Arabian Post Staff -Dubai
The Abu Dhabi airline, Manchester City’s principal sponsor since 2009, said it “categorically rejects any finding, conclusion or implication” suggesting that it had ever participated in improper commercial arrangements. It said it would obtain legal counsel on options and recourse available to protect its interests.
Etihad’s intervention adds a significant commercial dimension to the fallout from the commission’s decision, which found City guilty of serious financial-rule breaches over nine seasons from 2009-10 to 2017-18. Manchester City denies wrongdoing and has said it will use the appeal avenues available to challenge findings it considers legally and factually flawed.
The airline said it was deeply concerned about how the case had been communicated publicly and argued that disclosures surrounding the decision had created damaging implications for Etihad even though the carrier was not named in the redacted findings published by the Premier League.
Etihad also said the Premier League had not contacted or engaged with it during the process associated with the commission’s opinion. As a result, the airline said, it had no opportunity to be represented, supply relevant information or address material that could be interpreted as reflecting adversely on the company.
The Premier League said on Tuesday that the independent commission found City guilty of all charges relating to serious breaches of its financial rules over the nine-season period. Three of four charges concerning failures to co-operate with the league’s investigation were also upheld.
According to the Premier League’s summary, the commission found that City arranged contracts with several commercial partners that misrepresented the true agreements between the parties, while relying on similar arrangements with others. The commission concluded that these arrangements artificially increased the club’s recorded revenue and reduced its costs.
The findings said some sponsors were required to provide only part of the fees recorded under relevant agreements, with the balance supplied by Manchester City’s owner, Abu Dhabi United Group Investment & Development Ltd. The commission concluded that the arrangements helped conceal the club’s true financial position and resulted in substantial breaches of Premier League and UEFA spending limits.
The Premier League said the schemes inflated revenue and understated costs by more than £900 million over nearly a decade. It has not yet imposed a sanction, leaving the consequences of the findings unresolved while the disciplinary process continues.
Manchester City has strongly disputed the commission’s conclusions. The club said it was “disappointed and surprised” and maintained that it was innocent of the accusations, arguing that a comprehensive body of evidence supported its positions.
City said it would appeal on the grounds that the opinion contained “clear material errors, of law, principle and fact” and was unsafe. The club faces a Friday deadline to lodge its appeal.
Premier League chief executive Richard Masters described the decision as the most significant in the competition’s history and said the league intended to move swiftly through the remaining process to provide certainty for clubs and supporters.
Under Premier League rules, an appeal hearing should be held within 12 weeks of an appeal being lodged, with a decision due within 30 days after the hearing concludes. The scale and complexity of the proceedings, however, have prompted questions over how quickly the timetable can be completed.
The underlying proceedings were extensive. The commission hearing lasted 42 days, while the index to the document bundle alone ran to 750 pages. The findings also said City filed misstated accounts and concealed the true state of its finances from auditors and football regulators. City rejects the commission’s account of its financial arrangements and evidence throughout proceedings.
Etihad said the Premier League must take responsibility for the consequences of the way the findings were presented, citing what it called a lack of clarity and transparency and selective disclosure of information.
Also published on Medium.
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