(MENAFN- NewsBytes) The governing body for association football in Europe, UEFA has banned English giants Manchester City from the Champions League for the next two seasons.
The English club was found guilty of breaking Financial Fair Play regulations. City have also been fined £25mn by UEFA.
City responded to the ban with a statement and said they will appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
Details Details about the case
The UEFA's Club Financial Control Body found City guilty of inflating their sponsorship revenues in order to meet Financial Fair Play regulations.
Notably, the investigation started in November 2018, when the German magazine Der Spiegel published several leaked emails.
Der Spiegel had reported that City created a shell company to hide tens of millions of dollars which they used for recruiting players.
Quote Manchester City "disappointed but not surprised"
In a statement, the club said they were "disappointed but not surprised". It read, "The club has always anticipated the ultimate need to seek out an independent body and process to impartially consider the comprehensive body of irrefutable evidence in support of its position."
FFP What exactly is the FFP rule? Financial Fair Play was essentially introduced to ensure that huge discrepancies do not occur between clubs regarding selling and purchase of players.
FFP was brought by former UEFA President Michel Platini and essentially ensures a sanctity to be maintained in terms of spending so that any major breaches can be avoided.
Essentially, "clubs have to prove they have paid their bills".
Related Topics
MENAFN1402202001650000ID1099706756
Legal Disclaimer:
MENAFN provides the information “as is” without warranty of any kind. We do not accept any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information contained in this article. If you have any complaints or copyright issues related to this article, kindly contact the provider above.