Rio Ferdinand, the legend of the English Manchester United football team, has sparked controversy. He is leading calls to impose maximum penalties on Manchester City, after it was proven that he committed several financial violations.
Ferdinand jokingly asked Joleon Lescott, the retired Manchester City player, to hand over the 2011-2012 Premier League championship medal.
Manchester City is preparing to face severe penalties after being found guilty of most of the 115 financial charges against it.
Although the appeal seems inevitable, the club faces unprecedented penalties, ranging from deducting points and imposing huge financial fines, all the way to the possibility of being stripped of major titles.
If these titles are withdrawn, the English Premier League title for the 2011-2012 season, which Manchester City won at the time with a dramatic, fatal goal scored by its Argentine star Sergio Aguero, may be awarded retroactively to runner-up Manchester United.
This prospect has prompted Ferdinand, the former Manchester United defender, to publicly demand that history be rewritten.
Speaking on his YouTube channel, the former England national team defender jokingly criticized his former international teammate Lescott, saying: “The next time Jolyon shows up, he should bring my damned medal,” adding: “If the guilt is proven, I think they should return the medals.”
Ferdinand continued to present his point of view, which combined joking and firmness, revealing his plans to deal with Lescott. He said: “When I see Jolyon, I will go to his house and simply say to him: ‘Listen, hand it to me... hand it over.’”
He added: “You can't really sit back and say you were the champions, can you? Or you won this or that title. Well, they won't have to pay fines and won't be relegated. They just have to hand over the cup. They handed over the medals, and handed over the cup. "It's very simple."
Ferdinand was quick to clarify that he did not hold the players responsible for the violations committed by Manchester City’s management, noting: “They were the best team in the country by a wide margin, weren’t they? “They had the best coach here.”
He added, "But again, if guilt is proven, appropriate penalties must be imposed, and this is the action that must be taken."
“So, we just have to wait,” Ferdinand confirmed. And again, what's really frustrating is that this case has taken so long. This is the reality. But can we still admire some of their football and those special moments they created? Of course we can; “We can still appreciate this.”
The retired English player stressed: “I repeat once again that the players do not bear the blame for this matter, as there are people who hold high positions and enjoy broad authority within football clubs, and they are the ones who make all these decisions. So, I will not place the blame on any of the players, but people’s perception of them will inevitably change, as this is the nature of things.”
Ferdinand had clearly expressed his opinion on social media last Friday. He wrote on his account on the “X” platform (formerly “Twitter”): “Another medal in the English Premier League will be added to the trophy cabinet.”
If Manchester City is stripped of the titles it won during the period of financial violations, Manchester United will be a candidate to inherit the league titles for the 2011-2012 and 2017-2018 seasons. These repercussions will also benefit other competitors in the league.
If this happens, the title of the 2013-2014 season, in which Liverpool finished runner-up during Ferdinand's last season at Old Trafford, will retroactively go to Liverpool's coffers at Anfield.
Today (Tuesday), the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) accused the European Football Association (UEFA) of waging a “misinformation campaign” and trying to influence the race for the FIFA presidency, while the International Federation urged an American court to reject a request to obtain documents related to a controversial investment proposal.
Last month, UEFA asked a US federal court for permission to obtain certificates and documents for use in a criminal complaint it intends to file in Switzerland against FIFA President Gianni Infantino, regarding a now-abandoned plan to transfer commercial rights to the World Cup to a subsidiary called FIFA Forward Enterprise.
FIFA said in its response that the UEFA memo included “many false or misleading statements regarding FIFA and Infantino.” FIFA added in a memorandum submitted to the Federal Court for the Southern District of Florida, opposing UEFA’s request to disclose the evidence: “Without any basis whatsoever, UEFA insinuates that Mr. Infantino sought personal gain from the FIFA Forward Enterprise proposal.”
He continued: “As we explained, the FIFA Forward Enterprise plan was subject to the approval of the member associations of FIFA and the FIFA Council, and the FIFA Forward Enterprise company would be subject to the supervision of both bodies within FIFA.” He added: “UEFA’s allegations that Mr. Infantino violated any law or moral principle are completely unfounded.” UEFA refused to respond to Reuters’ request for comment. UEFA claimed that Infantino worked on the proposal secretly with a small group of advisors and investors, bypassing FIFA’s usual governance procedures, and without consulting the FIFA Council, the continental confederations, or member associations.
UEFA’s request, which was reviewed by Reuters, included permission from an American court to review documents from the two companies, FIFA of the Americas and the American 2026 World Cup Company. They are two entities affiliated with FIFA and headquartered in Florida. UEFA said in legal documents that investors would have paid $4.2 billion for a stake in FIFA Forward Enterprise, valuing the company at about $20 billion.
He added that this evaluation significantly underestimates the value of FIFA's commercial rights, and claimed that it was not subject to a public auction or evaluation by an independent evaluation expert. FIFA said: “UEFA confuses, whether intentionally or ignorantly, the value of property rights with the value of the institution.” He continued: “There is no dispute that (the initial evaluation of the property rights) of (Viva Forward Enterprise); That is, the remaining value to shareholders after paying all debts amounted to $20 billion.
He added: “The documents distributed to the member federations of FIFA reveal that the total (enterprise value) of FIFA Forward Enterprise, on the other hand; That is, the “full value of the business” far exceeded $30 billion. He continued: “In fact, the (institutional value) of (FIFA Forward Enterprise) was much more than twice the value of the equity, and therefore it is much higher than the value that (UEFA) says will be fair.” The FIFA Forward Enterprise project was abandoned in July, following opposition from continental federations, including UEFA, CONCACAF, and the Asian Confederation, due to a lack of consultation. This disagreement led to increasing demands for changes in FIFA’s governance.
Last week, Infantino sent a letter to all 211 FIFA member associations, proposing to conduct an independent review of the decision-making processes of the International Federation.
The Swiss official is running in the FIFA presidential elections in March next year, and the International Federation claims that the legal lawsuits filed by UEFA were an attempt to influence the elections. The International Federation of Association Football said: “Immediately before the FIFA elections, UEFA submitted this request No. 1782 (and 3 other requests) to spread misleading information about Mr. Infantino.” He added: “This court should reject any attempt to influence the FIFA presidential elections based on these reasons.”
Nico O'Reilly, the left-back of Manchester City, was excluded from the England national team's match against the Czech Republic, in the third round of the first-level group matches of the European Nations League, scheduled to be held later today, Tuesday.
Sky Sports reported that the 21-year-old player, who committed a fatal error in Spain's decisive goal during the 3-2 loss last Saturday at Wembley Stadium, had missed training alongside fellow defender Ezri Konsa in preparation for traveling to the Czech capital, due to "minor injuries", but Arsenal's centre-back received the green light to participate, and was included in the match's roster of 23 players.
Thomas Tuchel, the coach of the England national team, said yesterday evening, Monday: “I am not sure yet whether they can play. They missed training due to minor problems, but they still exist.” “Their condition must be evaluated and a decision must be made on Tuesday morning.”
Tuchel had indicated that he did not want to make extensive changes to his starting lineup, but that he would put the safety of his players first, given the short period of time available for recovery after the loss to Spain.
“It's not fair to make so many changes,” he said. “You are playing with a new teammate or with a new style, and sometimes it is better for your health to make two or three changes, at most.”
Meanwhile, Liverpool striker Rio Ngomoha (18 years old) joined the England team delegation heading to Prague to play the match, as Tuchel's team seeks to quickly recover from its 2-3 loss to the world and European champions.
