Manchester City have issued a counter suit against the Premier League as they prepare to battle more than 100 charges.

Sheffield United and Sheffield Wednesday could both be influenced by Manchester City’s legal dispute with the Premier League. City are facing 115 charges owing to suspected financial breaches of Premier League rules but in a move not many expected, they have now launched a counter action against the Premier League.

City effectively allege that the restrictions they are accused of infringing are unfair and not legitimate. Much of those laws linked to teams bringing in unregulated revenue from sponsors, which is an avenue City intend to exploit, given their strong relationships with the Middle East, while Newcastle United also have strong interest in doing the same. The Magpies front of shirt sponsor is provided by Sela – a Saudi live events and experiences company, with the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund controlling 80 per cent of Newcastle.

With clubs limited by Profit and Sustainability rules, sponsorships can be a way of bringing in more revenue and thus increasing how much can be spent, but any sponsorship money is vetted by the Premier League to make sure there is no extra money from owners being filtered into clubs through sponsors, with clubs unable to make large amounts of money from sponsors who are also owned by club owners as all sponsorship deals must be deemed to be of fair market value.City intend to change that with their counter suit, and clubs, according to The Times, are particularly concerned about the outcome since, if rules are changes, the wealthiest clubs will be able to move further apart from the rest. As many as 10-12 clubs are thought to be eager to stand with the Premier League and fight against City in the trial, the first of which begins in less than two weeks, lasting roughly a month, while there are more dates arranged for later in the year.

As all that develops, insiders in the same story suggest they feel City’s battle with the Premier League is a significant reason why the Premier League have failed to strike a new deal with the EFL. ‘New Deal For Football’ was planned to deliver as much as £900m to EFL clubs over six seasons from the Premier League, but talks faltered. It’s believed that if City manage to get rid of the Premier League’s financial constraints, the Premier League teams will not be willing to sanction giveaways to clubs in lesser tiers.

That may be a major blow for the Blades, Wednesday and the rest of their rivals in the EFL, with finances much harder to manage outside the Premier League. Although United will continue to collect parachute payments over the coming years following their relegation.

Meanwhile, Man City chairman Khaldoon al-Mubarak recently stated of the charges against his club: “Of course, it’s frustrating. The referencing is usually frustrating. I feel for our fanbase and everyone affiliated with the club to have these charges repeatedly referenced. It’s taking longer than everyone planned for but there is a procedure we have to go through. I’ve constantly stated, let’s be evaluated by the facts and not by claims and counterclaims.”

He added: “The Premier League got to where it is today by being the most competitive league,” he remarked. “So, I hope there is a bit more sensibility in regulating. A balanced approach is good from all the leagues. There have been a lot of limits placed in place on swaps and loans, so even that is now much more constrained. That is going to be reflected, I believe, this summer

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