City has been found guilty of widespread breaches of the Premier League’s financial rules which could result in punishments including a massive fine, points deductions or even expulsion from England’s top flight. Separately, the Independent Football Regulator has the powers to force club owners to sell and can withhold a license to operate if they are deemed unfit.
The chair of English football’s regulatory body said Tuesday he would resign if there were any political interference over potential sanctions for Manchester City.
The UAE is a big investor in the U.K. “We’ve come under absolutely no political pressure whatsoever on this or any other topic. Kogan’s comments came after U.K. The guilty verdict represents the biggest scandal in Premier League history and raises questions over the future of the club, which is owned by Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, deputy prime minister of the United Arab Emirates and a member of Abu Dhabi’s royal family.
Football regulator chair David Kogan said it was still awaiting the outcome of City’s appeal against the verdict. Asked about the regulator’s ability to remain independent given wider relations between the governments, Kogan said “any form of political interference on the way we operate is going to result in my resigning from this role and I stand by that completely. And I don’t expect to in the future,” he said. Prime Minister Andy Burnham said he would be “really concerned” to lose City’s current ownership. Burnham also said he would not get “directly involved in the process.
