The most decorated English football club of the last decade and a half has been found guilty of numerous financial irregularities. This was the verdict reached by an independent commission created by the English Premier League. Now the club will be punished - although it is unclear how and when.
The investigation began in 2019. Manchester City were then indicted by the Premier League in February 2023 and a verdict was reached 1,327 days later following an independent commission hearing. According to the BBC, the club was found guilty of 114 of the 115 violations in question.
What are Manchester City accused of?
All violations considered by the commission relate to the period from the 2009-10 season to the 2017-18 season. They affect different types of financial violations:
54 cases of failure to provide accurate financial information;
14 cases of failure to provide accurate information about payments to players and coaches;
5 incidents of non-compliance with UEFA rules, including Financial Fair Play (FFP), between 2013-14 and 2017-18;
7 breaches of the Premier League's rules on profitability and sustainability;
35 cases of failure to cooperate with Premier League investigations between December 2018 and February 2023.
Strict financial rules were introduced in the early 2010s to provide greater stability and sustainability to clubs. The main rule was that losses for the reporting period should not exceed profits. On the one hand, this rule encouraged clubs to be modest, so that they did not spend too much to achieve short-term goals and then go bankrupt. On the other hand, these restrictions formally did not allow wealthy owners to buy up all the players in a row and immediately win titles. However, the second restriction does not work: thus, this and last summer, the giants of English football, primarily Manchester City, Arsenal and Liverpool, again spent hundreds of millions of pounds on new transfers. In the case of Manchester City, we are talking about 458 million pounds.
In November 2018, the German newspaper Der Spiegel published leaked correspondence between senior Manchester City executives. This data covers several seasons following the club's acquisition by Abu Dhabi investors in 2008.
Among other things, it was alleged that the club inflated income from sponsorship of the Emirates state airline Etihad and state telecommunications company Etisalat.
That is, Manchester City, as later alleged in the charges, disguised injections from its owner Sheikh Mansour as income from sponsorship. But in reality it was a transfer of money from one owner’s pocket to another.
According to the rules of the Premier League and UEFA, injections from the club owner cannot be considered income, which means that they do not cover possible losses from transfers and wage costs.
There were other ways to get around the restrictions. It is alleged that Roberto Mancini (Manchester City head coach from 2009 to 2013) received, in addition to his salary, secret unofficial payments as a “consultant”.
In addition, it was alleged that the club paid players more money than was officially reflected in the accounts, so the recorded expenses were less than the actual ones.
Manchester City, as well as representatives of the owners of the companies involved, categorically denied breaking any financial rules. However, this did not stop UEFA and the Premier League from launching investigations.
Manchester City is far from the first English club to be caught in financial irregularities. Not long ago Nottingham Forest and Everton were punished.
Both clubs were docked points for the 2023-24 season after spending more than allowed over the three-year period from 2020-21 to 2022-23.
Everton, after all appeals, was deprived of six points in the standings, Nottingham Forest - four points.
But there is a significant difference from the Manchester City case. Both clubs were charged with only one count, violating the rules on profitability and sustainable development. In the case of the Manchester grandee, we are talking about much more serious violations, and, most importantly, more systemic and numerous.
If it finally comes to sanctions, Manchester City faces one (or more) punishments:
removal of points (immediate or delayed);
financial sanctions (immediate or delayed);
exclusion from the Premier League and relegation to a lower league.
It is possible that Manchester City will be deprived of so many points that at the end of the season the club will be relegated from the Premier League.
Many other clubs, meanwhile, have turned to lawyers for advice. It is possible that they will demand compensation from Manchester City for these violations, as they affected the tournament position and, therefore, the income of other clubs. There was also a precedent: Burnley sued millions of pounds from Everton after sanctions against the latter.
In addition, the media are discussing another painful option: depriving Manchester City of the titles won during this period. During this time (from 2010 to 2018), Manchester City won three English Championships, two FA Cups and three English League Cups.
Manchester City, meanwhile, refused to comment on whether they had been found guilty, instead providing a statement saying: "The Premier League process is ongoing, many elements remain to be finalized and is subject to the strictest confidentiality."
The investigation into the Manchester City case has been going on for many years, and we shouldn’t expect a quick resolution either.
A sanction hearing must be held before a decision on punishment can be made. This has not yet happened and the procedure could take several months.
