Manchester City’s long-running battle with European football’s governing body has come to an end. The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) on July 13 lifted the two-year ban of the club from UEFA competitions. With the appeal in their favour, Pep Guardiola’s side can now compete in next season’s Champions League football once again.
In February, UEFA banned City from its club competitions for the next two seasons after being found guilty of breaching Financial Fair Play Regulations, which also included a fine of €30million.
The Premier League club immediately challenged the verdict, and CAS has now declared that the initial punishment was too harsh and removed the European ban. The CAS in its statement said that most of the alleged breaches against the Manchester City were time barred and there were insufficient evidence to hold the club guilty in this specific case.
The ruling has been described as a “biggest win” for the club, which will now have to pay a fine of €10million due to its failure to cooperate with the UEFA authorities.
