Manchester City write to all 19 Premier League clubs accusing top-flight of ‘misleading’ through statement with ‘inaccuracies’

Simon Cliff – Manchester City’s general counsel – has written to all 19 other Premier League clubs after the Award around a battle on Associated Party Transaction rules.

As released by both parties on Monday afternoon, Manchester City had some complaints upheld, with two aspects of the Associated Party Transaction (APT) rules deemed ‘unlawful’ by a tribunal.

On the other hand, a statement from the Premier League claimed that the tribunal rejected the majority of Manchester City’s challenges and “endorsed the overall objectives, framework and decision-making of the APT system”.

In the arbitration process, it can now be revealed that all of Chelsea, Newcastle United, and Everton all acted as witnesses for Manchester City, whilst a list of eight clubs wrote letters in support of the rules.

Those clubs are now understood to be Manchester United, Liverpool, Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur, Brighton & Hove Albion, West Ham United, Brentford, Bournemouth, Fulham and Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Given the nature of the Premier League’s response to its clubs on Monday via a publicly issued statement, Manchester City have now opted to take further measures to ensure that the Award of the tribunal is not misinterpreted across the division.

As per MailSport’s Mike Keegan, City have written to every other top-flight club shutting down the Premier League’s statement after the pair’s legal battle on sponsorship rules concluded with a release of an Award on Monday.

In a fresh turn of events, and in light of the Premier League’s own statement on Monday afternoon, Manchester City have accused top-flight officials of ‘misleading’ sides within the division by providing ‘inaccuracies’.

A message sent across the Premier League’s clubs by Manchester City’s general counsel Simon Cliff – seen by MailSport – says, “Regrettably the (Premier League’s) summary is misleading and contains several inaccuracies.

It is continued, “Of even greater concern is the Premier League’s suggestion that new APT rules should be passed within the next 10 days.

“When the Premier League consulted on and proposed the original APT Rules in late 2021, we pointed out that the process (which took several weeks) was rushed, ill-thought-out and would result in rules that were anti-competitive.

The recent Award has validated those concerns entirely.”

Simon Cliff has also continued to state in his email correspondence that this is a time for ‘careful reflection and consideration’ by all clubs and not ‘knee-jerk’ reactions that could lead to further legal proceedings and costs.

“In recent correspondence, the Premier League agreed with MCFC that this is an issue which will need to be resolved by the Tribunal. It is therefore remarkable that the Premier League is now seeking to involve the member clubs in a process to amend the APT Rules at a time when it does not even know the status of those rules,” MailSport relay.

“This is the time for careful reflection and consideration by all clubs, and not for a knee-jerk reaction. Such an unwise course would be likely to lead to further legal proceedings with further legal costs. It is critical for member clubs to feel that they can have trust in their regulator.”

Mike Keegan continues by reporting that in light of the email sent out to clubs regarding the Premier League’s statement, Manchester City have already received ‘multiple’ responses in support of the email from other teams.

Additional reporting from The Times has revealed that while the Premier League declined to respond to Manchester City’s letter to clubs publicly, they privately insist that there will be no vote on amendments to the APT rules at next week’s emergency meeting of clubs.

It is also being reported that the Premier League reject Manchester City’s claim that their response to the arbitration panel’s judgment was misleading.