MANCHESTER, England (AP) — Manchester City has been found guilty of entering into “fictitious” contracts in a a multitude of financial violations it helped him dominate English football in what became the biggest scandal in Premier League history.
City, in the verdict of an independent committee published on Tuesday, was found guilty of almost all unprecedented charges over 100 against him over a nine-year period in which the Abu Dhabi-backed team changed the landscape of the world’s richest and most popular football league.
City’s alleged financial wrongdoing was worth more than 900 million pounds ($1.19 billion), and Premier League chief executive Richard Masters said the ruling showed City “systematically broke Premier League rules for almost a decade.”
“This disciplinary case and decision is the most important in the history of the Premier League,” Masters said.
City now face harsh sanctions which could include a huge points deduction or even expulsion from the league, causing serious reputational damage to their Abu Dhabi ownership.
The Premier League said sanctions would be decided at a separate hearing organized by the independent commission. It was not specified when this would take place.
City have always denied any wrongdoing and said in a statement they were “disappointed and surprised” by the decision. He also plans to further prolong a case that has already lasted more than three years by appealing the verdict and said he would be “fierce” in his fight to clear his name.
Any appeal by City must be made by Friday, the league said.
In an internal video addressed to City staff – obtained by Sky News – the club’s chief executive Ferran Soriano explained in detail why he believed the verdict was wrong.
“This has been going on for so long that it is important to remind ourselves that the entire accusation against us in the Premier League is based on a single false accusation: that the owner’s personal money was somehow secretly placed into the club via some sponsors from Abu Dhabi,” he said. “This is simply not true. Compelling evidence has been provided to the Premier League committee which shows that this could not happen and it did not happen.”
The explosive move comes after it emerged last week that the charges against City are expected to be confirmed following an exhaustive process.
The Premier League has initiated its file more than three years ago and allegations first appeared in 2018 from leaked club emails and documents.
City were accused of a series of financial breaches from 2009 to 2018 – a period during which the north-west club, long in the shadow of arch-rival Manchester United, was transforming into a record-breaking global superpower that won multiple Premier League titles and the Champions League.
The violations included failing to provide accurate financial information and submitting inflated figures for sponsorship deals outside Abu Dhabi, concealing payments and violating financial rules set out by the Premier League and UEFA, European football’s governing body, intended to maintain the financial stability of clubs by not spending beyond their means.
In addition to this, City faced numerous other accusations of non-cooperation with the investigation between 2018 and 2023.
“An independent commission has found Manchester City guilty of all charges relating to serious breaches of the Premier League’s financial rules over a period of nine seasons,” the league said, “and of the majority of charges relating to its failure to cooperate with the league’s investigation.”
Regarding sponsorship deals, the league said: “Manchester City has entered into ‘fictitious’ contracts (which misrepresent the true agreement between the parties) with a number of its commercial partners, while relying on ‘fictitious’ agreements with others, to artificially inflate the club’s revenues and reduce its costs.
“The club,” the league added, “filed inaccurate accounts and hid the true state of its finances from its auditors and football regulators.”
The aim of City’s “plans” was to “artificially inflate the club’s revenues and reduce its costs by more than £900 million ($1.19 billion) over the relevant period, to appear compliant with financial rules”, the league said.
The finding suggests that City’s rise to the top of English football, fueled by Abu Dhabi’s investment in its star-studded and expensively built squads, was achieved at least in part by circumventing the league’s financial regulations.
Tuesday’s verdict is expected to cause chaos in English football in general, sparking a series of lawsuits from rival clubs seeking compensation for being affected by City’s actions.
There is also the question of whether City’s biggest stars, such as Erling Haaland and Rayan Cherki, will stay at the club and what the future holds for Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan. He is deputy prime minister of the United Arab Emirates and a member of the Abu Dhabi royal family who bought City in 2008 and became the owner of a group of global teams – under the City Football Group banner – including New York City FC.
City has always protested its innocence in the matter, saying in 2023, when the charges were brought, that there was a “comprehensive body of compelling evidence that supports its position”.
Even over the weekend, City president Khaldoon Al Mubarak said there remained “a confidence and intention to prove the club’s innocence”.
The appeal could end up at the High Court in London if City believes the proceedings in this case were unfair and/or impartial.
On Wednesday, Australian league officials said they would wait to see how Manchester City’s financial situation played out, saying it was too early to express concerns about A-League club Melbourne City FC, which has been part of the City Football Group since 2014.
Australian Professional League chief executive Steve Rosich said the PLA, which runs the major men’s and women’s domestic competitions, had never investigated Melbourne City over its financial matters.
“No, that doesn’t concern us,” Rosich said. “There is still work to follow and conclusions to follow in the legal process, so we will consider that. The international economics of football are closely linked, so all parties will look at that.”
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