Man City launch Premier League legal challenge with Arsenal complaint

Manchester City have launched a legal challenge to the Premier League regarding sponsorship rules with Arsenal said to be mentioned in their claim.

It is reported that City have claimed that new rules surrounding Associated Party Transactions (APT) which were passed by Premier League clubs in November are discriminatory. The Blues claim, according to The Mail, that the Gunners would be one of the clubs that could benefit from the new rules that the Premier League is enforcing.

City are currently awaiting a verdict on their alleged 115 Financial Fair Play (FFP) breaches between 2009 and 2018. City's case was heard by an independent panel in September before they adjourned to make a decision in December and they have always denied any wrongdoing.

The current champions hailed a legal victory over the Premier League last year when it was found that the division's APT rules were 'unlawful' and worked against the spirit of competition laws in the UK. APT was designed to stop owners of clubs inflating sponsorship agreements to provide significant cash injections.

This was a matter that concerned City significantly because their stadium is sponsored by Etihad Airways who are also owned by City Football Group owner Sheikh Mansour. After winning that battle, the Premier League announced new APT rules that were passed in November by a narrow 16-4 majority.

When the new APT rules were passed in November, City demanded that the Premier League held fire until the full decision was published, which it was in February and declared that regulations were 'void and unenforceable.' APT was created in light of Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF) agreeing the purchase of Newcastle United.

Arsenal, whose main sponsors include Emirates, were named as one of the clubs that hold an 'unfair advantage' thanks to these new rules. The same committee which led the previous legal battle on APT between City and the Premier League, shall now review this latest move from the Blues.

This legal action is not related to the FFP charges that City are awaiting a verdict on. It is also not a fresh challenge by City and the Premier League has shared with clubs what the Blues are unhappy about in terms of the new APT rules.

The Premier League also believe that the ruling from the previous hearing does not affect the legality of the new rules passed in November.