Explained: Why Man Utd could be barred from playing in European competition next season

United are likely to be playing European football next season although it remains to be seen if they will be in the Champions League. They are currently sixth, nine points behind fourth-placed Aston Villa, but there is the prospect of them also qualifying for either the Europa League or the Europa Conference League, but they are now facing up to the potential of UEFA barring them altogether.

Per The Sun, UEFA's new regulations on multi-club ownership means that clubs owned by the same party cannot compete in the same European competition. New United co-owner Ratcliffe also owns Ligue 1 club Nice, and at the time of writing, both clubs are set to qualify for the Europa League, even if the Premier League gains an extra Champions League place.

Were they each to qualify for the same competition, precedence would be given to the team that finished highest in their domestic league, which is currently Nice. United may well need to win the FA Cup to ensure they are granted priority.

However, there remains a situation in which both teams qualify for the Europa Conference League, and Nice do so via a higher Ligue 1 finish than United's Premier League ranking, and that would leave the Red Devils without any European football.

United have a game in hand on fourth-placed Villa and winning that would bring them within six points of Unai Emery's men. They have a difficult run-in, though, in which they will play Chelsea, Liverpool and Arsenal before the conclusion of the campaign. They also have an FA Cup semi-final against Coventry coming up.

United's next encounter comes against Brentford when the Premier League resumes. The two teams ahead of them, Villa and Tottenham, play Wolves and Luton Town respectively.