Why Manchester City’s legal case has power to blow Premier League’s house down

The champions’ claims threaten the collectivism that has been central to the league’s success over three decades

LEGION OF BOOM: Khaldoon Al Mubarak, Chairman of Manchester City, and Pep Guardiola, Manager of Manchester City, poses for a photo with the Premier League title trophy following the team's victory in the Premier League match between Manchester City and West Ham United at Etihad Stadium on May 19, 2024 in Manchester, England. Pic: Michael Regan/Getty Images

At an unspecified location in central London this week, the latest stage in the Premier League’s civil war will begin to unfold. Expected to last two weeks, the arbitration case brought by Manchester City against the competition of which they are champions will be dry, its verdict technical. The consequences, however, will probably be anything but.

City, who are owned by Sheikh Mansour, the vice-president and deputy prime minister of the United Arab Emirates, will argue in front of a panel of three independent lawyers that the Premier League is breaking the law of the UK.