Manchester City will play in the Champions League next season after the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) lifted the club’s two-year ban from European football.
The English Premier League Club were suspended from the competition by UEFA’s club financial control body in February for “serious breaches” of club licensing and financial fair play regulations.
Manchester City however denied any wrongdoing and appealed the decision at CAS in June, after previously describing the UEFA disciplinary process as “prejudicial”.
After hearing evidence over the course of three days in June, CAS have now overturned the suspension, which means City are free to compete in the Champions League next season, having secured second place in the Premier League with a 5-0 win over Brighton on Saturday.
Speaking after the match, City manager Pep Guardiola said he was confident the ban would be overturned and insisted his side deserved to play in European football’s elite competition.
In an official statement released today, the Club welcomed the decision of the CAS and thanked everyone involved in making it possible.
“Whilst Manchester City and its legal advisors are yet to review the full ruling by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), the Club welcomes the implications of today’s ruling as a validation of the Club’s position and the body of evidence that it was able to present. The Club wishes to thank the panel members for their diligence and the due process that they administered.” the Club said in a statement in its website.
