Manchester City guilty of financial breaches
Shafaq News- London
Manchester City were found guilty of all serious financial-rule charges covering nine seasons, while three of four charges over their failure to cooperate with the Premier League investigation were also upheld, the league said on Tuesday, with sanctions to be decided separately.
An independent commission found that between 2009/10 and 2017/18, City used “sham” commercial arrangements to inflate revenues and reduce costs by more than $1.19 billion, filed misstated accounts, concealed their true finances from auditors and football regulators, and significantly breached Premier League and UEFA spending limits.
The Premier League began investigating City in December 2018 and referred the alleged breaches to an independent commission in February 2023. A 42-day hearing concluded in December 2024.
City said they were “disappointed and surprised” by the commission’s findings and maintained they were innocent of the allegations. The club said it would pursue the appeal avenues open to it, arguing the commission’s opinion contained clear material errors of law, principle and fact and was “unsafe.”
City have until October 2 to appeal. The Premier League said it wants the remaining process, including any appeal and publication of further decisions, completed as soon as possible.
