Manchester City have battered the Premier League after a tribunal deemed their sponsorship rules as null and void.
These muppets had Associated Party Transaction (APT) regulations running from December 2021 to November 2024, but they were unlawful in their entirety. What a bunch of bellends!
City's legal battle
In 2023, City had proposed deals with Etihad Airways and First Abu Dhabi Bank blocked by the Premier League. This led to a legal battle around what the club deemed to be unlawful APT rules. Fair play to City for standing up to these mugs!
In September, a tribunal agreed with City's claim and highlighted three areas that they deemed to be unlawful. The Premier League and City then had a massive row, with the top-flight's CEO Richard Masters claiming that a few tweaks to the rules would be enough. What a joke!
City's legal counsel, Simon Cliff, urged clubs not to make hasty amendments to the rules, stating that the whole system was unlawful. The Premier League didn't listen and amended the rules anyway. What a load of bollocks!
The tribunal's decision
In February 2025, an Arbitration Tribunal determined that the three aspects of the old APT rules, previously found to be unlawful, cannot be separated from the rest of the previous rules. This means that the previous APT Rules, as a whole, are unenforceable. Get in!
However, the previous APT rules are no longer in place, as clubs voted new APT rules into force in November 2024. The Tribunal states that whether its decision has any benefit to the club depends on whether the new APT rules are found to be lawful as part of the second challenge issued by the club last month. This is a load of nonsense!
The new APT rules are in full force and clubs remain required to comply with all aspects of the system, including submitting shareholder loans to the Premier League for Fair Market Value assessment. What a load of rubbish!
Matt Lawton, a journalist from The Times, said that it's bad and that the Premier League only described the new rules as minor tweaks. He added that given the rules prior to the minor tweaks have been declared unlawful, it's quite a precarious position going forward. What a shitshow!
The impact on City's 115 charges
Lawton was also asked if this will affect Man City regarding their 115 charges for an alleged breach of financial rules. He said that it's hard to ascertain, but it's all about financial regulation and how the rules are enforced and drawn up. This just shows what a mess the Premier League is in!
He added that it erodes confidence in the Premier League and the way they drew up the rule book. Absolutely spot on, mate!
The door to huge sponsorship deals
Lawton was also asked whether this will open the door to huge sponsorship deals that could bolster the wealthiest clubs such as City and Newcastle. He stated that you're not going to get a situation where Man City sign a new shirt deal and it's worth £4billion a year, as there's still regulation around this stuff. What a load of crap!
In conclusion, the Premier League are a bunch of muppets who don't know what they're doing. They've been battered by Manchester City and their unlawful APT rules have been exposed. This just shows what a joke the Premier League is and how they're ruining the beautiful game. FOOTBALL IS LIFE, but these bellends are taking the piss!
