Why Manchester City are being sued by Superdry

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·6. Januar 2024

Why Manchester City are being sued by Superdry

Over the last few years, things couldn't have gone much better for Manchester City. They've won trophy after trophy, including an incredible treble-winning campaign last year as Erling Haaland broke records during his debut season with the club. They've churned out consistently high performances and have dominated English football for a while.

Off the pitch, things have been a very different story, though. The club has been embroiled in controversy, facing charges of over 115 Financial Fair Play (FFP) breaches. If they're found guilty, with the trial set to take place in August, there could be a monumental punishment on the horizon for the Cityzens. With that being said, things are only getting worse for the club too, as they're now being sued by Superdry, the global clothing brand.

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Superdry is unhappy with City's training kit

They've alleged that the club have infringed on their trademark

After City unveiled their new training kit, sponsored by Japanese brewer Asahi, the clothing brand took issue with it, according to the Daily Mail. That's because Asahi's flagship product, the non-alcoholic 'Super Dry 0.0%' was advertised on it, and they thought it bore a striking resemblance to their own designs.

They've since requested an injunction that will prevent City from wearing the training kits again and Pep Guardiola's side have been sporting alternative gear this week. The Premier League champions have been working with Asahi since 2022, but Superdry stepped in and filed their lawsuit at the end of 2023 after seeing images of the training kits.

Providing insight into the process that may follow, Rebecca Young, partner and head of media law at JMW Solicitors has revealed what City will need to do if the lawsuit is successful for Superdry.

"The court would be asked to consider whether the marks are “identical”, which involves looking at the overall impression created by the marks. "You do not need to show confusion as part of the legal test. If successful in the claim, Manchester City would need to stop using the mark and to deliver up for destruction or look to modify items of clothing that carry the mark, and at its own expense."

City face 115 charges of FFP breaches later this year

Their fate will be revealed in August

Since they were taken over by Sheikh Mansour in September 2008, City have been spending money at a seemingly never-ending rate. They've splashed the cash on numerous occasions and have shown very little restraint in doing so. Their activity in the transfer market helped transform them from a midtable side to dominating Premier League champions, but it raised eyebrows among people from outside of the club looking in.

Now, the club have been accused of breaching over 115 FFP legislations, implying they've been spending money unfairly over the years. With Everton's recent 10-point deduction after they were found guilty of breaching FFP laws, we can only imagine the severity of the Cityzens' punishment if they are found guilty of breaching more than a handful of the charges levied at them.