The Premier League refused for a second time to accept a petition signed by over 2,600 people calling on the league to raise credible concerns with and hold to account Manchester City owner Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan over the United Arab Emirates (UAE)’s role in the Sudan conflict.
CSW attempted to deliver the petition for the second time to the Premier League headquarters in London on 21 May. The league had previously refused to accept the petition on 28 April, at which time it had been signed by 2,500 people. At the second hand-in attempt security informed CSW staff that they had been instructed not to receive anything from them.
The petition, launched in January outside Manchester City’s Etihad Stadium, is addressed to the chief executive, board and member clubs of the Premier League and asks them to raise the issue of the UAE’s support for the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) with Sheikh Mansour, holding him to account for his country’s role in prolonging and profiting from a conflict which has killed over 150,000 people, displaced 13 million, and rendered 30 million in urgent need of humanitarian assistance.
While both the RSF and the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) with whom it is in conflict are supported by various international actors, there is credible evidence that the UAE continues to provide military and financial support to the RSF, including through the provision of sophisticated weaponry to RSF fighters and the likely deployment and training of personnel to fight alongside them.
Sheikh Mansour – who is also vice-president and deputy prime minister of the UAE – has been described as the RSF leader’s closest ally in the Emirates, and US intelligence officers claim to have intercepted regular phone calls between the two men.
In February 2026 the United Nations Independent International Fact-Finding Mission for the Sudan found that the RSF’s actions following its October 2025 capture of El Fasher city in Darfur bore the ‘hallmarks of genocide’. In March 2026 the US Commission for International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) recommended that the US State Department designate the RSF as an Entity of Particular Concern (EPC), highlighting the ‘harmful effects to religious freedom and Sudan’s diverse religious and ethnic communities’ caused by the militia’s campaign of mass atrocities and widespread human rights violations.
Speaking at the attempted hand-in, Abdallah Idriss Abugarda, Leader of the Darfur Diaspora Association, said: ‘We are here not because we oppose football, not because we oppose the fans of Manchester City; we are here because football is powerful, and with great power comes moral responsibility, moral obligation… The Premier League is not just a business, it is one of the most influential sporting institutions in the world. It speaks proudly about equality, human dignity, anti-racism and social responsibility. Those values that we all share must mean something, not only on the pitch but also beyond it.’
Also on 21 May, CSW joined Church in Chains (Ireland), Human Rights Concern-Eritrea and Release Eritrea for an annual peaceful protest vigil outside the Eritrean Embassy in London. Representatives from the organisations attempted to deliver a letter addressed to the Eritrean Head of Mission to the UK and Ireland raising concerns about severe human rights violations in the country. The embassy refused to open the door.
Reflecting on both protests, CSW’s CEO Scot Bower said: ‘Neither the Premier League nor the Eritrean Embassy would open their doors to us. One is not a surprise. Nobody expects the Eritrean Embassy to open their door or engage in dialogue, but we are surprised at the Premier League once again refusing to accept a petition. It is disappointing for me, but devastating for those who have experienced the horrors of war, severe human rights violations, and the death of family members and friends. One thing we have learned from all our years of protesting is that we don’t give up. Just because the Eritrean Embassy hasn’t opened its doors for the last 20 years doesn’t mean we’re not coming back next year, and just because the Premier League haven’t opened their doors the last two times we’ve been there doesn’t mean we won’t be coming back. We’ll be back again when the next season starts. We’ll have more names on the petition; we’ll have more people outside, we’ll chant even louder, and we’ll keep doing it until the doors are opened.’
Notes to Editors:
- The petition remains live and can be signed here.
- Additional photos from the event are available on request.