Premier League delays key meetings regarding Man City legal case

Premier League delays key meetings regarding Man City legal case

The Premier League has postponed an important meeting of its clubs on the legal dispute with Manchester City concerning regulations on commercial deals.

On Friday, chief executive Richard Masters indicated to clubs that they were “taking the necessary time” to assess the verdict, suggesting a potential delay.

BBC Sport has learned that the meeting will now occur early next week.

Additionally, the meetings of the Financial Controls Advisory Group and the Legal Advisory Group, scheduled for Wednesday, have also been pushed back. The league hopes to hold these discussions later this week.

Both parties claimed a form of victory following the release of the arbitration panel’s decision last Monday, which stemmed from City’s legal challenge against the league’s associated party transaction (APT) regulations.

APT rules are designed to ensure that sponsorship agreements with companies affiliated with club owners reflect fair market value.

The tribunal upheld some of City’s complaints, ruling that two aspects of the APT regulations were unlawful. Specifically, it stated that low-interest shareholder loans should not be excluded from APT rules and that recent changes to strengthen the regulations breached competition law.

In its initial response on Monday, the Premier League asserted that the panel “endorsed the overall objectives, framework and decision-making of the APT system,” and expressed its intention to amend the rules “quickly and effectively.”

However, City countered by claiming that the Premier League’s summary of the ruling was “misleading” and contained “several inaccuracies,” escalating the conflict.

In a letter addressed to top-flight clubs and the Premier League, City stated that the rules were now “void” and expressed “concern [over] the Premier League’s suggestion that new APT rules should be passed within the next 10 days,” indicating potential further legal action if there was a “knee-jerk reaction.”