According to the Post, Manchester City clubs have reached a settlement with the Premier League, and they will accept the current related party trading rules.

The full-scale war between Manchester City and the Premier League seems to be expected to end, and both sides welcome this. Yesterday, the two sides simultaneously issued a statement on their respective websites announcing a settlement on Manchester City's legal challenges to the Premier League's affiliate transactions (APT) rules.

That unrelated case involved so-called financial misconduct, which was heard in court a year ago and is still awaiting the judgment. Manchester City's wording is worth noting, and in this 97-word statement, there is no victory declaration, nor a slam of the APT rules—the rules used to evaluate sponsorship agreements to ensure they are not the means by which the owner artificially increases club revenue.

But there is a very important statement in the brief settlement announcement: "Manchester City's acceptance of the current APT rules is effective and binding." This short sentence made yesterday a good day in football. In short, Manchester City's idea of ​​completely overturning the APT mechanism has failed. Previously, Manchester City had called the rules anti-competitive, discriminatory and made them victims of "majority tyranny."

Yesterday's joint statement clearly established an important fact: The Premier League has the right to prevent state entities from injecting funds into clubs through companies associated with them, and this comprehensive war against the fundamental concept of the Premier League was ultimately failed.

It is hard to exaggerate the importance of clubs that do not have a wealthier owner than God toward APT rules, and although The Post has reported that Chelsea, Newcastle and Aston Villa have sympathized with City’s position in the case, many clubs are concerned that the competitive balance of England’s football will be undermined if City wins legal action and cancels existing rules.

A senior Premier League club executive said that if the APT case is lost, his team "why give up competing with Manchester City." Sources revealed that some clubs are very angry about the matter.