Premier League refuses to accept petition on Sudan conflict once again

The Premier League refused for a third time to accept a petition urging it 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, now signed by over 3,000 people, to the Premier League headquarters in London on 14 October. The league had previously refused to accept the petition on 28 April and 21 May. During the second attempt to deliver it, security personnel 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 displaced over 14 million people, left over 33 million in need of humanitarian assistance, and was recently estimated to have killed over 100,000 in 2025 alone.

Speaking at the attempted hand-in, CSW’s Director of Advocacy and Team Leader for Africa and the Middle East Dr Khataza Gondwe highlighted the fact that it was taking place less than two weeks ahead of the first anniversary of the RSF’s capture of the city of El Fasher in Darfur, during which the UN Independent International Fact-Finding Mission (FFM) for Sudan has concluded the RSF’s actions bore the ‘hallmarks of genocide’, namely in the militia’s systematic targeting of the non-Arab Darfuri Fur and Zaghawa communities. ‘Never again should mean never again’, said Dr Gondwe. ‘But in this instance, it seems that it is over and over again.’

In September 2026 the FFM published a report focused on the role of external support networks in fuelling the conflict which explicitly highlighted the role of the UAE, finding that ‘individuals and entities operating from, registered in, or linked to the United Arab Emirates played a significant role in networks involved in the recruitment, financing, transportation and deployment of foreign military contractors and the provision of military-related support benefiting the Rapid Support Forces.’

The findings added to a growing body of 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.

Abdallah Idriss Abugarda, President of the Darfur Diaspora Association, referenced the recent verdict of an independent commission which found Manchester City guilty of 115 charges of breaching the Premier League’s financial rules over a nine-year period. ‘We are here today, not against football, but for justice, human rights and accountability […] Our message to the Premier League is clear: human rights must matter as much as the financial rules. No club, no owner, no powerful institution should be beyond accountability.’

CSW’s Sudan Specialist Mohaned Elnour added: ‘We are here calling for the Premier League to stop the war in Sudan, to genuinely speak with [Sheikh] Mansour bin Zayed, and to apply its own rules to disqualify him from an honour he does not deserve […] We cannot stop the war without stopping people like Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed who are fueling it. They must act now.’

Upon the league’s refusal to accept the petition for a third time, CSW’s CEO Scot Bower said: ‘We have been working on Sudan for 20 years. Just because they won’t open the door this time doesn’t mean to say we’re giving up, so keep your eyes on what we’re doing at CSW and keep your eyes on Sudan.’

Note to Editors:

1. Additional photos from the event are available on request.