The curious story of Erling Haaland, his father and their new multi-million-pound homes on an Abu Dhabi canal front seemed like a feather in the cap of Manchester City’s Emirati owners when it surfaced, two weeks after the reputational damage of being found guilty of generating £900million in revenue through sham sponsorship contracts.

Haaland recorded a video stating how happy he was with his new place and it was played at a glitzy Abu Dhabi PR event for the development project. Pep Guardiola appeared at that event, stating that ‘performance depends on more than training’ and that ‘wellness’ was at the heart of what is described as a ‘mini-city’ where the Haalands are taking homes. 

All very much business as usual for the Abu Dhabis and City as they prepared their appeal against an independent commission’s overwhelming verdict of guilt on charges of financial manipulation.

Haaland announced that he and his father Alf-Inge, the former Leeds United and City player, had both ‘got a house’ on the waterfront ‘Manchester City Yas Residences’ site. The developers, Abu Dhabi-based Ohana Development, said that Haaland Jnr was ‘excited to be joining the Ohana family' as 'a proud homeowner’ with a five-bedroom villa and that Haaland Snr had also ‘picked up the keys to his new home'.

Nowhere does anyone state that the Haalands have bought the houses. But that would seem highly unlikely, given that City stand to gain financially from this £3billion property development, Haaland made such a major PR contribution to it, and City executives Khaldoon Al Mubarak and Ferran Soriano were both at the centre of promotional pictures advertising it.

The property development is, in fact, very much another Abu Dhabi revenue stream for City. A City press release in January stated that the club had ‘partnered’ with Ohana to launch it. The release quoted Soriano extolling the project’s virtues and saying that the ‘Manchester City brand’ would be ‘integrated throughout the development’. Ohana would ‘leverage Manchester City’s unmatched presence in Abu Dhabi through this project’.

It has not been stated whether the deal is structured in a way by which City or their parent company City Football Group pick up partnership revenue, royalties or licensing fees, but there is always a major financial benefit when a Premier League club allow a company to leverage their brand in this way. The way City's name is being used to sell these properties goes way beyond usual football sponsorship deals.

Chelsea were actually the first Premier League club to strike such a deal. They partnered last year with Dubai-based DAMAC to create six 130m-high residential towers carrying the club's name, in Dubai Maritime City.

That building project is reported to be worth £1billion, a third of the Abu Dhabi development, and the deal with Chelsea included DAMAC becoming the club’s official property development partner and, briefly, front-of-shirt sponsor.

Since 2022, City have their own Abu Dhabi-based 'Official Real Estate Partner' – Aldar, which is part-owned by the Emirate's sovereign wealth fund Mubadala, which Mubarak heads. But City have found a different company to undertake property development with.

While Chelsea listed DAMAC as one of their corporate partners, City described their own arrangement with Ohana as an ‘agreement’ and the project as a ‘first-of-its-kind Manchester City club-branded residential destination’. Unconfirmed reports suggest houses like the Haalands' are worth £2million.

In Abu Dhabi, City’s new development partner said properties in the first phase of the project sold out in 72 hours, earning £1.2billion in sales. Haaland becoming a property owner was used by the firm to create a headline for a press release promoting the launch of a second phase, last week. 

‘Ohana Development Announces Erling Haaland as a Proud Homeowner,’ the publicity stated, while also announcing Guardiola as the project’s official brand ambassador. It is unclear how much money this role is bringing in for Guardiola.

Haaland Snr joined Guardiola at the launch event, attended by 4,000 people, to promote the second phase, where his son's message was screened. The event took place at the 18,000-capacity Etihad Arena on Yas Island, where the Abu Dhabi F1 Grand Prix is staged. ‘I’m so happy to tell you that I am joining the Manchester City Ohana project,’ Haaland Jnr said.

If Haaland were being gifted a house by a private company, it would not need to be declared to the football authorities. Only if City or their owners were making such a gift – a ‘non-monetary benefit’ in rulebook parlance – would its value have to be declared as financial spend, under Premier League, UEFA and EFL financial sustainability rules. There is no suggestion that City or their owners, Abu Dhabi United Group, are gifting the house.

Soriano, who posed with Ohana executives for pictures promoting the property development deal, said: ‘This partnership will see Ohana harness the club’s global reach and its unrivalled footprint in the region.’ Husein Salem, Ohana CEO, said that ‘partnering with Manchester City marks a significant milestone for Ohana Development’.

Press releases claim the ‘Manchester City Yas Residences’ project is due to be completed in 2029 and suggest it has a great deal for the Manchester City fan in Abu Dhabi, including a ‘City inspired’ sports complex featuring rooftop football pitches and tactical match analysis rooms, a ‘City Social Club’ and ‘matchday terraces’. 

Haaland also has properties in Cheshire, Norway and Marbella, though he and his father should feel very much at home.