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Manchester City could be sold by Sheikh Mansour if the club’s appeal against its financial breaches verdict is unsuccessful, according to UAE expert Christopher M Davidson.
The Premier League recently confirmed that an independent commission found City guilty of breaching financial regulations over a nine-year period.
The commission found that the club had arranged “sham” contracts with commercial partners and misrepresented aspects of its finances. City deny wrongdoing and have appealed the findings.
UAE expert predicts City ownership change
Davidson, author of Abu Dhabi: Oil & Beyond, believes the verdict could eventually prompt Abu Dhabi’s ruling family to reconsider its ownership of the Premier League club.
He argued that the findings could create a reputational problem for the ownership and suggested selling the club would be preferable to allowing the controversy to continue.
“Once there’s some time to digest this, my feeling would be that they would extricate themselves,” Davidson told The Athletic.
“I think primarily it would be seen from a political and cultural aspect. The ruling family of Abu Dhabi would feel that they had been embarrassed and disgraced by this ruling, and the best way of moving forward would be to sell now to cut the losses, as it were, rather than allow this to be a festering, lingering problem where the ownership of their club would be forever tainted in England.”
Davidson added: “I can’t see any scenario where they would continue.”
City chairman previously ruled out sale
The prediction comes despite Manchester City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak previously insisting that there was no plan to sell the club.
Speaking in June, Khaldoon said City and its ownership group represented a highly valuable part of their football interests.
“Manchester City and this group within the football world is a pinnacle and these sorts of jewels you don’t sell,” he said.
Davidson believes the commission’s verdict could change that position if City ultimately fail in their appeal.
The club’s appeal remains ongoing, meaning no decision on a potential ownership change has been announced. City also continue to maintain their innocence while awaiting the next stage of the process.
The Premier League is yet to announce the final sporting or financial sanctions that could follow the commission’s findings.