Manchester City has been found guilty of almost all of the 115 charges passed down by the Premier League, with Liverpool and others now waiting to see what punishment it could receive
An aerial view of Etihad Stadium during the Premier League match between Manchester City and Bournemouth in Manchester, United Kingdom, on August 23, 2026. (Photo by Mark Cosgrove/News Images/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Manchester City has been found guilty of almost all of the charges brought against it by the Premier League(Image: Getty Images)
After a long, long wait, Liverpool and the rest of the Premier League has finally learned the outcome of the case into Manchester City's 115 charges of alleged financial breaches.
Although the hearing, which began on September 16, 2024, concluded all the way back in December of that same year, no verdict was made public for the next couple of years until Friday, with reports indicating that City has been found guilty on all but one of the charges levied against it.
The implications of the outcome are guaranteed to be seismic for the Premier League, although no sanctions have yet been decided upon, and City is likely to appeal, which could cause further delays.
City has won six of the last nine league titles. It became the first club to win the English top flight for four successive seasons in 2023/24, yet that unparalleled success might be rendered a sham now that the club has been found guilty of breaching Premier League financial rules over a nine-year period which began in 2009.
But what are the implications from the potential punishments from a Liverpool perspective? After all, if City is deemed to have cheated, the Reds will have more reason than any other club to feel aggrieved.
The Reds finished second by one point behind Pep Guardiola’s side in 2018/29 and 2021/22. Other teams have been runners-up in recent years but not by so narrow a margin. Here’s a look at the three likeliest punishments if a guilty verdict is passed and how they would affect Liverpool.
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A fine
This would be the outcome likeliest to bring the whole sorry saga to the swiftest possible conclusion. Given the money at its disposal, it's reasonable to assume that City would simply pay its bill and move on. Assuming this would have no impact upon the finances of the club and how it would be run, this would make no difference to the Reds.
Points deduction
To many, this would be the obvious punishment. Everton and Nottingham Forest were docked points during the 2023/24 season after breaching profit and sustainability rules.
We are of course still in the very early stages of the 2026/27 season, with City currently leading Arsenal by three points at the top of the table. Any sort of points deduction could take them out of the running for the title, and depending on the size of the punishment, may even put it in danger of relegation. Speaking of which...
Relegation
The big one, the most severe punishment. This would obviously improve Liverpool’s hopes of returning to title contention.
But it would have a wider impact. City’s star players are unlikely to want to spend a season outside the Champions League, much less embrace slumming it in the Championship for 46 games. A full-on fire sale might feel unlikely but their squad would likely be decimated.
Everyone connected with Liverpool will be waiting on any potential punishment with great interest. The outcome could shake up the whole football world though.
An original version of this article was first published on September 12, 2025.