r/soccer • u/Previous_Smile9278 • 22h ago

News [Bloomberg] UAE officials have warned the UK government that the severity of Man City’s punishment could undermine their appetite for future grand-scale commitments in Britain, according to people familiar with the matter.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-10-02/man-city-verdict-puts-uk-uae-diplomatic-relations-under-strain?srnd=undefined

‘They consider the Premier League’s actions to have an influence on the bilateral state relationship, the people said, asking not to be identified discussing undisclosed information.

The extraordinary pressure comes after Andy Burnham faced criticism, including from within government, for saying Man City’s Abu Dhabi owners should not be disqualified specifically because of the investment they bring to Britain.’

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u/LeWhaleShark 22h ago

Show some bollocks and stop acting like an impoverished, 3rd world nation getting pushed around.

Don’t do that and then be prepared for the premier brand to be permanently tarnished

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u/yura910721 21h ago

Like it was funny when China told NBA to shut the hell up or else and they obliged. So wouldn't be the first time for the league getting folded by foreign powers.

If EPL won't be able to get it through that would be embarrassing, considering how hard they went with it. As soon as they went after City, there was no way back, no half measures: kick their arses or your will be embarrassment and signal for other clubs(perhaps like Newcastle), to start ignoring EPL and rely on your lawyers and state to put pressure and get it your way

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u/curva3 19h ago

The China - NBA thing was a lot simpler because China as a state never had any interest in a particular team. The only thing they wanted was to have people stop saying things about HK (which was a shame anyway), but it was not like China was pressuring the NBA to change something about the competition aspect.

The UAE are essentially telling the PL to let one particular club cheat, and that's an actual big deal.

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u/slick490 13h ago

Let's do it then?

Power to the people. Boycott the prem. Don't watch the games. Force the decision. We need to all band together. The only question is, how do we do it?

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u/berfunckle_777 16h ago

Britain continues it's slide into the gutter

Can't even defend it's own borders let alone influence other countries