Manchester City have reportedly been found guilty of almost all of the 115 financial charges brought against the club by the Premier League, with the possibility of a points deduction being applied retrospectively potentially putting the club’s past league titles at risk. According to a report by The Athletic, cited……
Manchester City have reportedly been found guilty of almost all of the 115 financial charges brought against the club by the Premier League, with the possibility of a points deduction being applied retrospectively potentially putting the club’s past league titles at risk.
According to a report by The Athletic, cited by Flashscore, sources briefed on the matter said an independent commission had found City guilty on all but one of the 115 charges. The club is expected to appeal the findings, while no sanction has yet been decided.
The reported verdict would represent a major development in a case that has been ongoing for several years and relates to alleged breaches of the Premier League’s financial regulations.
The Premier League charged City in February 2023 following a four-year investigation into the club’s financial affairs. The allegations cover a period beginning in the 2009/10 season and include claims that City failed to provide accurate financial information concerning sponsorship revenue, player and manager remuneration, and operating costs. The club was also accused of breaching UEFA financial regulations and failing to cooperate with the Premier League’s investigation.
City have consistently denied the allegations.
The independent commission heard the case over 12 weeks between September and December 2024. Despite the conclusion of the hearing, the verdict had not been publicly announced as of August 2026, with Premier League chief executive Richard Masters saying the decision had taken longer than expected.
If the reported findings are confirmed, the next stage will concern the punishment to be imposed on Manchester City.
Possible sanctions under the Premier League rules include a fine, points deduction, suspension from league matches, expulsion from the competition, compensation orders and other disciplinary measures. There is no fixed sanctions scale for the alleged breaches, meaning the independent commission has considerable discretion when determining the appropriate punishment.
One of the most significant issues would be when any points deduction is applied.
Reports indicate that a deduction could either be imposed in the season when the decision is made or applied retrospectively to seasons in which the breaches allegedly occurred. A retrospective deduction could alter the final league standings from those seasons and potentially affect titles won by City during the period covered by the charges.
Manchester City won three Premier League titles during the period specifically covered by the financial allegations between 2009 and 2018. They won the title in 2011/12, 2013/14 and 2017/18 during that period.
However, the possibility of titles being stripped remains a potential consequence rather than an established outcome. Previous analysis of the case has noted that retrospective removal of titles would raise complex questions about final league positions, prize money, European qualification and other clubs affected by any alteration to historical standings.
The case is separate from Manchester City’s earlier UEFA financial fair-play dispute. In 2020, the Court of Arbitration for Sport overturned UEFA’s two-year European competition ban imposed on City and reduced the associated fine, while finding that several alleged breaches had either not been established or were time-barred under UEFA’s rules. The current Premier League case is governed by the league’s own rules and covers a much broader period.
City would also have the right to appeal an independent commission’s decision. Under the Premier League process, an appeal must be lodged within 14 days, and a new three-person commission would hear the appeal.
For now, no punishment has been confirmed and the reported findings have not been publicly published in full. Manchester City remain entitled to challenge the decision through the available appeal process.
The potential consequences, however, extend beyond a points deduction in the current Premier League season. If a retrospective sanction were ultimately imposed and affected historical standings, the league’s official record of seasons covered by the charges could also become subject to review.
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