Manchester City are poised to argue that the Abu Dhabi government - rather than the club's owners - partially financed the "sham" sponsorship arrangements that led to breaches of Premier League financial regulations.
An independent commission determined that City artificially boosted their revenue by more than £900million during an eight-year span from 2009/10 through 2017/18 by utilising funds from their parent organisation, Abu Dhabi United Group (ADUG), to substantially enhance the value of their sponsorship deals.
Commission findings on 'sham' deals
As disclosed in a Premier League statement, the commission arrived at its conclusion that these were "sham" sponsorship arrangements following examination of numerous emails which outlined how City sought to channel money from ADUG via a sponsor - amongst them Etihad Airways - before reaching the club.
Yet according to The Times, City intend to contend that given Etihad's ownership by the Abu Dhabi government, the arrangement stands separate from ADUG and would therefore comply with Premier League regulations.
