Manchester City found guilty of all charges in Premier League rule breaches | Manchester City

Manchester City broke Premier League financial rules by creating “fictitious” contracts to help inflate revenues and cut costs by more than £900 million over a nine-year period, an independent commission has found.

The league announced on Tuesday that City had been found guilty of all charges relating to serious violations of its financial rules between the 2009-10 and 2017-18 seasons. He said a sanction would be considered at a new hearing with the commission.

City entered into a number of commercial deals with sponsors that were part of a scheme to conceal the source of funding, the commission concluded. The companies were only required to pay part of the stipulated fees, with the rest funded by Abu Dhabi United Group Investment + Development Ltd (Adug), which owns the club.

City deny any wrongdoing and will appeal the verdict before Friday’s deadline. “Manchester City FC is both disappointed and surprised by the opinion of the Premier League committee,” a club statement said. “The club is innocent of the accusations made by the Premier League and there is a comprehensive body of compelling evidence to support all of its positions relating to this matter. The club will therefore be relentless and, where necessary, proactive, in all appropriate regulatory and legal forums.”

The committee said City “clearly intended to circumvent Premier League rules”. The club was also found guilty of failing to cooperate in attempting to “stop and thwart” investigations which began in December 2018.

A number of options are on the table regarding sanctions, including removal of titles, financial sanctions and point deductions.

Premier League chief executive Richard Masters called the case and decision “the most important” in its history. “The fundamental decision establishes the facts of what happened at Manchester City during this period,” Masters said. “It details how the club systematically broke Premier League rules for almost a decade.

“It also vindicates the Premier League’s decision to pursue this case against Manchester City. Although the process to date has been both long and difficult, the league has remained committed to having the facts established independently.

“It is a key responsibility of the Premier League to ensure that the rules, agreed by the clubs themselves, are respected to protect the integrity of the competition. It is paramount that the league remains competitive and fair to all clubs and supporters.”

Masters added: “There are elements of the case that remain to be decided, including, and most importantly, what sanction should follow for these violations. Now that we have the commission’s decision, we are committed to moving quickly through the remainder of the process, to provide certainty to the league, our clubs and our supporters.”