Manchester City have been found guilty of all charges relating to serious breaches of the Premier League’s financial regulations over a nine-season period, bringing a long-running case against the club to a historic verdict.
The Premier League officially announced the independent commission’s findings Tuesday in a 1,545-word statement. The case covered City’s financial conduct from the 2009-10 season through 2017-18.
The commission also upheld three of four charges concerning City’s failure to cooperate with the Premier League’s investigation. While the case has commonly been referred to as the “115 charges,” the league’s official announcement distinguishes between the serious financial breaches, all of which were upheld, and the cooperation allegations, where one was not proven.
Among the most significant findings was that City arranged what the commission described as sham contracts with commercial partners and relied on other sham agreements to inflate revenue and reduce costs artificially.
The commission determined that the arrangements formed part of a disguised funding system. According to the Premier League, the schemes increased City’s reported revenues and reduced costs by more than £900 million during the period under investigation.
The findings included sponsorship arrangements in which commercial partners were responsible for only part of the reported fees. The remaining money was funded by Abu Dhabi United Group Investment & Development Ltd, which owned Manchester City.
City were also found to have filed misstated accounts that concealed the true condition of their finances from auditors and football regulators.
The commission concluded that the club was significantly in breach of both Premier League and UEFA spending limits. According to the league’s findings, City would have exceeded the applicable financial limits by a substantial amount if their revenue and expenditure had been reported accurately.
The investigation itself also became part of the case.
The commission found multiple breaches of City’s obligation to cooperate and act in utmost good faith during the Premier League’s investigation. Three of the four allegations in that category were upheld.
Manchester City have consistently denied wrongdoing throughout the process and have not accepted the commission’s conclusions.
The club said it was surprised by the decision and intends to challenge it, arguing that the commission’s opinion contains material errors involving law, principle and fact. City have until Friday, Oct. 2 to exercise their right to appeal.
An appeal would send the case to a new three-person panel. Any punishment would be delayed while that process takes place.
No sporting sanction has been imposed yet.
A separate hearing will determine the punishment if the findings stand. Under Premier League rules, possible sanctions include a fine, points deduction or expulsion from the competition.
That means Tuesday’s announcement settles the commission’s findings on City’s conduct but does not determine the club’s final punishment.
The verdict covers a period in which Manchester City transformed into one of English football’s dominant clubs. The charges themselves were announced in February 2023 after a Premier League investigation lasting several years, with the independent commission hearing beginning in September 2024.
The next stage depends on City’s appeal.
For the moment, the independent commission’s conclusion is established: Manchester City committed serious financial breaches over nine seasons and failed to meet several of their obligations to cooperate with the Premier League’s investigation.
