Manchester City are facing the threat of relegation from the top flight after being charged by the Premier League with more than 100 alleged breaches of its financial regulations.
The Premier League champions were on Monday hit by an astonishing catalogue of charges covering 14 seasons from 2009-10 to the current campaign which, if proven, would amount to one of the biggest scandals in English football history.
The bombshell revelations follow a four-year investigation by the Premier League that has now culminated in the club being charged with allegedly breaching 115 regulations. City could face an unprecedented range of punishments including a suspension, points deductions, sweeping fines and the ultimate sanction of expulsion from the league.
An independent disciplinary committee – which is set to be selected and could yet be chaired by Murray Rosen KC – will hear the charges in private. No timescale has been announced by the Premier League but an executive at one top flight club told Telegraph Sport there was an “eagerness” for an outcome before the end of the season.
City were banned for two years from European competition by Uefa in 2020 for alleged breaches of their Financial Fair Play rules but the club successfully overturned that suspension in the Court of Arbitration for Sport (Cas). However, there will not be an option for City to appeal to Cas against any Premier League sanctions as the European court is not recognised by the clubs. Instead, City would have to pursue options via London law courts.
In a statement released on Monday morning, the Premier League said: “The Premier League confirms that it has today referred a number of alleged breaches of the Premier League Rules by Manchester City Football Club to a commission.”
Some of the charges also pertain to the club allegedly failing to provide full details around their former manager Roberto Mancini’s pay between 2009 and 2013 and not providing “full details of player remuneration in its relevant contracts with players” from 2010/11 to 2015/16, both of which are required under Premier League rules.
City expressed “surprise” at the Premier League’s move and said it would welcome the commission’s hearing as a chance to put allegations of financial impropriety that have dogged the club for years “to rest once and for all”. The club said there was a “comprehensive body of irrefutable evidence that exists in support of its position.”
Possible Manchester City sanctions are:
– Points deduction(s)
– Expulsion from the league
– Trophies rescinded
– European ban
– Transfer ban
– Hefty fine(s)
If Found guilty Manchester City could lose their PremierLeague titles just like Juventus did when they lost the 2005 & 2006 Scudetto titles after Calciopoli.
