Andy Burnham has vowed to disclose details of his dealings with Manchester City during his time as Greater Manchester mayor after facing criticism over comments defending the importance of the club’s Abu Dhabi-backed ownership.
The Greater Manchester mayor’s intervention attracted scrutiny after he expressed concern about the prospect of the club’s owners selling up following the Premier League’s financial regulations case against City.
Burnham has now promised to make his previous engagements with the club’s owners public, responding to calls from Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch for him to publish “everything” relating to his work with City.
The controversy follows a long-running case in which Manchester City were found guilty of breaching Premier League financial regulations between 2009 and 2018. The club have maintained their innocence and appealed against the verdict.
Last month, Burnham said he would be “really concerned” if City’s Abu Dhabi owners decided to sell the club, describing them as “a huge partner in the building of modern Manchester.”
His remarks prompted further questions about the relationship between the club’s ownership and the city’s political leadership. Downing Street subsequently sought to clarify the government’s position, stressing that the Prime Minister regarded the judgment as serious and that anyone found responsible for wrongdoing should face the consequences.
Speaking in an interview with The Rest Is Politics podcast, due for release on Monday, Burnham said he was prepared to disclose his previous dealings with City’s owners. He also insisted that the club’s financial case should not be confused with the wider economic investment associated with its ownership.
He said: “But I see now people trying to conflate these things. I’ve been asked by the Leader of the Opposition to publish details of my meetings, which I’m happy to do.
“I will quite clearly put out there everything that I have done working with them in my previous role as mayor of Greater Manchester.
“None of it is recent, actually, in terms of the meetings I had. I only had one significant meeting, actually, and that was in 2021. That is right and I will put that all out there.
“But the football issues, they are serious and have to be dealt with, and the process is independent and it has to run its course. But I think everybody should separate the investment issues because they’re not the same thing.”
Burnham’s pledge comes as Manchester City’s financial case continues to attract attention across English football. The Premier League said an independent commission found that the club had arranged “sham” commercial deals with several sponsors during the period under investigation.
According to the commission’s findings, the arrangements formed part of a disguised funding scheme in which the sponsors paid only a portion of the relevant fees, with the remainder funded by Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan’s Abu Dhabi United Group Investment & Development Ltd, which majority-owned the club.
Burnham maintains that the football-related allegations and the investment brought to Greater Manchester are separate matters. However, his promise to release details of his meetings is likely to intensify scrutiny of his relationship with City’s ownership as the dispute continues.
The mayor’s planned disclosure could provide further insight into his engagements with the club’s owners, while the independent process surrounding Manchester City’s financial case remains a separate issue.
Toosin is a dedicated sports writer with a strong background in crafting engaging and insightful content. With experience at Goal, he has developed a sharp editorial sense and a refined storytelling approach that brings depth and perspective to sports journalism. His passion for the game goes beyond the headlines, as he captures both the excitement of the sport and the compelling human narratives behind each event. Toosin’s work resonates with a broad and diverse audience, making global sports stories accessible, relatable, and impactful.
