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Hull City owner hopeful sanctions will be lifted

Hull City chairman Acun Ilicali has said the club has "zero conflict with any clubs" after they were placed under restrictions stopping them from paying a fee for any player in the next three transfer windows.

The English Football League punished the Tigers for missing payments on the loan signing of Aston Villa forward Louie Barry in January.

On Monday, BBC Radio Humberside reported they had paid the loan fee to Manchester City for defender Fin Burns, who spent the 2024-25 season with the club, to avoid another EFL transfer embargo.

In an open letter to fans,, external Ilicali said the club had had a cash flow problem because of monies owed to them did not arrive and that they are "confident" they will win their appeal against the sanctions.

"The Fin Burns situation is actually quite simple. We intended to use proceeds of a player sale to settle this fee and as soon as the EFL told us this wasn't possible - due to reasons not related to us, we made a direct payment immediately to end the matter," Ilicali said.

"With regards to payments to suppliers, unfortunately, the club experienced a cash flow issue when it didn't receive a £1.5m payment for a player which was intended to clear invoices from suppliers.

"I will cover this shortfall until we receive the funds we are owed and our team are in communication with all suppliers to rectify any outstanding issues as soon as possible.

"I want to reassure our fans that we have zero conflict with any clubs. Perhaps there were some finance administrative errors but I am sure the EFL will be understanding to our appeal and we are confident in our case."

The Tigers avoided relegation to League One on goal difference last season and have since replaced head coach Ruben Selles with Bosnian Sergej Jakirovic.