Man City appear to score victory in legal case with Premier League

PREM chiefs were forced to withdraw a proposed strengthening of financial rules – as they were finally given the outcome of Manchester City’s legal case against them.

The champions sought to overturn the Associated Party Transaction regulations over sponsorship and other income from companies linked to a club’s owners.

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City claimed the rules were illegal, with a lengthy document branding the imposition of the regulations – which limit the amount the club can raise from Abu Dhabi-linked companies – a “tyranny of the majority”.

The four-in-a-row champions are understood to have argued that the rules had been deliberately aimed at them by rivals and were both flawed and politically driven, while also questioning the cost of enforcement.

After a two-week hearing in June under the Prem’s Arbitration process – with three senior Judges including former Master of the Rolls Lord Dyson sitting in judgement – it is understood to have now delivered its verdict.

And while Prem bosses declined to make any comment, they did concede that a planned change to the rulebook related to the “databank” of commercial deals by clubs, had been withdrawn ahead of today’s “shareholder” meeting of the 20 clubs in central London.

That appeared to be a victory for City, with the likelihood that there would be no point amending rules that might be either scrapped or substantially altered in the wake of the ruling, although the Etihad club refused to crow.

A spokesman said: “As you know, we cannot comment on this.”

Any victory for City would be a hammer blow for Prem leaders, especially chief executive Richard Masters, coming just 10 days into the long-awaited commission hearing into the “115 charges” – actually now 130 allegations – faced by the club.

But at the meeting club bosses were given no information about the outcome – including any likely requirement to alter the current rulebook following the  Arbitration hearing.

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As SunSport revealed in June, under Prem rules the ruling cannot be published without the assent of both City and the League, with an expectation that it will be kept tightly under wraps.

The only clear and indisputable evidence of the outcome will be if there are substantial changes to – or even scrapping of –  the current APT rules.

Meanwhile, clubs were told that the planned autumn introduction of Semi-Automated Offside Technology is now likely to be delayed, potentially until after Christmas.

League bosses engaged American company Genius Sports to implement the new system but clubs were informed that trials were still ongoing and that the technology will not be adopted until there is satisfaction that it is foolproof.