September 28 – Manchester City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak has said the club is confident of proving its innocence after being found guilty of breaching Premier League financial rules.
It emerged on Friday that City had been found guilty of 114 of 115 charges, centered on claims the club inflated sponsorship income, made off-the-books payments to avoid financial regulations and failed to co-operate with the investigation. If upheld, the ruling could have major consequences for City, the Premier League and English club football.
On the club’s website, Al Mubarak responded with a letter: “After Friday’s news in the media, many of you will have spent the night answering questions and responding to messages from friends, family and colleagues. Me too.
“This is what I told my family: the Premier League process still has a long way to go, and our confidence and intention to prove the club’s innocence is as strong as when it started.
“There is so much I wish I could share with you to help you understand why we feel so confident in our position.
“But the strict confidentiality of the legal process and our determination to respect it means that I cannot do so at this time. Even this letter was subjected to several legal checks to ensure that it complies.”
It is understood City will appeal, but sanctions could include relegation, points deduction and a financial fine. Premier League regulations set a strict time limit for an appeal, with an appealing party required to appeal within 14 days of a decision being announced.
The news came after an eight-year investigation shrouded in mystery. In February 2023, the club was accused of over 100 breaches of Premier League rules between 2009 and 2018. Owners Abu Dhabi City took over in 2008 and set their sights on transforming the club into a domestic and continental superpower. The club won a list of trophies, including the Champions League under Pep Guardiola.
A total of 54 of the charges were failure to provide accurate financial information from 2009-10 to 2017-18, 14 times failure to provide accurate details for player and manager payments from 2009-10 to 2017-18, five times breach of Uefa rules, including Financial Fair Play (FF 2013-1). and breaching the Premier League’s profitability and sustainability rules (PSR) seven times from 2015-16 to 2017-18.
In 2014, European governing body UEFA found City in breach of FFP rules, resulting in a €20m fine. Football Leaks led to further reports on City’s finances and a new UEFA investigation.
In 2020, UEFA suspended City from the Champions League for “exaggerating their sponsorship income in their accounts”. The suspension was subsequently overturned on appeal by the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
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