UEFA's FFP rules and how they affect Manchester United and Man City

Manchester City are currently under investigation after allegedly breaching 115 Premier League Financial Fair Play (FFP) charges between the 2009/10 and 2017/18 seasons.

If found guilty of the charges which have been put before them, City could be hit with some eye-watering punishments with options including relegation from the top flight. While under investigation, the Blues will be mindful of not falling foul of any other FFP rules which they are bound by.

Of course both City and Manchester United are also governed by UEFA who have their own FFP rules which operate separately from the Premier League. In 2022, this framework was updated and MEN Sport has taken a look at what these rules are and what they mean for the two Manchester clubs.

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When UEFA announced these new FFP rules last year, their objective was to ensure clubs are 'stable, solvent, and keeping their costs under control.' To do this they broke the regulations down to what they called 'three pillars' - the no overdue payables rule, the football earnings rule, and the squad cost rule.

The no overdue payables rule

This rule was introduced to avoid solvency issues. It means any payments to football clubs, employees, social/tax authorities, and UEFA due to be settled by 30 June, 30 September and 31 December during the licence season must be settled by a club by 15 July, 15 October, and 15 January respectively.

Should these payments not be made within 90 days, UEFA are likely to take action.

The football earnings rule

One of the key takeaways from this rule is that clubs' relevant investments e.g. to youth development,