The "115-count" case against Manchester City has reached a historic turning point. On September 29, the Premier League officially announced that an independent commission found the club guilty of the most serious violations alleged in the financial investigation covering a period of nine seasons, from 2009/10 to 2017/18. The penalties, however, remain to be determined and will be the subject of separate proceedings.
The case arose in 2018, after the publication of documents obtained by Der Spiegel, and resulted in the Premier League formal charges in February 2023The hearing before the independent commission lasted 42 days and concluded in December 2024. The decision came almost two years later.
What is being contested at City?
The charges mainly concern the alleged falsification or incompleteness of financial information provided to the Premier League. According to the commission, City had used a series of commercial contracts defined as "sham"—i.e., agreements that did not accurately represent actual economic relationships—contributing to artificially inflating revenues and reducing declared costs.
The Premier League argues that, if the deals had been accounted for correctly, Manchester City would have significantly exceeded the spending limits foreseen Both league and UEFA regulations apply. The commission also found that the club submitted incorrect financial statements and failed to fully cooperate with investigators. Three of the four counts of non-cooperation were upheld.
The original complaints also included violations related to payments to players and coaches, UEFA Financial Fair Play rules and the Premier League Profitability and Sustainability Rules.
The crux of the 115 charges
For years there has been a general reference to "115 charges," but the structure of the proceedings is more complex. The reconstructions on the eve of the verdict spoke of 115 charges, with the protests divided into five main categories: financial information, payments to players and coaches, UEFA regulations, economic sustainability and lack of cooperation.
Initial reports of the verdict indicated that 114 of the 115 charges had been upheld. The Premier League's official statement, however, was more general: confirms guilt on serious financial violations and on most of the disputes regarding collaboration. The full picture should become clearer with the publication of the commission's complete documentation, which has so far only been made available in redacted and partial form.
The Manchester club has already said it will appeal
Manchester City rejected the commission's findings and announced its intention to appeal, arguing that the decision contains errors of fact, law, and principle. The current deadline for lodging an appeal is October 2, 2026. The appeal will be heard by a new three-member panelThe process could therefore drag on for a long time: CEO Ferran Soriano has made it known internally to the football world that the battle could last for years.
What penalties does Manchester City face?
The sanction has not yet been decided. The Premier League has confirmed that a new hearing will be held, separate from the one on guilt. The rules provide for a wide range of possible penalties: fines, point penalties and, in extreme cases, expulsion from the competition.
A heavy points penalty could therefore cause relegation to the ChampionshipExpulsion would be an even more radical scenario: in that case, City would have to ask the Football Association to rejoin the English football pyramid, with the possibility that the new entry would have to start from League Two and depend on a vote by the 72 EFL clubs.
There is also the issue of the titles won in the years under investigation and that of the any compensation claims from rival clubsSome clubs have already sought legal advice to assess the possibility of making financial claims against City.
A game still to be played
The verdict on liability represents a turning point, but it's not the end of the story. The penalty, the possible appeal, and the related decision are still pending. The Premier League itself has emphasized that the overall proceedings are still open.
For Manchester City, a potentially decisive phase for the club's future is thus opening. The key issue is no longer simply determining whether the rules have been violated: now it will be necessary to understand which sporting and economic consequence will be deemed proportionate violations that the independent commission has defined as extremely serious. And, above all, how long will the legal battle between the club and the Premier League last?
