City launch legal action against the Premier League | City win APT case (pg901)

[Chris in London]

Any more information on this I thought it was ok if it reverted back.

No information as such, but what is worth bearing in mind is that in 2021 we had won two titles in Pep's first four seasons. Now we have won six in eight, we have been the champions of Europe, we have bettered Real Madrid every time we have played them (without always going through against them) we have become the first team ever to win four successive league titles in England and we are the champions of the world.

The Arbitration contains some useful information at para 301:

"the PL is the most watched football league in the world averaging over 600 million viewers per match compared to around 7.5 million viewers for La Liga, the second most viewed league. In the 2019/20 season the PL had a cumulative global audience of 3.16 billion, nearly double that of the next two most watched leagues in Europe, the Bundesliga and La Liga. The PL has a uniquely global fan base. In the 2019/20 season, 42 of the top 50 global audiences for European domestic league matches were for PL matches with the PL reaching the largest audiences in China, India, and the US. This international appeal is reflected in the fact that the PL’s overseas broadcast rights have consistently exceeded the combined total of the other five big European leagues."

We are visibly excellent and Etihad are likely to be willing to pay, for that type of exposure, a sum that is well above the sort of figures some other clubs might be able to command or even that MCFC might command from another sponsor.

TLDR: our continued excellence on the pitch means we are a substantially more valuable commodity for a sponsor than we were in 2021. The new rules do not pave the way towards huge deals, they do pave the way towards bigger deals.

 

[slbsn]

Except that a) we'll have won 3 more titles, an unprecedented 4 in a row and b) a treble and c) a European Super Cup and d) a World Club Championship. These are things that were more than just "possible" and City and their sponsors should have been allowed to take into account but weren't. And, in addition, weren't allowed to see the data that the PL used.

Not quite. The deal was not proposed to the PL until November 2023 and substantively considered through the second half of the year before a final determination on 25 April 2024. So most of those things were included in the justifications.

I was merely making the point that the rules under which it was reviewed were the pre Feb 2024 rules - once the process starts under the old rules, that is the process - ie not changed mid process.

 

[Invisible Man's Bandage]

Not quite. The deal was not proposed to the PL until November 2023 and substantively considered through the second half of the year before a final determination on 25 April 2024. So most of those things were included in the justifications.

I was merely making the point that the rules under which it was reviewed were the pre Feb 2024 rules - once the process starts under the old rules, that is the process - ie not changed mid process.

You have squashed the DefCon euphoria before it really got going.

 

[manimanc]

You have squashed the DefCon euphoria before it really got going.

Again?

Ffs.

 

[cheekybids]

No information as such, but what is worth bearing in mind is that in 2021 we had won two titles in Pep's first four seasons. Now we have won six in eight, we have been the champions of Europe, we have bettered Real Madrid every time we have played them (without always going through against them) we have become the first team ever to win four successive league titles in England and we are the champions of the world.

The Arbitration contains some useful information at para 301:

"the PL is the most watched football league in the world averaging over 600 million viewers per match compared to around 7.5 million viewers for La Liga, the second most viewed league. In the 2019/20 season the PL had a cumulative global audience of 3.16 billion, nearly double that of the next two most watched leagues in Europe, the Bundesliga and La Liga. The PL has a uniquely global fan base. In the 2019/20 season, 42 of the top 50 global audiences for European domestic league matches were for PL matches with the PL reaching the largest audiences in China, India, and the US. This international appeal is reflected in the fact that the PL’s overseas broadcast rights have consistently exceeded the combined total of the other five big European leagues."

We are visibly excellent and Etihad are likely to be willing to pay, for that type of exposure, a sum that is well above the sort of figures some other clubs might be able to command or even that MCFC might command from another sponsor.

TLDR: our continued excellence on the pitch means we are a substantially more valuable commodity for a sponsor than we were in 2021. The new rules do not pave the way towards huge deals, they do pave the way towards bigger deals.

When we go on tour now whether it’s Asia or the USA the majority of fans are City fans & we have Erling Haaland the megastar!

 

[TheThirdDeano]

Except that a) we'll have won 3 more titles, an unprecedented 4 in a row and b) a treble and c) a European Super Cup and d) a World Club Championship. These are things that were more than just "possible" and City and their sponsors should have been allowed to take into account but weren't. And, in addition, weren't allowed to see the data that the PL used.

