Manchester City owner Mansour bin Zayed named UAE vice president
The owner of Manchester City, Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, has been named vice president of the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
The move comes amid a number of major political appointments by Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the President of the nation.
Sheikh Mohamed also named Kahled bin Mohamed as Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.
Zayed Al Nahyan acquired Manchester City in 2008 through investment firm Abu Dhabi United Group and handed it over to City Football Group, who have a number of stakes in a number of football clubs.
As of July 2021, the parent undertaking of City Football Group became Newton investment and Development LLC, another company owned by Zayed Al Nahyan.
The appointments by Sheikh Mohamed represent an increasing feeling of Abu Dhabi dominance in the UAE – with the oil rich Emirate holding the presidency in the nation since 1971.
“The UAE president has issued a resolution, with the approval of the UAE Federal Supreme Council” a statement said. “To appoint Mansour bin Zayed, deputy prime minister of presidential court as UAE vice president.”
Included in City Football Group’s family are Premier League champions Manchester City, MLR franchise New York City, Australia’s Melbourne City, Japan’s Yokohama F. Marinos, Montevideo City Torque of Uruguay, Girona FC, Sichuan Jiuniu, Mumbai City, Lommel SK and Esperance Sportive Troyes Aube Champagne.
City were charged last month with more than 100 alleged rule breaches dating back to 2009, including falsely reporting income and the salaries of players and managers, and failing to cooperate with the Premier League’s four-year investigation.
There have been hints in recent months surrounding changes to multi-club ownership, which would allow the likes of City Football Group to have multiple sides in the Champions League.
Should the changes come into force, it could boost Ineos tycoon Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s bid for Manchester United given the billionaire already has ownership of Ligue 1 side Nice.