The Premier League have “thrown Manchester City under the bus” in an attempt to head an independent regulator off at the pass, a football finance expert has told i.
The Premier League’s decision to levy more than 100 charges against City – broadly covering three misdemeanours, from artificially inflating income to artificially deflating costs by funnelling payments through a third party and refusing to co-operate – sent shockwaves through the industry.
It tees up a rolling battle between the club and the Premier League with no set end date and potentially huge ramifications for the competition and City as a club. One observer told i it had potential to be the “biggest scandal in English sport” but it’s widely acknowledged it could take years to resolve.
The Premier League, which carried out a wide-ranging four-year investigation into City that was led by their in-house law firm Bird & Bird, believes it has a tight case against the reigning champions.
But the club issued a punchy statement welcoming the prospect of an independent commission investigating the allegations. They are understood to be sceptical at the timing of the announcement and intend to robustly fight their case.
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That appears to be around the corner – the Government are preparing to publish a white paper into football governance later this month. The ongoing investigation into City, conducted in private with little transparency about the case, has been raised by some in power as proof that the Premier League is not fit to regulate or govern its own members.
With that in mind, football finance expert Kieran Maguire believes that Manchester City have ended up as collateral.
“We’ve never seen the Premier League take one of its own members, one of its shareholders to task to this extent for a breach of rules,” Maguire told i on a “momentous day”.
“But the timing is intriguing given the White Paper was due to be published in 48 hours – although it’s now been pushed back for another fortnight. The investigation has been going on for four years.
“Manchester City didn’t see this day coming. They are absolutely livid. They have not been given the opportunity to come to a joint statement with the Premier League, they feel in their mind they had been co-operating. They are fuming.
“The Premier League were quite happy to throw them under the bus because of their opposition to the White Paper and what they are trying to do is they are capable of looking after their house and there’s no need for a regulator.
“It’s as much to do with politics as it is to do with Manchester City.”
Alleged breaches over a nine-year period
The alleged breaches span a period from the 2009-10 season to the 2017-18 campaign.
First, the club are alleged to have breached league rules requiring provision “in utmost good faith” of “accurate financial information that gives a true and fair view of the club’s financial position”.
The league says the information that was required relates to “revenue (including sponsorship revenue), its related parties and its operating costs”.
The second set of breaches refers to the alleged breaking of rules “requiring a member club to include full details of manager remuneration in its relevant contracts with its manager” related to seasons 2009-10 to 2012-13 inclusive.
The club’s manager between December 2009 and May 2013 was current Italy boss Roberto Mancini.
The second set also refers to requirements for a club to include full details of player remuneration within the relevant contracts, for the seasons 2010-11 to 2015-16 inclusive.
The third section deals with alleged breaches of Premier League rules requiring clubs to comply with UEFA Financial Fair Play regulations, between 2013-14 to 2017-18.
The fourth set of alleged breaches relates to the Premier League’s profitability and sustainability rules in seasons 2015-16 to 2017-18 inclusive.
Finally, the club are alleged to have breached league rules requiring member clubs to co-operate with and assist the Premier League with its investigations, from December 2018 to date.
To add to the irony of Monday’s announcement, City are the only club in the top six who are in favour of an independent regulator.
These are serious charges, of course. If City are found guilty they can expect the book to be thrown at them. But the arguments around owner investment and what we want governance and ownership in English football to look like have only just begun.
“FFP was brought in because of Man City and now they’ve been charged with it,” Maguire contends.
“Some form of cost control does benefit football but what type of financial fair play depends on where you are as a football club. Some owners want an American franchise style cap and collar system which allows them to maximise profits and increases the values of their clubs.
“We’ve got owners like that of Man City and Chelsea who want a less severe system because they measure success on the pitch rather than off it in terms of financial achievements.
“It is entirely tribal and based on self interest.”
Whatever happens, Maguire warns there is little prospect of a quick resolution.
“Given they had no notice that these charges were going to be made, it will be a lengthy process,” he said.
“There are over 100 charges. That’s a lot and it will require a long period of time to put together their defence.”
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