The Premier League has been exposed by Manchester City

By now it is well known that Manchester City had a victory over the Premier League in their claim against the Premier League APT rules. That was known the moment Manchester City put out their statement on the case on their official website this week. But the Premier League couldn’t accept that fact. Instead what they’ve done since that Award was published has exposed the Premier League. Where the affair goes from here is anyone’s guess but the conclusion seems obvious to me.

The Premier League can’t go forward with a section of its Associated Party Transaction rules being deemed unlawful. It cannot. That fact undermines the entire section of the rules. When the Award was published that fact should’ve been the first thing taken from the ruling. But it wasn’t. Instead, the Premier League engaged in a public relations campaign that was seen throughout the past week. It even got to the point where Manchester City had to threaten the Premier League with more legal action down the track if they rushed in a new set of APT rules. Which is something the Premier League put out there. But that tone dramatically changed last night.

Mike Keegan reported for the Daily Mail that the Premier League has now told its clubs that there is no quick fix to their APT rules. That move by the Premier League is in line with what Manchester City had said earlier this week. Matt Lawton also reported similar for the Times yesterday which echoed the same sentiments of Mike Keegan’s report.

How has Manchester City exposed the Premier League this week and where do we go from here?

Questions will now have to be faced by the Premier League after the past week’s events. They simply have to be addressed. The first is obvious. The Premier League can’t move forward with a section of their APT rules that are unlawful. It was an obvious conclusion to draw when sections of the current APT rules were declared unlawful by an independent panel. That was the major story to come out of the Award. That was the first point where Manchester City exposed the Premier League. There was no need for the public relations battle that came after that. That should’ve been the first item on the agenda.

The second is why did the Premier League delay the Award being published? The Premier League should’ve put it in the public domain as soon as possible. As Martin Samuel explains in the clip of the Premier League had the resounding win in the case that it claimed why did it delay the verdict being known? That question has to be answered.

The Premier League has been exposed by Manchester City this week. That fact is clear. Going forward there must be more clarity from the Premier League on these affairs. Public relations ‘battles’ serve no purpose. The game, the fans and the clubs deserve clarity on these matters from the Premier League. In fact, it should be demanded and expected.

Summary

As a Manchester City and a football fan the fact that legal ‘battles’ involving the club create such headlines gives me no sense of satisfaction. For me, the game and what happens on the pitch should be all that matters. Manchester City, the other 19 clubs and the Premier League should all be working together to create a set of rules that are fair and lawful and encourage clubs to aim for the top. The game and the Premier League product would be better for it. That’s the lesson I have taken from the past week. Terms such as PSR, APT and so on should not dominate discussion. Matters on the pitch should. The hope is that after the past week, and when City’s infamous ‘115’ case are resolved everyone can remember that. Perhaps an independent regulator is needed to get the game to that point. But that’s a discussion for another time.