Manchester City could face severe punishment after an independent commission found the club guilty of serious breaches of Premier League financial rules, with some fans and pundits calling for the champions to be demoted several divisions. The case has reignited debate over whether football's biggest clubs can face meaningful punishment for breaking the rules.
City appealed against the findings on October 1, with the Premier League confirming the appeal the following day. No sanction has been decided, and City continue to deny wrongdoing. The club says the commission's decision contains material errors of law, principle and fact.
Historical Precedents for Multiple Demotions
Several famous sides have fallen multiple divisions, but the reasons vary. Some were demoted as a disciplinary sanction, while others went bankrupt, lost their professional status or were expelled from their leagues. Here are seven clubs whose dramatic falls offer context for the debate surrounding Manchester City.
Perugia – Punished Over a Match-Fixing Scandal
Italian side Perugia provide one of the clearest examples of a club being demoted as a disciplinary punishment. In 1986, the club became embroiled in Italy's Totonero-bis betting scandal, which involved match-fixing in professional football.
Perugia had already been relegated from Serie B to Serie C1 on sporting grounds at the end of the 1985-86 season. The subsequent disciplinary ruling sent them down again, to Serie C2, the fourth tier of Italian football at the time. They were also handed a two-point deduction for the following campaign. The club therefore suffered a double relegation: one for its league position and another following the betting scandal.
Unlike clubs that collapsed financially, Perugia's additional demotion was imposed as punishment for wrongdoing. It is one of the more relevant historical comparisons when considering the principle of severe sanctions against a football club.
Financial Collapses and Restarts
Parma – From European Glory to Bankruptcy
Parma enjoyed considerable success during the 1990s, winning the UEFA Cup twice and the European Cup Winners' Cup. But the club's fortunes collapsed, culminating in bankruptcy in March 2015.
Parma finished bottom of Serie A that season and were relegated on sporting grounds. Their financial problems then prevented them from continuing in professional football. The club was forced to restart in Serie D, Italy's fourth tier, for the 2015-16 season.
The distinction is important. Parma's fall to the fourth tier was not a disciplinary punishment equivalent to a possible sanction against Manchester City. It followed insolvency and the failure to meet the requirements for continued participation in professional football.
Rangers – A Scottish Giant Forced to Start Again
Rangers' financial collapse in 2012 showed that even a major European club can be forced to rebuild from the bottom of its country's league system. The Glasgow club entered liquidation after failing to reach an agreement with creditors. A new company acquired its business and assets, but it could not simply inherit Rangers' place in the Scottish Premier League.
Following a vote by top-flight clubs, the new company had to apply to join the Scottish Football League. Rangers were admitted to the Third Division, then the fourth tier of Scottish football, for the 2012-13 season. They won successive promotions and returned to the Scottish Premiership in 2016.
Rangers' experience demonstrates the consequences of insolvency and the difficulties involved in transferring a club's league position to a new company. It was not, however, a disciplinary demotion for financial rule breaches of the kind at the centre of the City case.
Administrative Exclusion and Financial Guarantees
Bordeaux – A Former French Champion Excluded from National Competition
Bordeaux were once one of France's leading clubs, winning the domestic league title in 2009 and regularly competing in European football. Their decline accelerated amid serious financial problems, culminating in the loss of their professional status in 2024.
The club subsequently continued in the lower divisions, but its finances remained a problem. In August 2026, a Paris administrative court upheld the decision to exclude Bordeaux from the 2026-27 National 1 competition after the French football authorities concluded that the club had failed to provide sufficient financial guarantees.
The ruling underlined the continuing consequences of financial instability for a historic club. Bordeaux's case centres on financial guarantees and administrative exclusion, rather than a disciplinary punishment for the same type of alleged breaches facing Manchester City.
