The independent commission set up to determine if Manchester City should be punished for alleged financial breaches spanning more than a decade will have the power to strip the club of its previous titles, i can reveal.
Following an investigation lasting nearly five years, the Premier League released a statement on Monday alleging that Manchester City had breached its rulebook more than 100 times between 2009 and 2023. The breaches include breaking financial rules for nine seasons, from 2009 and 2018, and a further five seasons of failing to cooperate with the League’s investigation.
Manchester City said in a statement the club were “surprised” by the Premier League’s actions “given the extensive engagement and vast amount of detailed materials that the EPL has been provided with”.
Murray Rosen KC, chair of the Premier League Judicial Panel, will now appoint people to sit on an independent commission to assess the allegations and hear evidence provided by the Premier League before deciding if sanctions should be issued. Given the unprecedented nature of the breaches, it is not yet clear how many people will form the independent commission and how long it will take for it to reach a decision, although it is expected to be a lengthy process.
Manchester City have, however, noted the timing of the announcement – a few days before the government’s White Paper set to support the formation of an independent regulator was due to be published. The paper’s publication was announced to have been delayed following the news of City’s charges. The club believe the two developments are linked and politically motivated.
It is claimed that clauses relating to the rulebook in the Premier League’s statement were altered mid-morning, suggesting it was rushed out.
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Under section W.15.10 of the “Commission’s Powers” in the Premier League rulebook it states that the commission can “make such other order as it thinks fit”. These chilling eight words form the key regulation that leaves it open for the commission to remove Manchester City’s titles won during the breach periods. Between 2011 and 2022, Manchester City won six Premier League trophies.
Other sanctions include a fine “unlimited in amount”, a points deduction and even expulsion from the Premier League.
It is not completely unheard of for clubs to be stripped of titles following serious disciplinary breaches. Juventus, in Italy’s Serie A, had two league trophies removed from their records following the Calciopoli scandal that involved executives interfering with the selection of referees for matches. They were also subsequently relegated to Serie B.
Manchester City said in a statement: “Manchester City is surprised by the issuing of these alleged breaches of the Premier League Rules, particularly given the extensive engagement and vast amount of detailed materials that the EPL has been provided with.
“The club welcomes the review of this matter by an independent Commission, to impartially consider the comprehensive body of irrefutable evidence that exists in support of its position. As such we look forward to this matter being put to rest once and for all.”
It is not thought that Manchester City can appeal the independent commission’s ruling to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, which is how they overturned Uefa’s imposed two-year ban from the Champions League in 2020. A €30m fine was also reduced to €10m.
Should either party wish to appeal against the ruling of the independent commission, another independent panel would be selected.
Some have claimed that Manchester City were only cleared of the Uefa charges due to the rule breaches being “time-barred” — meaning the governing body ran out of time under its own rules to take action against the club. The same rules do not apply in the Premier League’s regulations, however Manchester City believe the club would have been exonerated by CAS in the Uefa case regardless of the time-bar rules.
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola, who has been in charge since 2016 during which time the club have won four Premier League titles, said last May [2022] that he would leave if he found executives had lied to him.
“Why did I defend the club and the people? It’s because I work with them,” he said. “When they are accused of something I ask them: ‘Tell me about that.’
“They explain and I believe them. I said to them: ‘If you lie to me, the day after I am not here. I will be out and I will not be your friend any more. I put my faith in you because I believe you 100% from day one and I defend the club because of that.’”
Stefan Borson, a former financial adviser to Manchester City, said on Twitter: “Alarmist or not, the sheer extent of the [Premier League] charges are at a level that IF found proven, must lead to relegation.”
However, Tom Murray, co-author of the chapter on financial regulation in the leading textbook Football and the Law and sports lawyer at leading firm Mishcon de Reya, said: “Given that no Premier League club has ever been found to have breached the Premier League’s financial fair play rules, this morning’s news is of historic significance.
“If Manchester City are found to have breached the Premier League Rules, they could face a menu of sanctions, including a fine, a transfer embargo, a points deduction and technically expulsion from the league, albeit in my view, expulsion would be highly unlikely. Unless a resolution can be found swiftly, these proceedings could take a significant amount of time to play out and therefore are unlikely to affect the 2022-23 title race.”
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