BREAKING: Manchester United Relegated To Conference League?—-MANCHESTER UNITED face being axed from the Europa League due to Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s stake in French side Nice.
Both teams have qualified for next season’s competition after United beat Man City in the FA Cup final.
Nice secured their place by finishing fifth in Ligue 1.
But Uefa’s ownership rules prevents clubs with the same “decisive influence” from competing together in the same competition.
Ratcliffe’s group Ineos owns Nice outright after completing an £88.77million takeover in 2019.
The company now has a 27.7 per cent stake in United after striking a £1.3billion deal with the Glazers.
And Ineos now have until Monday June 3 to convince Uefa that Nice and United can both compete in next season’s Europa League.
An independent panel will make a ruling on whether the satisfactory criteria has been met, says the Telegraph.
But the worst case scenario would see United exiled to the Europa Conference League, as Nice secured a higher league finish.
Ratcliffe and Ineos will be hoping that their 27.7 per cent stake allows United to compete, as the Uefa threshold for violating ownership rules is 30 per cent.
However, the British billionaire has full control of all football operations at Old Trafford.
And Uefa will be wanting to know how much “decisive influence” comes from it, having recently warned clubs “must prove that, as at June 3 2024, they comply with the rules aimed at ensuring the integrity of the competition, namely the multi-club ownership rule”.
Reports also claim Ineos plan to invest a further £245m for infrastructure works, which would take them above the 30 per cent threshold.
But Ineos are “confident” of complying with Uefa’s rules though, saying: “We are aware of the position of both clubs and are in direct dialogue with Uefa.
“We are confident we have a route forward for next season in Europe.”
One option could be for Ineos to give up direct involvement at Nice, which would see day-to-day control go elsewhere.
A similar approach looks set to happen with City Football Group after both Man City and Girona qualified for the Champions League.
CFG have been told by Uefa they can sell shares in either club to a third-party, which would mean them reducing their Girona stake by more than a third.
And Ratcliffe could take a similar approach by putting Nice into a trust.
CREDIT: THESUN.CO.UK
