Manchester City challenges Premier League financial-breach findings
Manchester City has rejected an independent Premier League Commission’s findings that it committed serious financial-rule breaches over nine seasons. The club says the decision contains errors and will appeal, while the Premier League says sanctions will be considered separately after the appeal process.
Manchester City has rejected an independent Premier League Commission’s finding that the club committed serious financial-rule breaches and has said it will pursue an appeal. The club issued its response on Tuesday after the Premier League announced that the Commission had found City guilty of all charges relating to breaches over a nine-season period. City said it was disappointed and surprised by the decision and maintained that it was innocent of the accusations.
It said a large body of evidence supported its position and described the Commission’s opinion as containing material errors of law, principle and fact. The Premier League said the breaches covered the period from the 2009/10 to the 2017/18 seasons. According to the league, the Commission found that arrangements described as sham commercial agreements artificially increased City’s revenues and reduced its costs by more than £900m.
City said it had respected due process during the eight-year regulatory process but questioned whether the Premier League’s regulatory system had operated independently and impartially. The club said it would challenge the findings through appropriate regulatory and legal channels. “The Premier League process remains ongoing,” City said, adding that it would use the appeal avenues available to it.
The club also said it was restricted in what it could disclose publicly while further proceedings remained unresolved. The Premier League said City had the right to appeal and had until Friday, October 2, to exercise that right. It added that any sanctions would be dealt with at a separate hearing before the independent Commission.
The league said the sanctions hearing would remain private and confidential until publication of the outcome was allowed under its rules. Its investigation began in December 2018, a formal complaint was issued in February 2023, and the Commission held a 42-day hearing that ended in December 2024. The supplied material does not state what punishment City could face if the findings are upheld.
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