Villa owner reveals why he’s backing Man City against EPL over sponsorship rules

Aston Villa owner Nassef Sawiris has spoken out about his club's decision to back Manchester City in their ongoing battle with the Premier League.

City have challenged Premier League sponsorship rules amid a row over associated party transactions (APT). Possible changes will be voted on on Friday.

However, Mail Sport revealed on Tuesday that Villa have written to all top clubs in an email 'strongly recommending' that the proposed vote be postponed, just days after City also called for the vote to be postponed.

Sawiris has now set out his views, as he believes delaying the vote until after the government's independent football regulator is called in will result in a more satisfactory outcome for all Premier League clubs.

“In our view, a 90-day vote on amended terms, taking into account the Tribunal's findings, will have a significantly greater chance of receiving the unanimous support of all 20 Premier League clubs,” Sawiris told The Telegraph.

'Crucially, a unanimous vote will mark a fresh start for a contentious Premier League that began with the failed attempt to launch a Super League in 2021.

'With the imminent arrival of the government's independent football regulator, it is more important than ever that the Premier League can present itself to the regulator with a united front. In our view, this will be achieved much more easily if the APT vote takes place in February and is unanimously supported by all clubs.”

Villa have raised concerns after City also wrote to clubs last week to urge a postponement of the vote, claiming the Premier League's proposed rule changes remained 'unlawful' and raised the prospect of further legal action .

City initially took the league to a tribunal following changes to regulations on APTs (commercial deals with parties linked to club owners) this year.

In September, a panel ruled that parts of the rules were unlawful, largely because shareholder loans – funds lent to clubs by players with a stake of more than 5 percent – ​​were excluded from the Fair Market Value (FMV) test of the competition.

After the verdict, chief executive Richard Masters assured clubs that changes could be implemented 'quickly and effectively'. That claim was rejected by City's legal adviser Simon Cliff, who accused Masters of trying to mislead in his own email to clubs.

In a letter shared by City with the other 19 teams, the Premier League attacked City's position and accused its own champions of making 'repeated and unsubstantiated claims'.

While the Premier League declined to comment, Mail Sport believes the league is determined to go ahead with Friday's vote despite protests from City and Villa.