Man City’s response to the “guilty” verdict
The Premier League and an independent Commission investigating the 115 charges on Manchester City issued a statement on September 29, 2026.
According to the statement, the Commission found Man City guilty of all charges related to breaches of the Premier League’s Financial Fair Play rules between 2009 and 2018. City were also found guilty of failure to cooperate with the league’s investigation.
The Premier League’s ensuing statement was quite scathing in its review, using phrases like “sham” sponsorship deals and “sham” arrangements and calling the club dishonest, saying that they were misstating accounts and concealing the true state of their finances to their auditors and football regulators.
Man City have until October 2, 2026, to appeal the findings of the independent Commission. According to the Premier League, the process which includes the appeal and the relevant decisions or sanctions should be published as soon as possible.
The entire Premier League statement is as follows:
“An independent Commission has found Manchester City FC guilty of all charges related to serious breaches of the Premier League’s financial rules over a nine-season period, and the majority of charges in relation to its failure to co-operate with the League’s investigation.
“The independent Commission found that between Seasons 2009/10 and 2017/18:
» Manchester City arranged ‘sham’ contracts (which misrepresented the true agreement between the parties) with a number of its commercial partners, as well as relying on ‘sham’ agreements with others, to artificially inflate the club’s revenues and reduce its costs
» The club filed misstated accounts and concealed the true state of its finances from its auditors and football regulators
» Manchester City was significantly in breach of both the Premier League’s and UEFA’s spending limits
» During the Premier League’s investigation, Manchester City committed multiple breaches of its duties of co-operation and utmost good faith towards the League (three of the four alleged breaches were upheld)
“The independent Commission found that Manchester 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 remainder was funded by Abu Dhabi United Group Investment & Development Ltd (ADUG), which owned the club. As part of the scheme, further ‘sham’ arrangements, funded by ADUG, were entered into to enable the club to record lower operating expenses than it actually incurred, as well as a ‘sham’ circular arrangement with Fordham, an entity that purchased the club’s players’ image rights, that was funded by ADUG.
“The purpose of these schemes was found to have been to artificially inflate the club’s revenues, and reduce its costs, by more than £900 million during the affected period, to appear to comply with financial rules. The consequence of this, as the Commission found, was that the club 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 PL Rules‘.
“As a result, Manchester City failed to accurately report its income and expenditure for the purposes of the Premier League’s Profitability and Sustainability Rules and UEFA’s Club Licensing and Financial Fair Play Rules. The Commission found that, had all of the relevant agreements been reported accurately in the club’s accounts, it would have been in breach of both the League’s and UEFA’s spending limits by a very substantial amount.
“In addition, during the course of the four-year investigation conducted by the Premier League, the club committed multiple breaches of its duties of co-operation and utmost good faith towards the League. The Commission concluded that the club had ‘made concerted efforts to stop and frustrate the PL investigation’.
“The independent Commission’s findings are set out in a Core Decision, of which a redacted version has been published. The Commission’s award comprises both the Core Decision and a large number of additional appendices, which the League is committed to publishing as soon as it is able.
“The League is able to publish the Core Decision because the Commission has ruled (and an Appeal Board has confirmed) that the Commission’s decision is a ‘final award’.
“Now that charges have been proved, the issue of sanction will be addressed separately in a further hearing with the independent Commission. In accordance with Premier League rules, that hearing will remain private and confidential until such a time as publication of the outcome is permitted.
“The club has the right to appeal the independent Commission’s findings and has until Friday 2 October to exercise that right.
“The Premier League Board’s intention is that the full process (including any appeals and publication of relevant decisions) is concluded as soon as possible.”
In response, Manchester City have expressed surprise and disappointment at the guilty verdict on 114 out of 115 charges, claiming innocence of any wrongdoing.
Manchester City Chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak issued a statement on their official website, stating that they remained confident that the Premier League process had a long way to complete and that Man CIty remained innocent but couldn’t release any documents due to a strict and confidential legal process.
A official Man City statement stated:
“The Premier League process remains ongoing, with significant elements to be completed, and subject to strict confidentiality. As such Manchester City FC’s position remains consistent with the Club’s statement of February 2023.
“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.”
It is clear that Manchester City will appeal the guilty verdict by the independent Commission. Additionally, according to Sky Sports, key City sponsor Etihad Airways is also considering legal action against the Premier League.
Etihad Airways issued a lengthy statement to The Athletic, stating that it “categorically rejects any finding, conclusion or implication that suggests the airline has ever been involved in improper commercial arrangements. The Premier League’s public communication of the Commission’s findings, following a period of selective leaks and reporting, has further created damaging implications for Etihad despite the airline not being named in the redacted published findings.”
In conclusion, Manchester City continue to plead innocence even after years of non-cooperation with the investigation, and now their main sponsor is threatening a legal course of action against the Premier League, rejecting the verdict and claiming damaging implications in the entire fiasco.
