In what is turning out to be a crazy Premier League, a new twist was added when six-time English league champions were charged with breaching several financial rules. The announcement made on February 6 alleged that the club had gained an unfair advantage by breaking several regulations, which allowed them to spend far more than stipulated under FFP rules.
And now an inquiry from an independent commission is pending. There are various issues that need to be addressed. This is not the first time the club has been placed under such an inquiry. In 2018, UEFA accused the club of similar actions and announced a two-year ban on the club. However, the club had the ban overturned after appealing to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).
However, this time the club’s request to go to the CAS has now been dismissed which means they will have to wait for an independent commission and their findings before they can appeal against it.
But what are the allegations against Manchester City, and what punishment could they face if found guilty? We explain.
Manchester City Financial Breach Allegations Explained
According to the Premier League, Manchester City have broken FFP regulations more than 100 times between 2009 and 2018. This period started immediately after Sheikh Mansour bought the club.
According to the Premier League, the club has deliberately misled them by providing false salary figures. This meant that on paper, the club showed they were following all the FFP rules while they were massively spending over their limits.
If true, this also means that they signed additional players because of these alleged skirting of financial regulations. The significant charges are related to the period between 2010-16 when the Premier League alleges that several players’ salaries were falsified. The allegations go as far back as 2009-13 when Premier League said they found several irregularities in then-manager Roberto Mancini’s salary.
In addition, the club have also been accused of deliberately cooking their books to show that they were generating massive profits and were sustainable in the long term.
Italian club Serie A were accused of something similar just weeks before and as a result have been docked 15 points. However, in City’s case, only the Premier League have conducted their investigation, and there will be a long time before the entire case comes to a close.
And while Manchester City escaped UEFA’s ban after appealing that the case…
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