Plus now one of our lads won the most prestigious(read: Marketable) individual award in football.

I’d say our deals are due an update!

 

[Chris in London]

When we go on tour now whether it’s Asia or the USA the majority of fans are City fans & we have Erling Haaland the megastar!

That's correct but the demographic differences between the two are highly relevant in sponsorship terms. One of the factors that has to be taken into account in deciding whether a transaction is at fair market value is "the geographic spread of fan base, including elements which may be a particular appeal to particular partners (such as demographic information)."

This requires an assessment of not just the club's fanbase but the sponsor's area of operations. If City got a huge sponsorship deal for instance from a milk marketing company, it would be not especially relevant to rely on how big the club are in Japan where 70% of the population is lactose intolerant. It would be less relevant to rely on City's exposure in South America if the Abu Dhabi Bank doesn't do any business there. On the other hand, exposure in the USA might be regarded as significantly more valuable in sponsorship terms because the average disposable income of supporters in the USA is significantly higher than in, say, south or south-east asia.

 

[cheekybids]

It is hard to imagine anything as incomparable as Margot Robbie to the replacement of "would" with "could" (or the other way round) in a set of Associated Party Rules. You should worry about anyone that does get giddy over the PL rule changes ;-)

Don’t stress the “could” haves, if it “should” have it “would” have ;)

Now back to Margot…….

 

[slbsn]

No information as such, but what is worth bearing in mind is that in 2021 we had won two titles in Pep's first four seasons. Now we have won six in eight, we have been the champions of Europe, we have bettered Real Madrid every time we have played them (without always going through against them) we have become the first team ever to win four successive league titles in England and we are the champions of the world.

The Arbitration contains some useful information at para 301:

"the PL is the most watched football league in the world averaging over 600 million viewers per match compared to around 7.5 million viewers for La Liga, the second most viewed league. In the 2019/20 season the PL had a cumulative global audience of 3.16 billion, nearly double that of the next two most watched leagues in Europe, the Bundesliga and La Liga. The PL has a uniquely global fan base. In the 2019/20 season, 42 of the top 50 global audiences for European domestic league matches were for PL matches with the PL reaching the largest audiences in China, India, and the US. This international appeal is reflected in the fact that the PL’s overseas broadcast rights have consistently exceeded the combined total of the other five big European leagues."

We are visibly excellent and Etihad are likely to be willing to pay, for that type of exposure, a sum that is well above the sort of figures some other clubs might be able to command or even that MCFC might command from another sponsor.

TLDR: our continued excellence on the pitch means we are a substantially more valuable commodity for a sponsor than we were in 2021. The new rules do not pave the way towards huge deals, they do pave the way towards bigger deals.

I know my facts and realism are not appreciated at times like this but to note:

• The Etihad deal is already very big;
• The issue on FMV was on a couple of esoteric points but, in particular, the compound annual growth rates used for the later seasons. Adjusting those rates can very materially impact the value of the deal in those years. I ran an example here:
• City have clearly signed a deal of some sort for 24/25 and likely over £100m pa which would be the biggest single sponsor deal in the PL (but of course with a bigger inventory than any other deal)
• City did present 2 under bidder deals at comparable levels but both were rejected as good comps for various reasons

 

[cheekybids]

That's correct but the demographic differences between the two are highly relevant in sponsorship terms. One of the factors that has to be taken into account in deciding whether a transaction is at fair market value is "the geographic spread of fan base, including elements which may be a particular appeal to particular partners (such as demographic information)."

This requires an assessment of not just the club's fanbase but the sponsor's area of operations. If City got a huge sponsorship deal for instance from a milk marketing company, it would be not especially relevant to rely on how big the club are in Japan where 70% of the population is lactose intolerant. It would be less relevant to rely on City's exposure in South America if the Abu Dhabi Bank doesn't do any business there. On the other hand, exposure in the USA might be regarded as significantly more valuable in sponsorship terms because the average disposable income of supporters in the USA is significantly higher than in, say, south or south-east asia.

Partnering with a Bank that intends to go global ;)