Premier League Delivers Damning Guilty Verdict, Rocking Man City to Its Core

"Sham." That was the term the Premier League's official statement used five times in its scathing declaration of Manchester City's culpability on Tuesday.

Four days after the story first emerged across English media, the Premier League finally confirmed that an independent panel had found City guilty on all charges related to the most serious violations of the competition's financial rules between the 2009–10 and 2017–18 seasons.

The Premier League's inquiry began in December 2018 and charges were initially filed in February 2023, yet it took over three years for a ruling to be delivered. Now that the veil of uncertainty has at last been lifted, the Premier League made no effort to soften its language.

According to the league's pointed statement, City—between 2009 and 2018—have specifically been accused of:

In total, the Premier League accused City of "artificially inflating the club's revenues, and reducing its costs, by more than £900 million [$1.2 billion] during the affected period, to appear to comply with financial rules."

"The core decision establishes the facts of what took place at Manchester City during this period," Premier League chief executive Richard Masters was quoted as saying. "It details how the club systematically violated Premier League Rules for nearly a decade."

"This disciplinary case, and this decision, are the most significant in Premier League history," Masters continued. "There are elements of the case that remain to be resolved, including, crucially, what punishment must follow for these breaches. Now that 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."