CFG given divestment options to satisfy UCL rules

City Football Group, the organization that owns 100% of Premier League club Manchester City and 47% of LaLiga club Girona, has been "offered divestment options" by UEFA that would allow both to compete in the Champions League next season by "complying with integrity rules for teams that share owners." CFG has two options -- it "could solve the problem by selling shares to an independent third party that reduces one ownership stake to below 30%," or it could "transfer all shares in one club to a blind trust overseen by a panel appointed by UEFA." Failing to comply with UEFA’s rules with a proposal by June 3 "should see one of the two teams, likely Girona, demoted to the second-tier Europa League." The team finishing higher in its domestic league "takes priority" ( AP, 5/14 ).