How fair is the Fair Play rule by UEFA? – Football special report
The City of Manchester Stadium at Eastlands has been renamed to Etihad Stadium. This was announced by Garry Cook and James Hogan, the chief executives of Manchester City and Etihad Airways respectively. The renaming of the stadium was one of the many commercial
agreements signed between the two that see them bonded for a 10-year period.
Cook commented, “Most importantly, in addition to delivering significant revenue at a key stage in the club's evolution, the agreement creates exciting opportunities for our two organisations to co-operate more deeply commercially and on media and community
initiatives in the future.”
The renaming of the Stadium is a £400 million deal which will be on top of the £2.4 million that Manchester City receives from Etihad for the shirt sponsorship.
The move is a big leap forward for the Manchester City Football Club in adhering to the ninety-one pages long Financial Fair Play rule being introduced by UEFA. If the club was to fail in abiding by the rules, which come in to effect next year, it could
face an outright elimination from the UEFA Champions League football.
But, this deal has come under severe criticism by two of the biggest characters of the game. Arsene Wenger and John Henry have been very direct and harsh in criticising the commercial venture.
Interestingly, the main point of concern has not been the large sum that is being dished in to the Man City club by the Abu Dhabi government. But, it is the relationship that the two carry. Etihad Airways is owned by Sheikh Issa bin Zayed al-Nahyan who is
half-brother to Sheikh Mansour, the owner of Man City. Both are also the members of the http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Royal-95-c40387 family.
The deal will enable Etihad to market its services in Europe when Man City play in the Champions League next season. However, surprisingly, Etihad is not even in a financial position to afford or honour the contract. It has not reported any profit during
its 7 years of existence. Moreover, due to global economic meltdown, the ash cloud and the swine flu, Etihad Airways suffered losses and was not able to break even. This is the primary reason that the likes of Wenger have their eyebrows raised.
Wenger believes that the price associated with the branding of the City of Manchester Stadium is way above the market rate. It further adds on to the suspicion behind the motives of the deal. Since, Etihad is not financially strong enough, the money must
be coming in to Man City to help the liquidity of the club. In more crude words, it sounds more like a helping hand by a family member rather a business strategy. This initiative surely lacks any business intent.
On the other hand, UEFA has clearly stated a ‘related party’ clause in their Financial Fair Play document release. The final acceptance of the Etihad and Man City deal now entirely rests up on the relationship that the two half brothers from Middle East
share. If it is found that Sheikh Issa bin Zayed al-Nahyan’s money makes a significant influence on Man City’s financial position then the deal may be rendered void.
The decision now rests with UEFA. If accepted, UEFA is bound to come under severe scrutiny by the other clubs which are doing their best to abide by the new rules.
Wenger has summed it up most aptly, “The difficulty and the credibility of the financial fair play is at stake.”
Disclaimer: Views expressed here are the writer’s own and in no way represent bettor.com’s official editorial policy
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