New Man City 115 charges fear said to emerge amid Premier League showdown

There is reported concern among Manchester City's rivals that political pressure will be put on government ministers to step in over the 115 charges brought by the Premier League.

City are still awaiting an outcome for 115 charges after allegedly breaching financial rules - which the club strongly deny - with a six-week hearing now set for November.

According to The Times, government officials have refused to disclose information on Foreign Office correspondence associated with the alleged breaches of the Premier League rules on the grounds that it could damage the United Kingdom's relationship with the United Arab Emirates.

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Back in 2020, the UK government involved itself in football matters with Gulf states when a minister contacted the Premier League chairman over its initial refusal to ratify the Saudi-led takeover of Newcastle United. According to The Athletic, government officials said that there was "immediate risk" to the UK's relationship with Saudi Arabia if the takeover deal with Newcastle was not completed.

And now, according to the report, some Premier League clubs are worried that fresh pressure could be exerted on the government over the 115 charges due to the relationship between the UK and the UAE.

Those fears also apply to City's legal action against the Premier League in a bid to end the division's Associated Party Transaction (APT) rules, which the champions are challenging at an arbitration hearing next week.

City majority shareholder Sheikh Mansour is a member of the Abu Dhabi ruling family and the vice-president and deputy prime minister of the UAE. His brother, Sheikh Mohamed bin