Manchester City are not expected to be expelled from the Premier League if they are unsuccessful with their appeal against their charges, according to chiefs of some of their rivals.
Over the international break, City were found guilty of 114 breaches of financial rules between 2009 and 2018. A three-person commission found that the club inflated their revenue via 'sham' sponsorship deals, something that they strongly deny.
City are appealing the ruling and say that they have 'irrefutable evidence' that proves their innocence. If their appeal is rejected, the club face the possibility of a strong punishment, which is decided by the initial three-person panel.
Penalties and voting rules
The Premier League handbook stipulates that penalties can range from fines to points deductions and even expulsion from the division. However, the latest reports indicate that the most extreme outcome is not anticipated.
The Athletic reports that several Premier League club executives are not expecting the punishment to result in direct expulsion, given that such a decision would require the support of fellow clubs. For City to be removed from the Premier League, 14 of the member clubs would need to cast their vote in favour of such a sanction.
This would not be the case with alternative sanctions, such as fines or points deductions. The commission could also consider recommending a deduction severe enough to effectively guarantee the club's relegation to the Championship, rather than expelling City outright.
Concerns over competitive integrity
There are concerns, however, that a substantial points deduction could compromise the league's competitive integrity and diminish the appeal of its television product. It could leave City effectively playing out meaningless fixtures, having already been condemned to relegation through the deduction itself.
There is also anxiety within the Championship that a City relegation could see them spend just a single season outside the Premier League before bouncing straight back up. This would consequently take one of the available promotion places away from other clubs battling for a spot in the top flight.
When asked about the prospect of managing City in the Championship, or even League One, Enzo Maresca said: "I won the Championship with Leicester. So in case of League One, we're going to see. We are thinking about something that we don't know."
Alternative sanction proposals
There are arguments from a Premier League club executive that City ought to face a punishment involving points deductions spread across multiple seasons. Such a sanction would consequently damage the club's prospects of qualifying for European competition over several years, with considerable financial ramifications.
