Man City and Premier League reach settlement over APT rules dispute | OneFootball

City accept as part of settlement that current Premier League rules governing APTs are "valid and binding"

Manchester City have reached a settlement with the Premier League in relation to their dispute over the rules governing associated party transactions (APTs).

The two parties, however, have been able to settle the agreement out of court to bring an end to the dispute.

Under the settlement, City accept that the current rules governing APTs are “valid and binding”.

In a statement on Monday afternoon, City said: “The Premier League and Manchester City FC have reached a settlement in relation to the arbitration commenced by the club earlier this year concerning the Premier League’s Associated Party Transaction (APT) Rules and as a result the parties have agreed to terminate the proceedings.

“This settlement brings an end to the dispute between the parties regarding the APT Rules.

“As part of the settlement, Manchester City accepts that the current APT Rules are valid and binding.

“It has been agreed that neither the Premier League nor the club will be making any further comment about the matter.”

The APT rules were introduced in December 2021, following the Saudi-led takeover of Newcastle.

Those rules were successfully challenged by City last year, with a tribunal finding them unlawful on multiple grounds, including the fact they excluded shareholder loans from fair market value assessments.

That led to the Premier League consulting with clubs on amendments to the rules, with 16 teams voting in favour of the amended rules at a meeting last November.

City's acceptance that the amended rules are valid and binding appears to put to bed an issue which had threatened to have a major impact on the league if the rules had been significantly weakened.

Without APT rules, entities linked to clubs' owners could potentially overvalue sponsorships and other commercial transactions to boost a club's revenue, putting that club in a stronger position under the league's profitability and sustainability rules (PSR) and therefore given more leeway to spend on transfer fees and player wages.

An assessment of shareholder loans for fair market value was incorporated into the APT rules last November, but the rules do not apply retrospectively.

Instead, the fair market assessment only applies to ongoing and future loans. The rules also allowed a grace period for shareholders to convert such loans to equity.

City and the Premier League still await the outcome of an independent commission hearing which was examining more than 100 charges against the club for alleged breaches of the league's financial rules. City strenuously deny the charges.

The hearing took place between September and December last year, after City were charged by the Premier League in February 2023.