PARIS — Paris Saint-Germain rejected reports on Wednesday that said the club are set to fall foul of UEFA’s financial fair play (FFP) rules for a second time, branding it “erroneous information.”
The Financial Times reported that the French capital outfit could face sanctions after UEFA’s preliminary investigations uncovered a sponsorship contract that was valued at around €200 million was “overstated.”
UEFA’s investigation into PSG started last summer after the Ligue 1 leaders signed Neymar for a world-record €222 million from Barcelona and then loaned Kylian Mbappe from league rivals Monaco with a near-obligation to buy this summer for around €180 million inserted into the deal.
The Financial Times report suggests that a large fine or even a Champions League ban awaits Les Parisiens.
In response, a PSG statement read: “PSG can only deplore the fact that, a few days before a scheduled meeting with UEFA, erroneous information directed at the club has surfaced once again in the British press.
“PSG recalls that the club was under UEFA surveillance for four years as part of a ‘settlement’ signed in 2014 between the two parties, which [PSG] was released from in 2017.
“In fact, European football’s governing body has clear and transparent vision of the club’s financial state, particularly regarding the value of the multi-year contracts binding it with its partners.
“The procedure is following its course. PSG are in permanent contact with UEFA and will appear in complete serenity in front of the European governing body on April 20 to present its case.”
Sources told ESPN FC earlier this month that PSG will indeed meet with UEFA on April 20 to discuss FFP-related matters.
The French capital club’s representatives will travel to Switzerland and meet with UEFA’s Club Financial Control Body to discuss FFP-related topics.
It will not be the first time that PSG have visited UEFA headquarters in Nyon since the opening of the investigation last summer.
The source added that it also might not be the last meeting of its nature between the two parties and that the French giants being summoned does not mean that a decision is imminent.
UEFA’s FFP verdicts are expected in early June at the earliest, and PSG do not expect a decision to be communicated when they travel to the meeting in a few weeks’ time.
Commercially, PSG have busy of late, signing an “historic” partnership with Desports regarding sponsorship and licencing rights in China and Hong Kong, extending their deal with Nivea Men into Brazil, naming former NBA Europe vice-president Marc Armstrong as new sponsorship director and announcing the opening of an official office in Singapore to “further develop the brand in Asia.”
Meanwhile, on the pitch, Thomas Tuchel is expected to officially take over from Unai Emery as coach once the current season is over, with the Spaniard’s contract running out this summer.
Jonathan Johnson covers PSG and the French national team for ESPN FC. Twitter: @Jon_LeGossip.
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