The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has lifted Manchester City’s two-years ban from UEFA competitions after a successful appeal on Monday.
The Sky Blues will now feature in 2020/21 UEFA Champions League season and beyond, subject to payment of an initial €30 million fine which has been reduced to €10m.
UEFA announced in February that Manchester City have been banned from European competition for two years 2020/21, 2021/22 and fined €30 million.
The probe which landed the severe action was initiated when Germany’s Spiegel International published articles alleging that Manchester City have been evading Uefa Financial Fair Play (FFP) regulations and other licensing requirements based on documents it acquired from whistleblowers “Football Leak” in 2018.
The allegation points that a holding company, Abu Dhabi United Group (ADUG), owned by Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed al Nahyan who is also the owner of Manchester City channeled funds to City sponsors based in Abu Dhabi who then rerouted the money to Manchester City as sponsorship.
UEFA then held the club accountable for wrong doing after releasing a statement, charging City for “overstating its sponsorship revenue in its accounts and in the break-even information submitted to UEFA between 2012 and 2016.
Manchester City refuted the pronouncement immediately following a statement which read: “Whilst Manchester City and its legal advisors are yet to review the full ruling by the Court of Arbitration for Sport, the club welcomes the implications of today’s ruling as a validation of the club’s position and the body of evidence that it was able to present.
“The club wishes to thank the panel members for their diligence and the due process that they administered.”
In the latest hearing held digitally between June 8-10, CAS confirmed it will announce the decision of City’s appeal on July 13.
Fortunately, the two years ban on Citizens has been overturned but their €30million fine was not totally forgone as the club have been mandated to pay a reduced sum of €10 million fine subject to the new ruling.
