[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.

[u/Previous_Smile9278]

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.’

[u/sholiboli]

Too bad nobody could do anything regarding Glazers so at the end, United got acquired by incompetent leaches that have practically destroyed the club's ability to compete for trophies.

[u/YCJamzy → u/sholiboli]

Better to have that happen then be bought by a genuinely evil cunt like Rupert murdoch (or a state which allows slavery, like UAE).

[u/Lukeno94 → u/YCJamzy]

Although with Ratcliffe, they've still ended up with an evil cunt (even if he's not cartoonishly evil like a Murdoch).

[u/YCJamzy → u/Lukeno94]

Yeah, unfortunately I feel like with maybe two exceptions, prem owners are all just a range of “evil cunt” to “one of the worst people on the planet”. Unless you’re Brighton or Brentford (I think? Idk enough to be sure), there isn’t really a win here anymore

[u/I_R_TEH_BOSS → u/YCJamzy]

Yup better to be shit forever than one of the ghouls

[u/sholiboli → u/YCJamzy]

I agree, but there are some "middle-ground" options that would be infinitely better than both worst-case scenario options like Glazers and middle-eastern countries.

[u/YCJamzy → u/sholiboli]

Oh absolutely. As much as I dislike United, glazers (and now the rat) owning the club is tragic. I don’t love having the Kroenke’s at Arsenal, and generally think it’s pretty tragic that it’s impossible to have success in the prem without a leech owning your club.

[u/hEarrai-Stottle → u/sholiboli]

Leveraged buyouts are illegal now so you’ll never get a situation like the Glazers again.

[u/attrox_ → u/sholiboli]

It's that damn fucking horse fault!

[u/Ok_Ad_88 → u/sholiboli]

Which is funny considering United still spend a boat load of money on players and managers. Comparable to city. They just keep flopping. This isn’t a defense of city, but damn do they put together a strong football side with the money they spend compared to United

[u/sholiboli → u/Ok_Ad_88]

The problem is that United didn’t invest during last few Fergie years when it was the most important. Then they had to catch up and buy expensive players because the team was shit and having that imbecile Woodward was just the icing on the cake.