Manchester City will get a chance to address the Court of Arbitration for Sport this week in a bid to ensure they are allowed compete in European club competitors for the next two seasons. The Swiss-based Court of Arbitration for Sport has set aside three days to hear City’s appeal against a two-year for breaching fair play rules.
CAS will hear the case from Monday to Wednesday.
European soccer’s governing body UEFA imposed the ban in February for “serious breaches” of the Financial Fair Play regulations. It said City; majority owned by the Abu Dhabi United Group, had overstated sponsorship revenue between 2012 and 2016 and failed to cooperate with UEFA’s investigation.
The club were also handed a 30 million euro fine.
The ruling, if upheld, would mean City would not be able to compete in the 2020-2021 Champions League should they again qualify for Europe’s top club competition. They would also be banned from European competition in the 2021-2022 season.
Support for ‘Black Lives Matter’ protests
Meanwhile, Borussia Dortmund kept alive their fading hopes of wrestling the Bundesliga title from Bayern Munich’s grasp, after a second-half goal from Emre Can gave them a 1-0 home win over Hertha Berlin. Prior to the kickoff, both teams went down on one knee in the centre circle, to pay tribute to George Floyd, whose death has triggered protests around the world.
Other German soccer players also showed their support for the Black Lives Matter movement.
Bayern Munich players wore armbands reading ‘Black Lives Matter’ during their 4-2 victory at Bayer Leverkusen, while Mainz’s Pierre Kunde Malong went down on one knee after scoring for his side in their 2-0 win at Eintracht Frankfurt.
The Black Lives Matter movement continues to gather momentum around the globe as different sporting personalities make their voices heard. NFL quarterback Drew Brees posted a message in reply to Donald Trump after the United States President took to Twitter to attack protesters who kneel during the national anthem.
The kneeling pose, popularised by NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick, has become a symbol of the fight for racial justice in the US.
Trump tweeted on Friday that Brees “should not have taken back his original stance.”
The kneeling pose has been seen at protests in cities across the country in the wake of the death of George Floyd while in police custody in Minneapolis.
In Brees’ lengthy social media post he added, “We must stop talking about the flag and shift our attention to the real issues of systemic racial injustice, economic oppression, police brutality, and judicial & prison reform.”
World heavyweight boxing champion, Anthony Joshua, spoke out during a Black Lives Matter march in his hometown of Watford labelling racism as a ”virus.” The British fighter wore a Black Lives Matter shirt and used a scooter and crutches to move following a leg injury sustained during training.
