Manchester City found guilty of serious financial breaches, club to contest | OneFootball

An independent commission has found Manchester City guilty of serious Premier League financial rule breaches between 2009 and 2018, the league said.

The panel found the club guilty on all counts tied to major financial violations, and on most charges relating to non-cooperation with the investigation.

A sanction is yet to be set, with no timetable given. Possible penalties include a fine, a transfer ban, a points deduction that could carry relegation risk, or expulsion from the competition.

City intends to challenge the findings and maintains its innocence. The club can appeal the decision until Friday.

The decision details how the club systematically broke Premier League rules for nearly a decade, including the use of false contracts with commercial partners to overstate revenue, conceal its finances and avoid spending limits imposed by the league and UEFA.

Since the 2008 takeover by Sheikh Mansour ben Zayed Al Nahyan, vice president and deputy prime minister of the United Arab Emirates, City have won eight league titles, four FA Cups and seven League Cups, adding a first Champions League in 2023.

The league charged the club in 2023 after a lengthy probe. A hearing began in September 2024 and concluded three months later with a guilty finding, which has only now been communicated to the parties after a prolonged process to finalise the case file.

Source: Le Progres

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