LaLiga president Javier Tebas has accused Manchester City of financial irregularities and revealed he has filed an active case with the European Commission.
LaLiga submitted their complaint to the European Commission in 2023 alleging Manchester City caused a “serious distortion” to the internal market of the European Union.
LaLiga’s correspondence alleges Manchester City received foreign subsidies from the United Arab Emirates (UAE), allowing the club to enhance its competitive position and sign top-tier players “under normal market conditions”.
Sources Refute Man City Allegations
Tebas believes City are circumventing the rules
La Liga chairman Javier Tebas during a press conference
Although Manchester City declined to comment, sources strongly refute the allegations and stress the club’s accounts are a matter of public record. But Tebas believes Manchester City are saddling costs on affiliate companies in order to stay within the financial rules and disrupt the market.
“What worries me about Manchester City is that they have a group of companies outside of City Football Group,” said Tebas, speaking to assembled media at the Financial Times’ Business of Football Summit. “They saddle all their expenses to these companies. For example, they have scouting or marketing companies who accrue high expenses. They invoice Manchester City for low amounts. It allows Manchester City to have a structure that circumvents the rules.
“As a result, we have reported Manchester City to the European Commission. Even though they are an English team, and not part of the EU, they still have commercial activities in Europe. We first made the complaint in July 2023 and there are now regulations in place allowing the EU to look at companies like City Football Group.
“Our case against Manchester City relates to two things. The first is checking Manchester City are not using other companies to cheat the system. The second element is a bigger battle to stop football ending up in the hands of State-owned entities without proper policing.
“We also take issue with some of the prices the club has paid. And we question how the club can saddle losses on other related companies that are not directly part of City Football Group.”
LaLiga Have Also Reported Paris Saint-Germain
Tebas is yet to take any action against Newcastle
Paris Saint-Germain head coach Luis Enrique and sporting director Luis Campos
Tebas has even compared Manchester City to Enron, the controversial American energy company that filed for bankruptcy in 2001. Their collapse was caused by accounting fraud and other financial misconduct. This is again vociferously denied by sources and viewed as an unfair comparison. The club declined to officially comment when approached.
“It’s the same as Enron,” alleged Tebas. “They put their losses into different companies and it was their downfall. It’s not just Manchester City either. We have reported Paris Saint-Germain to the European Commission. As for Newcastle, we haven’t done anything about them yet. We don’t have enough data.
“I can’t speak to any sanctions for Manchester City on this matter yet. All I can say is when a company in Europe, in general, is seen to have distorted the market, they often have to return funds. We want Manchester City to be sanctioned. The case is currently in the investigation phase. We haven’t had a reply yet. Remember, the European Comission has lots of cases.”
Manchester City recently won a legal case against the Premier League after a three-person panel determined that Associated Party Transactions (APT) rules between January 2021 and November 2024 were “null and void”. The same panel are now deciding whether current APT rules, amended in November, should remain in place. Another victory for Manchester City could pave the way for new rules and ultimately more lucrative sponsorship deals. Tebas has warned stricter rules are needed in this area to protect what he sees as the integrity of the game.
“Related parties need to be kept at arms’ length,” said Tebas. “It’s the same in every other sector, so why not football? When City Football Group bought Girona, they sent five players on loan. We checked the valuations. We calculated they were 40 times higher than Manchester City claimed. We used our valuation, and that’s why there was no complaint or sanction.”
Man City Awaiting Verdict on 115+ Alleged Premier League Breaches
The decision is expected in the next weeks
Pep Guardiola
Manchester City are also awaiting the verdict on the 115+ alleged breaches of the Premier League’s financial rules, which could come in just a matter of weeks. City deny any wrongdoing. They were originally charged in 2014 for Financial Fair Play (FFP) breaches, only to agree a €20m settlement with UEFA.
City were then handed a two-year suspension in February 2020 by UEFA’s Club Financial Control Body (CFCB), but the penalty was overturned at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in July of that year. Tebas, who has been a fierce critic of Manchester CIty in the past, was surprised the Court of Arbitration for Sport ruled in City’s favour.
“Manchester City were already expelled from European competition for two seasons, but then they went to the Court of Arbitration for Sport,” explained Tebas. “We call it a ‘court’ but it’s not really a court of justice. Manchester City were not condemned. UEFA was clear in the sanctions. In the case of the Premier League’s charges, I don’t know whether Manchester City will be deducted one point or 50 points or get relegated. All I know is the UEFA sanction was just, regardless of what CAS ruled.”
Tebas’ claims against Manchester City are both strong and astonishing, mostly notably the comparison with Enron. LaLiga now await formal feedback from the European Commission to see whether their complaint will progress.
