Manchester City corner flag
Manchester City corner flag
Rules only matter if someone is prepared to test them. A league that writes its own regulations still has to prove a case in front of people it does not control.
Facts come first. Punishment comes later. That gap is where every club sits this week.
Integrity is an easy word until the document runs to thousands of pages.
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The Premier League has published the core decision of an independent commission that found Manchester City guilty of all charges relating to serious breaches of financial rules between 2009-10 and 2017-18, and of the majority of charges for failing to co-operate with the investigation.
The commission found the club arranged “sham” contracts with commercial partners and relied on other “sham” agreements to inflate revenue and cut costs. It filed misstated accounts and hid the true picture from auditors and regulators. It was significantly over both Premier League and UEFA spending limits. Three of four alleged co-operation breaches were upheld.
The statement says those deals were part of a disguised funding scheme. Sponsors paid only part of the fees. Abu Dhabi United Group Investment & Development Ltd, which owned the club, funded the rest. Further arrangements, also funded by ADUG, reduced recorded operating costs. A circular deal with Fordham over image rights was likewise funded by ADUG.
The purpose, the commission found, was to inflate revenues and reduce costs by more than £900million so the club appeared to comply. Had the agreements been reported accurately, it would have broken both sets of spending rules by a very substantial amount.
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🚨MAJOR BREAKING: Premier League confirm an independent Commission has found Manchester City GUILTY OF ALL CHARGES related to serious breaches of the Premier League’s financial rules.
Manchester City wrote up fake contracts to deceive the investigation. The club done so to… pic.twitter.com/HKq7vHyjQD
— now.arsenal (@now_arsenaI) September 29, 2026
The commission concluded that “by its conduct the club clearly intended to circumvent the PL Rules”. On the investigation it said the club had “made concerted efforts to stop and frustrate the PL investigation”.
Richard Masters, the League’s chief executive, said: “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.
“It also vindicates the Premier League’s decision to pursue this case against Manchester City. While the process to date has been both long and difficult, the League has remained determined that the facts be established independently.
“It is a key responsibility of the Premier League to ensure that the Rules, approved by the clubs themselves, are upheld to protect the integrity of the competition. It is paramount that the League remains competitive and fair for all clubs and for the fans. We take that role extremely seriously.
“This disciplinary case, and this decision, are the most significant in Premier League history. There are elements of the case that remain to be decided, including, importantly, what sanction must follow for these breaches. Now we have the Commission’s decision, we are committed to moving swiftly through the remainder of the process, to provide certainty for the League, our clubs and fans.”
The investigation began in December 2018. A complaint followed in February 2023. The hearing lasted 42 days and ended in December 2024. Sanctions will be heard separately and stay private until publication is allowed. City have until Friday 2 October to appeal.
For Arsenal the immediate meaning is the same as for the rest of the division. Last season’s title is already on the board. What changes the next one is the sanction, not the press release. Until that hearing ends, City remain in the fixture list and the table. The League has established the facts. It has not yet said what they cost.
Bayern Munich
Bayern Munich