Manchester City are understood to have been found guilty of all but one of the Premier League’s 115 financial-rule charges, with former club adviser Stefan Borson warning that even relegation could be considered as a punishment.
Clubs have reportedly been told that the independent panel overseeing the case has reached its decision, following a wait of three and a half years since the hearing concluded in 2024.
Borson, who advised City between 2002 and 2007, said “anything is possible” when asked whether relegation could be imposed. “All hell is now going to break loose, as this is going to go on for weeks and weeks and weeks,” he told talkSPORT.
The Premier League accused City of multiple breaches over a 14-year period, including failing to provide accurate financial information and allegedly withholding details of payments involving former manager Roberto Mancini and players.
Manchester City appeal expected after financial verdict
City have consistently denied wrongdoing since the charges were brought in February 2023 and are expected to appeal. The club’s case has involved 115 original charges, later extended to 130 after an administration issue, in what has been described as the most expensive and wide-ranging case in English football.
Borson said an appeal based on the facts was “highly unlikely to succeed”, arguing that the independent commission’s published decision would make it difficult for City to overturn its findings.
“Where we are now with City being found guilty of more or less everything, the decision itself will be scathing in terms of the club’s conduct, the conduct of individuals, the behaviour of individuals and the hearing itself in terms of their credibility,” he said.
He added: “To then have to present that to an appeal that does not have the benefit of listening to the whole case all over again, in terms of witness evidence, seeing all the documentation again, it is going to be extremely difficult for City to overturn those factual findings.”
The former adviser suggested the club could challenge the process, including the length of time taken to reach a verdict and whether the panel was impartial. However, he said: “All of those sorts of arguments, be it bias or something procedural, all of them are very unlikely to succeed.”
City said the Premier League process remained ongoing and that significant elements were still to be completed under strict confidentiality. The club said its position remained consistent with its February 2023 statement and that it had respected due process while expecting the league to act as an “independent, impartial and fair-minded regulator”.
The alleged breaches cover seasons from 2009-10 to 2017-18, including claims that City failed to report complete sponsorship and revenue information. The league also alleged that the club did not fully co-operate with its investigation between 2018 and 2023.
City have won eight Premier League titles, a Champions League, four FA Cups and seven EFL Cups during the period linked to the allegations. The club has maintained its innocence throughout the proceedings.
The case followed an investigation that began after documents from the Football Leaks cache were published in 2018. City were separately banned from the Champions League and fined £25 million by Uefa in 2020 after being found to have seriously misled European football’s governing body, although the ban was later overturned by the Court of Arbitration for Sport and the fine reduced to £9 million.
Sanctions in the Premier League case will be considered separately, behind closed doors. Borson said: “Ultimately now I think City will have to take their punishment and it will be severe.”
