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Manchester United and OGC Nice, who are both owned by Ineos, will be able to compete together in the Europa League following a UEFA ruling but cannot sign each other’s players.
The world took notice when United’s new owners were officially announced in December but fewer people were aware that the petrochemicals company had bought the Ligue 1 club Nice in 2019.
Both clubs were pushing for European places all season and there were serious doubts as to whether the two clubs could play in Europe together were they both to qualify.
It didn’t look like it would be an issue as the French side claimed a Europa League spot via their final league position and United finished eighth, outside the European spots. However, a sensational FA Cup victory resulted in the Red Devils’ qualification for the same competition as Ineos’ other side.
Cross-city rivals Manchester City and La Liga side Girona were also in the same boat as they both finished in the Champions League spots and are both part of the City Football Group.
The Daily Mail report that “UEFA investigated both situations and have ruled that all four clubs will be able to participate in the competition they qualified for.”
“Both Manchester clubs have managed to show UEFA that they will not be breaching Article 5 of its rules, which demands that ‘no one is simultaneously involved, directly or indirectly, in any capacity whatsoever in the management, administration and/or sporting performance of more than one club participating in a UUFE club competition; and no one has control or decisive influence over more than one club participating in a UEFA club competition’.”
Whilst this is evidently good news for United, one ramification of the settlement is not so positive.
The same paper also reports that “Manchester United have agreed not to sign any players from French side Nice – who are also owned by Sir Jim Ratcliffe – until September 2025.”
The agreement states “the clubs will not transfer players to each other, whether Post permanently or on loan, directly or indirectly, from July 2024 until September 2025, with the exception of pre-existing transfer agreements that had been entered into before the opening of the CFCB proceedings.”
Neither side will be able to complete any sort of joint commercial agreements and will not be allowed to carry out joint scouting or share player databases.
The most obvious effect of this is that United’s long-standing interest in Nice defender Jean-Clair Todibo has been torpedoed, at least for this season.
The Red Devils have chased the player since last summer and it was widely thought that Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s ownership of both clubs would grease the wheels for a potential move.
In a recent interview, the Ineos boss lamented UEFA’s decision to not allow United to buy the defender and United were set to legally challenge the ruling, but this has evidently not gone to plan.
The side from Old Trafford have also been linked to fellow Nice players such as Khéphren Thuram and Melvin Bard but will be blocked from making any moves for the players until the ruling changes or next season at the earliest.
It was also hypothesised that the two clubs could work together on youth players, with the 20 time English champions sending academy players on loan to the French club to gain experience and United cherry picking the best talent at Nice. However, this has also been rendered impossible due to Uefa’s ruling.
It is crucial to highlight that the agreement only lasts until September 2025, so it is something that both clubs will certainly continue to challenge in the coming months.
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