British Government asked for updates on Manchester City’s 115 charges case | OneFootball

The Times newspaper has revealed that the British has twice asked for an update on Manchester City’s ongoing 115 charges case involving the Premier League.

The Premier League first issued their charges upon Manchester City back in February 2023, with Pep Guardiola’s six-time champions struck with more than 100 breaches of the division’s financial rules following a four-year investigation.

Having been referred to an independent commission over alleged rule breaches between 2009 and 2018, Manchester City were also accused by the Premier League of not co-operating since the Premier League’s investigation started in December 2018.

From the side of Manchester City, and in a stance maintained until the present day, the Etihad Stadium club stated that they were both “surprised” by the charges and are supported by a “body of irrefutable evidence”.

A statement from within the Etihad Stadium read, “Manchester City is surprised by the issuing of these alleged breaches of the Premier League Rules, particularly given the extensive engagement and vast amount of detailed materials that the EPL has been provided with.

“The club welcomes the review of this matter by an independent commission, to impartially consider the comprehensive body of irrefutable evidence that exists in support of its position. As such we look forward to this matter being put to rest once and for all.”

And a new report has now detailed the interest in developments from the side of the recent Tory Government, after some had speculated that politics would likely impact the severity of any potential punishment should Manchester City be found guilty.

That is according to The Times newspaper, who reveal that the Tory Government’s Foreign Secretary, James Cleverly asked for an update on City’s case in September 2023, as the British Embassy in Dubai asked for the latest information on the case in May 2024.

It is pointed out that ‘most of the information’ revealed in emails obtained from a freedom of information request to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) is heavily redacted on grounds it could damage the UK’s relations with the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

On September 25 2023, the FCDO emails show an official wrote, “The Foreign Secretary has asked for an update on the UAE/Manchester City issue. Could you work up a one-page update covering the background, latest state of play and our lines to take?”

The response explained, “UAE/Manchester City: Manchester City are owned by City Football Group Limited, which is owned by an Abu Dhabi investment group headed by the UAE’s Vice President Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

“In February 2023, the Premier League referred Manchester City to an independent Commission following alleged breaches of Premier League financial rules. The alleged breaches refer to sponsorship revenue, contracts, and UEFA’s Financial Fair Play Regulations.

“This is an ongoing, independent process in which the FCDO has no involvement. [redacted] The FOI is currently being reviewed. DCMS/FCDO approved public lines: Any purchase of a football club is a matter for the owners and potential purchasers to resolve, including meeting any relevant requirement of the league in which they compete. The Premier League’s rules and requirements are independent, as is their investigatory process.”

Furthermore, The Times reveals that emails have also shown that a visit by Parliamentarians to the UAE in February 2023, after the Premier League’s charges against City were announced, apparently included some discussions around the case.

An FCDO email states, “Feedback from the parliamentarians flagged that the [redacted]. Please do copy more widely as you think appropriate.”

The FCDO has also reportedly said that the UK’s international relations would be hampered if full details of its discussions around the Manchester City case were revealed.

It said, “We acknowledge that releasing information on this topic would increase public knowledge about our relations with the UAE. However, the effective conduct of international relations depends upon maintaining trust and confidence between governments.

“This relationship of trust allows for the free and frank exchange of information on the understanding that it will be treated in confidence. If the United Kingdom does not respect such confidences, its ability to promote and protect UK interests through international relations will be hampered, this will not be in the public interest.

“For these reasons, we consider that the public interest in maintaining this exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosure of the information.”

The private hearing into Manchester City’s charges began in September, and some reports state that it is expected to last around 10 weeks, with proceedings taking place at the International Dispute Resolution Centre in the city of London.