Spanish La Liga files a complaint against PSG and Man City – RT Sport News

Spanish La Liga bosses have confirmed they are stepping up a legal bid against spenders Manchester City and Paris Saint-Germain, accusing Middle Eastern-backed clubs of flouting Financial Fair Play (FFP) rules.

Man City and PSG have continued to pull off major coups this summer. In the English club’s case, that involved capturing highly-coveted Norwegian striker Erling Haaland from Borussia Dortmund in a deal that would cost them more than £85m ($102m) when all fees partners are taken into account.

For PSG, their biggest achievement was persuading star striker Kylian Mbappe to reject Real Madrid’s advances and stay in Paris. France’s World Cup winner, 23, would have become the highest-paid player in the world under the terms of his new three-year contract which could be worth up to 250 million euros ($260 million).

But Mbappe’s deal in particular has infuriated La Liga president Javier Tebas as Spain’s top tier have missed out on a big name headed his way.

Over the past few years, Spanish giants Real Madrid and Barcelona have been largely accustomed to going their own way when it comes to attracting football’s top talent, although the financial firepower of Man City, owned by Abu Dhabi, and Qatar-backed PSG have shaken up the transfer landscape considerably over the past decade.

A La Liga letter shared by Marca and posted online on Wednesday confirmed that the league is pursuing legal action against both clubs.

« La Liga this week lodged a complaint with UEFA against PSG, who will join another against Manchester City in April, for understanding that these clubs are continually in breach of current Financial Fair Play rules, » reads the letter.

“LaLiga considers that these practices alter the ecosystem and the sustainability of football, harm all European clubs and leagues, and only serve to artificially inflate the market, with money not generated by football itself.

« LaLiga understands that the irregular financing of these clubs takes place, either through direct injections of money or through sponsorship and other contracts that do not correspond to market conditions or do not make economic sense. .

« The complaints against Manchester City before UEFA were filed in April and last week the one corresponding to PSG was presented, although it is not excluded that in the coming days extensions of some of these complaints will be made. with new contributions Data.

« In addition, LaLiga has hired law firms in France and Switzerland, including the French firm of lawyer Juan Branco, with the aim of initiating administrative and legal actions as soon as possible before the competent French authorities and before the European Union.

« In Switzerland, La Liga is considering different representation options due to Nasser Al-Khelaïfi’s potential conflicts of interest arising from his various roles at PSG, UEFA, ECA and BeIN Sports, » he added.

Man City and PSG have both been slapped in recent years for spending.

After accepting a fine and transfer restrictions in 2014 as part of UEFA’s FFP sanctions, the English Premier League champions were then banned from UEFA competition for two years in February 2020 following of allegations made in the ‘Football Leaks’ scandal, although the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) overturned that decision five months later.

PSG were punished by UEFA in 2014 for FFP breaches, fined €60m and had their squad reduced to the Champions League. The club also accepts « significantly limit » transfer expenses in subsequent seasons.

The French giants and Man City have always denied wrongdoing with their spending, although their circumstances have raised repeated questions about the fairness of clubs believed to be backed by entire states and allegedly used for geopolitical purposes.

Conversely, La Liga critics would say that players likeBoth Tebas and Real Madrid are simply bitter at facing stiffer competition to sign football’s biggest stars and no longer holding the relative financial clout they once did.