The Premier League and Manchester City have become embroiled in a war of words after a statement was released confirming the club had been found guilty of all charges related to breaches of financial rules between 2009-10 and 2017-18 by an independent commission.
The Premier League said the independent commission found City arranged ‘sham’ commercial deals with a number of its sponsors during the period, which were part of a disguised funding scheme, whereby those companies were only required to pay a portion of the relevant sponsorship fees. The commission found that the remainder was funded by Abu Dhabi United Group Investment & Development Ltd (ADUG), which owned the club.
The league said that now the charges have been proved, the issue of sanction will be addressed separately in a further hearing with the independent commission.
Premier League chief executive responds
Richard Masters, the chief executive of the Premier League, 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.”
Masters added: “This disciplinary case, and this decision, are the most significant in Premier League history. There are elements of the case that remain to be decided, including, importantly, what sanction must follow for these breaches. Now we have the Commission’s decision, we are committed to moving swiftly through the remainder of the process, to provide certainty for the league, our clubs and fans.”
Findings on financial misstatement
Further “sham arrangements” the club were found to have entered into enabled the club to record lower operating expenses than they actually incurred, the Premier League’s published statement said. The scheme was found to have inflated the club’s revenues and reduced their costs by more than £900million during the affected period.
The commission found the club had therefore filed misstated accounts and concealed the true state of its finances from its auditors and football regulators. The commission concluded that “by its conduct the club clearly intended to circumvent the Premier League rules.”
Man City vows to appeal
Man City, meanwhile, have vowed to appeal against the charges, after releasing their own statement insisting they are innocent and have 'irrefutable evidence' which shows that the verdict is unsafe.
The statement read: "Manchester City FC is both disappointed and surprised by the opinion of the Premier League Commission, that has been published today.
"The Club is innocent of the accusations made by the Premier League and a comprehensive body of irrefutable evidence exists in support of all of its positions, relating to this case. The Club will therefore be relentless, and where necessary proactive, in any and all appropriate regulatory and legal forums.
"The Premier League process remains ongoing, with significant elements uncompleted. Manchester City FC will now pursue the appeal avenues open to it, on the basis that the opinion contains clear material errors, of law, principle and fact, and is unsafe.
"The Club has diligently respected due process for eight years on the basis that the Premier League Board and Executive would behave as an independent, impartial and fair-minded regulator, free from partisan influence.
"The Club is obviously restricted in what it can say further until all future proceedings are complete."
Reaction from other clubs
The rest of the Premier League, including Newcastle United, are now watching to see what happens regarding sanctions and an appeal. The Magpies' owners PIF have had conversations around the case and are weighing up whether to launch a compensation bid, with many clubs believed to be doing the same.
