Manchester City owner Sheikh Mansour to attend Champions League final

Manchester City’s owner, Sheikh Mansour, will attend his team’s Champions League final against Internazionale on Saturday evening. The sheikh is due to be present in Istanbul as City face Internazionale, bidding to win Europe’s top club prize for the first time.

It would be only be the second competitive game he has attended since his investment vehicle, the Abu Dhabi United Group, purchased City in 2008. He missed the 2021 final that City lost to Chelsea in Porto, but has made arrangements to be in Turkey for the match that his club are favourites to win. Khaldoon al-Mubarak, City’s chairman, is also due to be at the showpiece match at the Ataturk Olympic Stadium.

The only previous City match Sheikh Mansour attended was almost 13 years ago when he visited the Etihad Stadium to witness a 3-0 victory over Liverpool in 2010.

City have risen to become the dominant force in the English game under Mansour’s ownership, with the club having won seven Premier League titles in the past 12 years and five of the last six. His spending has transformed City, enabling them to attract some of the best players in the game. Mansour will get to see Kevin De Bruyne, Erling Haaland and Rodri play in the flesh for the first time. The sheikh’s investment over 15 years has resulted in a new training ground for the club and expansion of the Etihad Stadium.

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Victory in Turkey on Saturday would also see them become only the second English side to win the treble, replicating Manchester United’s achievement in 1999, having already retained their domestic title and won the FA Cup. City also now sit at the heart of a global