Manchester City has been found guilty of all charges related to breaches of Premier League financial rules between 2009-10 and 2017-18 after being found to have arranged “sham deals”.
The verdict was handed down by an independent commission, the league said.
Companies – a number of whom were part of a disguised funding scheme – were only required to pay a portion of the relevant sponsorship fees.
The probe found the remainder was funded by Abu Dhabi United Group Investment & Development Ltd (ADUG), the club’s owner at the time.
Sanctions will be set out in a further hearing with the independent commission, the league confirmed.
In a statement, City said the club will pursue an appeal “on the basis that the opinion contains clear material errors, of law, principle and fact, and is unsafe”.
In the past, the club has consistently denied any wrongdoing, after being charged in February 2023 by the Premier League – and another hearing concluding in December 2024.
More “sham arrangements” which were revealed let the club record lower operating expenses than were actually incurred, the Premier League said.
City said it would appeal the decision
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The move allow the club to boost their own revenues, cutting costs by more than £900million during the impacted periods.
The report found City had filed misstated accounts and hid their finances from auditors and football regulators.
“By its conduct the club clearly intended to circumvent the Premier League rules,” the commission said.
If information had been relayed to the appropriate authorities accurately, the club would have breached Premier League and UEFA spending limits “by a very large amount”.
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Richard Masters said the findings ‘vindicated’ the league’s decision to pursue the probe
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PAThe club also received a slap on the wrist for committing multiple breaches of their duty to co-operate with the investigation.
The commission said the club tried to “stop and frustrate” the long-running investigation, which began back in 2018.
Richard Masters, the chief executive of the Premier League, said the findings “vindicated” the league’s decision to pursue the probe against City.
He 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.”
