Reported by Ariajegbe Sylvia Esezobor
Manchester City have been found guilty of serious breaches of the Premier League’s financial rules over a nine-season period, with an independent Commission finding that the club used “sham” commercial agreements to artificially inflate its revenues and reduce its costs by more than £900 million, the Premier League announced on Tuesday, September 29, 2026.
The Commission found Manchester City guilty of all charges relating to the serious financial breaches and the majority of charges concerning the club’s failure to cooperate with the Premier League’s investigation, covering the 2009/10 to 2017/18 seasons. According to the Premier League, the Commission found that City “arranged ‘sham’ contracts (which misrepresented the true agreement between the parties) with a number of its commercial partners, as well as relying on ‘sham’ agreements with others, to artificially inflate the club’s revenues and reduce its costs”. The Commission also found that the club “filed misstated accounts and concealed the true state of its finances from its auditors and football regulators” and that it “was significantly in breach of both the Premier League’s and UEFA’s spending limits”.
The Premier League said the Commission found that City’s arrangements with some sponsors formed part of a disguised funding scheme in which the companies paid only part of the relevant sponsorship fees, while the remainder was funded by Abu Dhabi United Group Investment & Development Ltd, which owned the club. “The purpose of these schemes was found to have been to artificially inflate the club’s revenues, and reduce its costs, by more than £900 million during the affected period, to appear to comply with financial rules,” the Premier League said. The Commission concluded that “by its conduct the club clearly intended to circumvent the PL Rules”.
The findings cap a saga that began in February 2023, when the Premier League charged City with 115 breaches of its financial rules following a four-year investigation. The charges covered five distinct areas: more than 80 related to the club’s obligation to act in “the utmost good faith” and provide complete disclosure of information; the rest related to alleged breaches of profitability and sustainability rules and UEFA financial fair play regulations; and 20 charges concerned the club’s obligation to provide full details of remuneration paid to players and managers. The verdict was reached more than three-and-a-half years after the charges were brought and more than two years since arbitration hearings began.
Premier League Chief Executive Richard Masters described the ruling as a landmark decision. “The core decision establishes the facts of what happened at Manchester City during this period. It details how the club systematically broke Premier League Rules for nearly a decade,” he said. “It also vindicates the Premier League’s decision to pursue this case against Manchester City. While the process to date has been both long and difficult, the League has remained determined that the facts be established independently.” He said the League had a responsibility to enforce rules approved by the clubs themselves to protect the integrity of the competition.
City’s response was swift and defiant. The club said it would appeal “on the basis that the opinion contains clear material errors, of law, principle and fact, and is unsafe”, adding that it would be “relentless, and where necessary proactive, in any and all appropriate regulatory and legal forums”. Chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak reiterated the club’s confidence that it would clear its name, while CEO Ferran Soriano said the legal process remained long and the club would continue to fight. A City spokesperson said the Premier League process “remains ongoing, with significant elements to be completed, and subject to strict confidentiality”, adding that the club’s position remained consistent with its February 2023 statement.
A further hearing will be needed to determine sanctions, and it remains unclear whether this will run alongside an appeal or come after it. The range of potential punishments includes a substantial points deduction, a massive fine, a transfer ban, the stripping of titles, or even expulsion from the Premier League. Everton and Nottingham Forest were handed points deductions in the 2023/24 season for single breaches of financial sustainability rules, providing a precedent that legal experts say makes a points deduction the most likely outcome for City. Football finance expert Kieran Maguire has said a points deduction is the most probable sanction. Some reports have suggested City could be stripped of titles won during the period covered by the charges, and former Manchester United captain Roy Keane has said the club should “take their medicine”.
The sporting and financial implications are enormous. City have been the most successful team in England over the past 15 years, winning seven Premier League titles, a Champions League, three FA Cups and six League Cups between the 2009/10 and 2022/23 seasons. The uncertainty over sanctions could affect the club’s ability to plan for the future, retain star players and attract new ones. The future of manager Pep Guardiola, who has publicly defended the club throughout the process, is also likely to come under renewed scrutiny. For the Premier League, the verdict vindicates its decision to pursue the case but leaves it facing a period of uncertainty and potential disruption if City’s appeal drags on.
For English football, the case raises fundamental questions about the effectiveness of financial regulation and the consequences of breaching the rules. If City’s punishment is seen as insufficient, it could undermine confidence in the Premier League’s enforcement regime. If it is severe, it could reshape the competitive landscape of the world’s most-watched football league. As the process moves to the sanctions phase, the football world will be watching closely to see what comes next. City, for their part, have made clear they will fight the verdict every step of the way. The battle is far from over.
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