Manchester City found guilty of 114 Premier League financial breaches

Manchester City have been found guilty of 114 of the 115 financial charges brought against them by the Premier League, following the conclusion of an independent commission hearing.

The league and its chief executive, Richard Masters, confirmed the findings after they were reported on Friday.

The breaches relate to the period between the 2009-10 and 2017-18 seasons. During that time, the commission found that Manchester City had “arranged sham contracts… to artificially inflate the club’s revenues and reduce its costs”.

The commission also ruled that the club:

– submitted misstated accounts and hid the true state of its finances from auditors and football regulators; – significantly breached both Premier League and UEFA spending limits; and – repeatedly failed to co-operate with the Premier League and act in the utmost good faith during the investigation.

Three of the four alleged breaches relating to co-operation were upheld.

According to the Premier League’s statement, the arrangements enabled Manchester City to inflate revenue and reduce costs by more than 900 million pounds during the period under investigation.

The commission found that the club had entered into “sham” commercial agreements with several sponsors as part of a disguised funding scheme. Those companies were required to pay only part of the relevant sponsorship fees, while the remainder was funded by Abu Dhabi United Group Investment & Development Ltd (ADUG), which owned the club.

Further arrangements, also financed by ADUG, allowed Manchester City to record lower operating expenses than it had actually incurred. The commission also found a “sham” circular agreement with Fordham, an entity that bought the players’ image rights, which was funded by ADUG.

The purpose of the schemes, the commission concluded, was to make Manchester City appear to comply with financial regulations by artificially increasing its revenues and lowering its costs by more than 900 million pounds.

It said the club had consequently submitted inaccurate accounts and concealed its financial position from auditors and football regulators, concluding that “by its conduct the club clearly intended to circumvent the PL Rules”.

Masters said the Premier League would now move “swiftly” to complete the disciplinary process.

“The core decision establishes the facts of what happened at Manchester City during this period. It details how the club systematically broke Premier League Rules for nearly a decade,” he said.

He added that the ruling supported the Premier League’s decision to pursue the case and said the league had remained determined to establish the facts independently, despite a process that had been “long and difficult”.

Masters said enforcing rules approved by the clubs was essential to protecting the integrity of the competition and ensuring it remained fair and competitive for clubs and supporters.

He described the case and decision as “the most significant in Premier League history”, but said the punishment had yet to be decided.

Manchester City continue to deny the allegations and intend to appeal. Chief executive Ferran Soriano reportedly told a meeting of leading European clubs: “It’s taken eight years to get here and it’s going to take a lot more time.”

If the appeal fails, possible sanctions include relegation, a transfer ban, a fine or a points deduction.