GENEVA (AP) — The sale of Manchester United is set to test European rules designed to protect football from the integrity risks of owners controlling multiple clubs.

Three widely expected bids to buy the most storied brand in English football are closely tied to clubs already established in UEFA competitions like the Champions League, or have ambitions to break into the elite.

State sovereign wealth funds from Qatar and Saudi Arabia already bought Paris Saint-Germain and Newcastle, respectively, and British industrialist Jim Ratcliffe, a lifelong Man United fan, owns French club Nice.

UEFA first fought a legal case against “multi-club ownership” 25 years ago, and only this month warned of the risks this industry model poses for collusion on the field and in player transfers.

The European football body has rules to bar clubs from its competitions in any season if owners have “decisive influence” over two clubs which qualify. A key test case was resolved in June 2017 after an investigation into Red Bull’s ownership of Leipzig and Salzburg. UEFA let both clubs enter the next Champions League.

Other UEFA cases on separate matters in recent years involving PSG and Manchester City, plus the French club’s president, either were closed or ended with less severe consequences than had seemed possible during investigations.

UEFA declined comment Friday and likely won’t take a position on Man United’s next owner until the season ends. Entries for next season’s competitions will be clear after the Champions League final on June 10.

UEFA RULES

Article 5 of regulations in each UEFA competition — the Champions League, Europa League and Europa Conference League — is about integrity and multi-club ownership.

Clubs cannot hold shares or have management control in another club taking part in a UEFA competition, nor can individuals and legal entities have ownership or management control over more than one club.

It is defined as “being able to exercise by any means a decisive influence in the decision-making of the club.”

Ratcliffe’s company, INEOS, would have a clear conflict. Could Qatar present an ownership group at Man United claiming to be separate from state-backed Qatar Sports Investments at PSG? It could be difficult to achieve.

UEFA requires the club that qualified for “the most prestigious” competition to take its place while the other is excluded. The next tiebreaker is which club finished higher in its domestic league.

A loophole to let both clubs play is if one qualified directly to the Champions League and the other qualified for the Europa Conference League. In that scenario, the two teams could not cross paths in the same competition.