Man City secure 'significant victory' in legal battle against Premier League

Manchester City may have 'convinced' an independent panel that the Premier League's rules on sponsorship deals are not sufficient in a boost to their hopes of contesting 115 alleged breaches of financial regulations.

City could face a historical punishment should they lose this legal battle with the Premier League, with expulsion from the top-flight said to be a possibility.

The club had been hopeful of winning a war over Associated Party Transactions (APT), arguing that they went against the Competition Act 1998.

The Times report that a vote among the 20 Premier League clubs in regards to these rules was due to be held at a meeting on Thursday. However, it was taken off the agenda late on Wednesday night, and this is seen as a potentially 'significant victory' for City.

Though this vote and the rule is not directly linked to City's 115 alleged breaches, plenty of these charges relate to sponsorship agreements. The hearing into this case began last week and is expected to run for at least two months.

APT rules were changed in 2021 upon Newcastle United's takeover by Saudi Arabia's Private Investment Fund, clamping down on clubs agreeing inflated commercial deals with parties associated to their owners and ensuring these were at 'fair market value'.

Premier League clubs now have to submit details of these deals to a databank, and Thursday's vote was set to be on restricting access to this information.

The fear among rival clubs is that if City are successful in this challenge, they and others would be able to value their sponsorship deals at higher amounts and free up more money to spend.

Meanwhile, City have announced redevelopment on the Etihad Stadium will finish during the 2025/26 season to take its capacity to over 60,000, despite the threat of relegation from the Premier League if they fail in contesting the 115 alleged breaches.

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