Manchester City's dispute with the Premier League continues after the club confirmed its decision to appeal on Friday. The move triggers a review hearing into the league's seismic judgement, which found City guilty of all serious financial charges.
The Premier League's verdict accused City of 'sham' contracts and inflating sponsorship agreements by more than £800million. City responded with a statement reaffirming their innocence, and the next step is now an appeal.
Appeal timeline and process
The appeal will be heard in private by a new independent panel. Under Premier League regulations, the hearing should last a maximum of five days in one block, conclude within 12 weeks of being heard, and a decision should be communicated within 30 days of that.
However, there is no guarantee that timescale will hold, given the case's unprecedented complexity. Realistically, any decision could be pushed into 2027.
Possible sanctions and further delays
In the meantime, City could be issued a punishment via a sanctions hearing, though that seems likely to occur after the appeal concludes, since that decision would directly affect what punishment is served. City would then have the opportunity to appeal the sanction decision, potentially extending the case further.
That possibility means there is a realistic chance the issue won't be concluded before the end of the current Premier League campaign, something the league and other clubs will want to avoid.
Legal expert's view
Leading barrister Paul Gilroy KC believes the chances of resolution before May are slim and feels the case could go on for years. Speaking on The Overlap, he said: "All of this is subject to an appeal and is subject legal challenges beyond the Premier League. And this is a party - Manchester City - which has shown itself perfectly willing to take this process external to the regulator, to go to the high court to get its remedies elsewhere."
He added: "I've heard Jill (Scott) saying this morning it would be great to have this finished by the end of the season, good luck with that one. Never mind this season or the next or maybe the next five seasons. This is not going to end unless there is an accommodation. There have been cases where regulators or leagues have got together with football clubs in difficulty like this and they have agreed a settlement of all matters."
Gilroy noted: "Now this could be so serious that the regulator might say we have to have the interests of the Premier League at heart here, that is what it is all about, it is about the game and preserving the product that we have got and there is a necessity therefore for us all to get the round the table to sort this out because otherwise it is going to take a very, very long time."
