Manchester City’s Verdict On 115 Charges Has Now Outlasted Pep Guardiola
Manchester City’s 2026-2027 season has started well enough under Enzo Maresca, with the 46-year-old Italian having replaced Pep Guardiola as manager in June. The Spaniard had enjoyed a decade at the Etihad, winning six Premier League titles, one Champions League and 20 trophies in total during that period. What has not started, finished or moved an inch in that time is the independent commission’s verdict on the 115 charges of financial rule-breaking that the Premier League brought against the club in the February of 2023.
The hearing itself finished in the December of 2024, with close to two years having now passed with no ruling forthcoming. On the Premier League’s own account, no indication of when a ruling on the matter might arrive has been made public, the length of it all being mostly because of the fact that City deny every charge. The Premier League’s Chief Executive keeps being asked about the delay and keeps giving the same vague answer, so why, three and a half years after the case was opened, is nobody any closer to knowing how it ends?
What’s Going On
Richard Masters, the Premier League’s Chief Executive, addressed the delay twice within a week in August, firstly when he spoke to talkSPORT and then when he was on Sky News. He said much the same thing both times, which can be summed up with the phrase, “I do understand the frustration,” which he said to talkSPORT. “It has taken longer than expected, but we have to follow the process.” When on Sky News, he added that confidentiality rules leave him unable to offer anything more specific, saying, “I have to keep everything confidential until we’re ready to hand down a decision.”
The charges break down into 54 counts of failing to provide accurate financial information between the 2009-2010 and 2017-2018 seasons, 35 counts of failing to cooperate with the investigation that followed, 14 relating to the disclosure of player and manager pay, seven alleged breaches of profitability and sustainability rules and five of UEFA’s financial regulations. Masters has been careful to separate the case from Chelsea’s, who were fined £10.75 million and given a suspended transfer ban in March for financial irregularities dating back to Roman Abramovich’s ownership of the club.
Making a Mockery of the Premier League
Four clubs have a direct financial interest in how all of this ends. Manchester United, Liverpool, Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur each lodged legal notices in 2024 reserving the right to claim compensation for lost title races and missed Champions League football, with The Times reporting the figure could run past £100 million per club if City are found guilty.
None of them can do anything but wait, with both City and the Premier League retaining the right to appeal whatever the commission eventually rules. The best guess is that the ruling lands before the year is out, if only because the Premier League is looking more and more like a joke with every passing week. You would do well not to hold your breath, however.