How UEFA shifted the goalposts on FFP. The definitive story.

[nmc]

FFS!
Do you agree that our losses were more than £100m?

Losses were over £100m BUT when FFP was launched and financial commitments that pre dated it were supposed to be discounted. UEFA worked with City closely over a 3 year period to ensure our compliance. Our losses would have been small and possibly within the accumulated losses allowed. UEFA changed the rules late in the day and left us high and dry. I understand that we were on course to pass FFP but certain influential clubs threatened a breakaway if UEFA didn’t stop us and PSG. Hence a last minute deal was done and rules were changed to ensure we failed. When faced with ours (and PSGs) opposition UEFA quickly realised they were on dodgy ground and offered us a deal to settle the issue which we reluctantly accepted.

 

[I'm no cynic but...]

Get Theresa May in there to sort it out. She's a genius at dealing with Europeans.

 

[nmc]

Get Theresa May in there to sort it out. She's a genius at dealing with Europeans.

David Davis - he’s the architect of our running rings around Europe - a political colossus- second only to Chris Grayling.

 

[dickie davies]

Losses were over £100m BUT when FFP was launched and financial commitments that pre dated it were supposed to be discounted. UEFA worked with City closely over a 3 year period to ensure our compliance. Our losses would have been small and possibly within the accumulated losses allowed. UEFA changed the rules late in the day and left us high and dry. I understand that we were on course to pass FFP but certain influential clubs threatened a breakaway if UEFA didn’t stop us and PSG. Hence a last minute deal was done and rules were changed to ensure we failed. When faced with ours (and PSGs) opposition UEFA quickly realised they were on dodgy ground and offered us a deal to settle the issue which we reluctantly accepted.

No, they were only to be discounted if the club was to prove that the losses were due to contacts signed before 2010, and we failed

 

[citytilllidie]

We will fight them on the beaches

 

[nmc]

No, they were only to be discounted if the club was to prove that the losses were due to contacts signed before 2010, and we failed

No I don’t agree - we had been told we could offset any wages from contracts signed prior to 2010 - but this never came into play as we’d previously been led to believe simply because the principle previously agreed was unilaterally changed. If we were not going to pass FFP - under the original rules - why did UEFA embark upon a last minute switch to the rules - and thereby undermining their whole legal credibility- after all its the last minute change that seems to undermine their legal case? Why did they change the FFP rules at the last minute?

 

[Prestwich_Blue]

No I don’t agree - we had been told we could offset any wages from contracts signed prior to 2010 - but this never came into play as we’d previously been led to believe simply because the principle previously agreed was unilaterally changed. If we were not going to pass FFP - under the original rules - why did UEFA embark upon a last minute switch to the rules - and thereby undermining their whole legal credibility- after all its the last minute change that seems to undermine their legal case? Why did they change the FFP rules at the last minute?

You could only offset them (a) if you'd failed FFP to start with and (b) if you met the three conditions set out in FFP. We were failing whatever but under the original version of the three conditions we would have met these, thereby avoiding punishment. When they were changed, we then couldn't meet one of the three and so were punished.

 

[nmc]

You could only offset them (a) if you'd failed FFP to start with and (b) if you met the three conditions set out in FFP. We were failing whatever but under the original version of the three conditions we would have met these, thereby avoiding punishment. When they were changed, we then couldn't meet one of the three and so were punished.

Thanks.

 

[dickie davies]

You could only offset them (a) if you'd failed FFP to start with and (b) if you met the three conditions set out in FFP. We were failing whatever but under the original version of the three conditions we would have met these, thereby avoiding punishment. When they were changed, we then couldn't meet one of the three and so were punished.

So going back to @BlueAnorak 's post regarding being banned for enormous losses, we did infact fail by an enormous amount, but weren't banned.
We were punished with a fine and squad restriction

 

[Prestwich_Blue]

So going back to @BlueAnorak 's post regarding being banned for enormous losses, we did infact fail by an enormous amount, but weren't banned.
We were punished with a fine and squad restriction

The sanctions weren't necessarily connected to the size of the deviation from the acceptable deficit. UEFA appear to have been shit-scared of our reaction to events and were seemingly desperate to get a settlement almost at any price. So we came out with a punishment much less than we might have got as I reckon UEFA didn't fancy going to court. I think they basically asked us to name our price for accepting a settlement.