PSG with Qatar, safe: City faces 114 financial breaches

Manchester City has been found guilty of 114 financial breaches since its takeover by the United Arab Emirates in 2008, raising fears of very harsh sanctions from the Premier League. This Wednesday they face Paris Saint-Germain in the second Champions League matchday, and despite loud criticism toward “state-linked clubs”, PSG is not expected to be in the same regulatory position.

As RMC Sport explains, an almost four-year investigation into City points to a sponsorship setup involving companies more or less linked to the club’s owners or to the UAE. For PSG, the article stresses a key difference: UEFA’s ICFC has regularly reduced the value of Qatar-related contracts, adjusting PSG’s figures to match the club’s stated economic reality.

The key contrast with City

The piece cites two rounds of devaluation. In 2014, the image contract with the Qatar Tourism Authority fell from 200 to 100 million euros. In 2018, multiple PSG agreements with Qatari entities were reviewed downward. Jean-Claude Blanc defended the club’s position in an RMC Sport interview, saying: “the share of Qatar contracts is less than 30% of the club’s revenue” and that “Qatar companies also have the right to associate” with PSG.

It also notes that PSG has already paid for financial-management issues under UEFA control: in 2014, a 60 million-euro fine and a reduction to 21 players registered for the Champions League (from 25). Four years later, after scrutiny in 2018, PSG avoided new sanctions but had to sell players for around 60 million euros. The most recent UEFA penalty linked to finances came in autumn 2022, when PSG received a 10 million-euro fine for losses exceeding the 30 million-euro limit across three years.