Manchester City is taking legal action against the Premier League's attempt to change its sponsorship regulations.
Last year, the reigning champions, who had won the title four times in a row, won a legal victory against competition regulations.
A tribunal ruled that the Associated Party Transaction (APT) regulations violated competition law after it was designed to prevent clubs from signing inflated commercial deals with firms connected to their owners.
In November, Premier League clubs voted 16 to 4 in favor of amending the existing rules rather than rewriting them, despite numerous objections from City.
Man City take legal action
City's legal team have argued that the updated regulations are still discriminatory, giving an unfair advantage to clubs like Arsenal.
According to Daily Mail, City argues that the original rules were unlawful because shareholder loans were not subject to the same 'fair market value' test as commercial deals.
The updated APT rules aim to address this by permitting clubs that have utilized shareholder loans to convert them into equity within a specified "grace period," which concluded in January.
In contrast to the mandatory 30-day waiting period for deals with associated parties, shareholder loans can be repaid in full before any Fair Market Value (FMV) assessment.
They add: "This continued preferential and discriminatory treatment of shareholder loans has the object and/or effect of distorting economic competition between Member Clubs on affected markets."
City officials state that the current rules are not transparent, objective, precise, or proportionate, and that they may also distort competition.
They argue that these amendments are not valid and that the changes are invalid in the latter part of their argument.
They added, "'This voidness means that the amendments are themselves void, because it is not legally possible to amend rules that are themselves void."
If City secures another win, the Premier League will be forced to reconsider its strategy, and chief executive Richard Masters will face increased scrutiny.
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