Manchester City Reportedly Found Guilty on 114 of 115 Premier League Financial Charges

Manchester City has reportedly lost the biggest financial fair play case in Premier League history. According to The Athletic, an independent commission found the club guilty on 114 of the 115 charges brought against it in February 2023. One charge was not established.

No sanction has been decided. City is expected to appeal, according to The Athletic's report, which was picked up and repeated by outlets including Times of India, Channels TV, the Economic Times, TheScore, thecable.ng and the Evening Standard. All of that coverage traces back to the same original report. The Premier League itself has not issued a public statement confirming the verdict, and the commission's findings remain, in City's words, subject to "strict confidentiality."

How we got here

The Premier League charged City in February 2023 over alleged breaches spanning the 2009/10 season through 2017/18. The allegations: failing to provide accurate financial information, inflating sponsorship revenue, making off-the-books payments to players and coaches, breaching profitability and sustainability rules, and failing to cooperate with the investigation.

The suspicion traces back to 2018, when German outlet Der Spiegel published leaked emails allegedly showing City execs disguised direct investment from owner Sheikh Mansour's Abu Dhabi United Group as sponsorship income from Etihad Airways and Etisalat. Other leaked documents allegedly showed consultancy payments funneling money to then-manager Roberto Mancini through a club in Abu Dhabi.

City has denied every allegation since day one. Manager Pep Guardiola said back in February 2023 the club had already been "condemned" by the charges themselves, comparing it to a separate UEFA case. The comparison warrants scrutiny: the Court of Arbitration for Sport did clear City of some UEFA allegations about overstated sponsorship revenue, but other charges were tossed only because they fell outside a five-year statute of limitations, not because they were false. CAS also found City showed "blatant disregard" for UEFA's investigators and a "severe" failure to cooperate. Guardiola's framing left that part out.

What City is saying now

A City spokesperson, quoted by The Athletic, said the process "remains ongoing, with significant elements to be completed, and subject to strict confidentiality," adding the club's position is unchanged since its February 2023 statement calling the charges a surprise. The club also said it has "diligently respected due process for eight years on the basis the Premier League board and executive would behave as an independent, impartial and fair minded regulator, free from partisan influence."

City has never had its day in a public hearing, sanctions haven't been set, and an appeal is coming. Under English football's rules, a club facing this kind of process is entitled to contest both the findings and any punishment before it's final. Nobody should treat a reported verdict, sourced to one outlet and unconfirmed by the league, as final.

What's actually at stake

If the guilty findings hold up on appeal, precedent suggests real punishment. Everton and Nottingham Forest both took points deductions in the 2023/24 season for a single profit-and-sustainability breach each. City is reportedly guilty on 114 counts spanning nearly a decade. The Evening Standard laid out the menu of possible sanctions: fines, transfer restrictions, points deductions, suspension from fixtures, or in the most extreme scenario, expulsion from the league and relegation to the Championship.

Under Sheikh Mansour's ownership since 2008, City has won eight Premier League titles, three FA Cups, six League Cups and a Champions League. If regulators eventually conclude those trophies were built on financial cheating, rival clubs could push for stripped titles and compensation, according to Channels TV and the Economic Times.

Erling Haaland, City's Norwegian striker, signed a contract through 2034 after renewing in December 2024. Goal.com reports that deal contains no release clause tied to relegation. His agent, Rafaela Pimenta, has said publicly she believes players should always hold "the key to the door" to leave a club, but as things stand Haaland has no contractual exit if City goes down.

City sits atop the Premier League after five matches in the 2026 season, per Times of India. Nothing about that changes today. The real question is how long the appeal drags on, whether the Premier League ever confirms the verdict publicly, and what sanction, if any, a commission ultimately imposes on a club that has denied wrongdoing for eight straight years.