Etihad Airways boss sends clear message over Manchester City sponsorship costs amid Premier League legal battle | OneFootball

Antonoaldo Neves, chief executive officer of Etihad Aviation Group, has denied paying significantly more than market value for Manchester City sponsorship agreements.

The comments come as Manchester City emerge from a widely reported and high-profile legal battle with the Premier League over the top-flight’s controversial Associated Party Transaction (APT) rules.

In a statement released earlier this month, City announced that they had succeeded with its claim of APT rules having been found to be ‘unlawful’, and that the Premier League’s decisions on two specific Manchester City sponsorship transactions had been set aside.

Further reporting and analysis of the official Award document revealed that the two sponsorships centred around a new deal with Etihad and First Abu Dhabi Bank, which were rejected as not achieving Fair Market Value.

But speaking during a new conversation with Sky News this week, Etihad Airways’ chief executive officer Antonoaldo Neves firmly denied the company had ever paid over the odds for sponsorship of Manchester City over the years.

“Etihad doesn’t do any transactions with any partner that is not on the market basis,” Neves said. “We have an amazing governance in Etihad. The mandate we have from our shareholders is very clear: deliver extraordinary customer experience and at the same time deliver an airline that is financially viable.”

He continued, “If we don’t engage in transactions at the market level, the returns don’t come; so absolutely, yes, it’s market-based. It’s a lot of negotiations that go on. And we get great returns from all these sponsorship contracts we have.”

Neves continued by stating that the Manchester City deal with Etihad “brings us global exposure” due to the club’s huge success, whilst the primary consideration for commercial tie-ups is return on investment, allowing to “tap into different segments of customers”.

According to football finance expert Łukasz Bączek, Etihad Airways’ stadium naming rights at Manchester City are worth £15 million a year, while the Abu Dhabi airline’s total financial contribution to the reigning Premier League champions is a record £80 million per year.

Manchester City’s original agreement with Etihad Airways had entered into its final year back in 2020, having originally signed on to a £400 million, 10-year deal back in 2011 ranging across front-of-shirt sponsorship and stadium naming rights in particular.

The two parties have no interest of ending their relationship any time soon, however Manchester City would likely open themselves up to proposals and offers regarding certain elements of the agreement to ensure that they are maximising their advertisement space.