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Manchester City’s reported appeal argument is that Abu Dhabi government funding helped sponsors make payments to the club, rather than the disputed money coming from owner Sheikh Mansour’s private company, Abu Dhabi United Group (ADUG). That is City’s position in an ongoing appeal—not an established finding. The Premier League commission rejected the explanation, and the appeal outcome remains unresolved in reporting published on October 2, 2026.
What is Manchester City arguing in its appeal?
City has lodged an appeal against an independent Premier League commission’s findings on serious financial-rule breaches. In the sponsorship dispute, the club’s reported position is that an Abu Dhabi government body provided funding to sponsors from time to time, and that sponsors then paid City. This differs from the commission’s conclusion that ADUG funded the disputed sums. The full appeal grounds have not been made public in the reporting cited here. Associated Press; Sky Sports
City chief executive Ferran Soriano, speaking in an internal staff video quoted by AP, denied that the owner’s personal money was secretly put into the club through Abu Dhabi sponsors. That is the club’s denial, not a neutral account of the commission’s finding. Associated Press
What did the commission find about the sponsorship payments?
According to AP’s report of the commission’s decision, the commission found that Abu Dhabi sponsors paid £119.25 million of the £949.94 million recorded as sponsorship in City accounts, and attributed the remaining £830.69 million to ADUG. These are figures from the commission’s findings as reported by AP; they should not be read as an independent re-audit by the news agency. Associated Press
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The commission rejected the government-funding explanation, characterizing it as “concocted well after the event” to disguise the source of funding. That is the commission’s conclusion, which City is challenging on appeal—not the appeal panel’s final ruling. Associated Press
How does Etihad’s 2015 statement fit into the dispute?
Etihad Airways, Manchester City’s main sponsor, said in a 2015 submission to US government departments that the claim the Abu Dhabi government paid for its sponsorship was false and that Etihad paid from its own liquidity. Sky Sports quoted the company’s statement: “The assertion that the Abu Dhabi government paid for Etihad’s sponsorship of English Premier League football club Manchester City is equally false.” Sky Sports
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That historical statement appears to conflict with City’s reported appeal line, but it is Etihad’s account of its own sponsorship at that time. It does not, by itself, establish the source or route of every payment or resolve all sponsorship arrangements at issue. Irish Examiner
Why the source and route of the money matter
The disagreement is about more than whether sponsors paid City. It concerns where the money originated and how it reached the club. A sponsor’s ownership or connection to a government does not, on its own, establish that the government funded a particular sponsorship payment.
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| Account | Source and route described | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Commission | It attributed £830.69 million of sponsorship recorded in City accounts to ADUG; AP reported the commission’s comparison with £119.25 million paid directly by Abu Dhabi sponsors. | Commission finding reported by AP; under appeal. |
| Manchester City | The club reportedly argues that an Abu Dhabi government body funded sponsors from time to time, and that sponsors paid City. | City’s appeal position; not an accepted finding. |
| Etihad in 2015 | The airline said it paid for its own sponsorship from its own liquidity, rejecting the claim that the Abu Dhabi government paid for it. | Etihad’s historical statement about its sponsorship; not a ruling on all payments under dispute. |
What happens next?
City appealed after the commission issued its findings in 2026 in a case that dates to 2018. AP reported that the appeal hearing would remain private and confidential until publication of the outcome is permitted. As of the reporting dated October 2, 2026, no appeal decision or public account of how the panel treated the government-funding argument was established. Associated Press
The Football Association said the decision had “significant implications for the integrity of the game”; that was its institutional reaction, not a finding about who funded the sponsorships. Associated Press
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