Soccer-Lib Dems demand Burnham to disclose talks with Manchester City owners

British Prime Minister Andy Burnham on stage at the Labour Party's annual conference in Liverpool, Britain, September 29, 2026. REUTERS/Temilade Adelaja

MANCHESTER, England, Oct ⁠2 (Reuters) - The UK's Liberal Democrats party on Friday urged Prime Minister Andy ⁠Burnham to disclose any meetings he has held with Manchester City's owners, ‌Abu Dhabi representatives or related entities, stepping up criticism of his comments following the landmark ruling against the club.

Burnham, who had served as the mayor of Greater Manchester from May 2017 to June 2026, ​had earlier this week expressed concern about City's owners ⁠potentially selling the club, saying they ⁠had been "a huge partner in the building of modern Manchester" and "in turning the club ⁠into ‌a global force".

Burnham's comments drew heavy criticism from opposition politicians.

"Football fans up and down the country deserve to know that the rules apply to ⁠everyone, however rich and powerful they are," Anna Sabine, the ​party's spokesperson for culture, ‌media and sport, told the Prime Minister in a letter.

"When the prime ⁠minister leaps to ​the defence of a club's owners within hours of a verdict, people are entitled to ask what their relationship is.

"Andy Burnham must come clean and publish details of every meeting and ⁠conversation he has had with City Football Group, ​Abu Dhabi United Group or UAE government representatives, going back to his time as Mayor - and that includes any hospitality freebies received."

Manchester City have filed an appeal against an ⁠independent commission ruling that found the club guilty of serious breaches of the Premier League's financial rules, seeking to overturn the verdict and avoid potentially severe sanctions.

The league said on Tuesday that City had used "sham" commercial contracts as part of schemes to inflate ​revenue and understate costs by more than £900 million ($1.19 billion) ⁠over nearly a decade.

The letter follows Thursday's statement from a Number 10 spokesperson that ​City should face the "appropriate consequences" if wrongdoing is established.

Shadow ‌Sports Minister Louie French said the government must "keep ​politics out of football" and ensure the independent commission is free of "outside influence."

City have denied any wrongdoing.

(Reporting by Lori Ewing, editing by Pritha Sarkar)

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英国首相安迪·伯纳姆于2026年9月29日在英国利物浦举行的工党年度大会上发表讲话。路透社/Temilade Adelaja

英国曼彻斯特，10 月 2 日（路透社）——英国自由民主党周五敦促首相安迪·伯纳姆披露他与曼城俱乐部所有者、阿布扎比代表或相关实体举行的任何会议，并加大了对他此前针对曼城俱乐部的里程碑式裁决的批评力度。

伯纳姆曾于 2017 年 5 月至 2026 年 6 月担任大曼彻斯特市长，本周早些时候，他曾对曼城老板可能出售俱乐部表示担忧，称他们“一直是建设现代曼彻斯特的巨大合作伙伴”，并且“将俱乐部打造成一支全球力量”。

伯纳姆的言论招致了反对派政客的强烈批评。

“全国各地的足球迷都应该知道，规则适用于所有人，无论他们多么富有和有权势，”该党文化、媒体和体育发言人安娜·萨宾在给首相的一封信中写道。

“当首相在判决结果公布后的几个小时内就跳出来为俱乐部老板辩护时，人们有权质疑他们之间的关系。”

“安迪·伯纳姆必须坦白交代，公布他担任市长以来与城市足球集团、阿布扎比联队或阿联酋政府代表的每一次会面和谈话的细节——包括他收到的任何招待赠品。”

曼城已就独立委员会的裁决提出上诉，该裁决认定俱乐部严重违反了英超联赛的财务规则，曼城希望推翻该裁决并避免可能受到的严厉制裁。

英超联赛周二表示，曼城利用“虚假”商业合同，在近十年的时间里，虚增收入并低估成本，涉案金额超过 9 亿英镑（11.9 亿美元）。

这封信是在唐宁街10号发言人周四发表声明之后发出的，该声明称，如果证实存在不当行为，市政府应该承担“适当的后果”。

影子体育部长路易·弗伦奇表示，政府必须“让政治远离足球”，并确保独立委员会不受“外部影响”。

市政府否认有任何不当行为。

（Lori Ewing报道，Pritha Sarkar编辑）

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