The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) has imposed a two-season ban on Manchester City from participating in European club competitions and fined the club for violating financial fair play regulations. / Photo by UEFA website capture
[Asia Economy Intern Reporter Lim Juhyung] Manchester City FC (Man City), a member of the English professional football Premier League (EPL), has been sanctioned by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for violating financial fair play regulations.
As a result, Man City will be banned from participating in UEFA-organized club competitions for the next two seasons (2020-2021 season and 2021-2022 season).
On the 15th (Korean time), UEFA released a statement on its website saying, "The Club Financial Control Body concluded that the sponsorship income was inflated in the 2012-2016 account statements and break-even information submitted by Man City," and "After reviewing all evidence, it was found that Man City seriously violated UEFA club licensing and financial fair play regulations."
The fair play regulations prevent clubs from spending excessively on player acquisitions and other expenses beyond their earnings.
UEFA imposed a ban on Man City from participating in UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League, the European club competitions organized by UEFA, for the next two seasons, along with a fine of 30 million euros (approximately 38.5 billion KRW).
Earlier, in November 2018, the sports media outlet 'Football Leaks' analyzed internal documents of Man City and raised suspicions that Man City inflated club sponsorship contracts to evade fair play regulation violations.
UEFA began investigating these allegations in March last year and ultimately concluded that Man City violated the fair play regulations.
Meanwhile, Man City stated in a press release, "UEFA conducted a biased administrative process from the start of the investigation to the conclusion," and "We will proceed with an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) as quickly as possible."
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