Man City news: Finance guru analyses 17 ‘concerning’ deals – ‘Is this right?
The Premier League will be “concerned” that the Man City commercial department’s success is distorting competition in the division.
That is the view of finance guru Doctor Dan Plumley, speaking exclusively to Football Insider about the top-flight’s new related party sponsor laws.
The Premier League will send any commercial deals with related parties to be scrutinised by an independent arbitrator for fair market value.
Analysis published by Off The Pitch on 11 February found that 17 Premier League sponsor deals are likely to come under scrutiny as a result.
Man City’s commercial deals account for 11 of that number, which is 73 per cent of the overall total.
The aim of the related party deals is to prevent teams from artificially inflating their income to improve their standing within financial fair play.
And City’s deals with sources close to their Abu Dhabi owners could be seen to give them an unfair advantage, claims Plumley.
“The Football Leaks stuff and case with Uefa have been well-documented,” the Sheffield Hallam University expert told Football Insider‘s Adam Williams.
“We know when we see those figures where the connections are. That is largely to be expected.
“We could see there was going to be some interconnected commercial agreements and it is them that are ultimately driving the growth of the club.
“They have turned a profit largely on commercial deals themselves. So therefore it comes back to a matter of governance.
“The question is, ‘is this right’? Should this be happening? Everyone has got their own views on it.
“Some people say ‘crack on’ if they are fortunate enough to have an owner who can do these deals.
“But the concern is you have to protect the other clubs who don’t have that type of owner or those resources.
“The league have got to look at it in terms of what they want from these deals and how it impacts the competitive balance.
“But it’s the clubs who vote on changes to club regulations.”
City generated over £270m in commercial income in 2020-21.
They are the only Premier League team to have turned a profit for the Covid-hit campaign.
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