horses are mostly seen as a girls' sport, but that is not correct. Anyone can come no matter what gender," Mikkonen said.   Every enthusiast AFP spoke to praised the welcoming community that kept them devoted to hobby horsing despite the scornful attitudes all encountered at some point."We have each other's backs," said Arlin. ank/po/fg/smw

  • Man United lining up exciting double swoop as part of '£27m summer deal'

    Manchester United will be hoping to enjoy a successful summer transfer window