Why Manchester City faces 115 charges and what it means for the Premier League hearing to have a verdict in 2025

The Premier League hearing into Manchester City's alleged Financial Fair Play breaches is now heading into its tenth week.

A process to investigate the English club's financial dealings between 2009 and 2018 has been under discussion for some time, but the process has officially begun, meaning we are at the end of this situation.

pep guardiola''s side, who deny all charges against them, claimed a fourth consecutive top-flight title in May and are seeking a fifth, but a cloud hangs over their continued success.

City, whose last title was the sixth in seven years, were charged by the Premier League More than a year and a half ago, in February 2023.

Since then, the investigation has not concluded but Everton and Nottingham Forest has been punished for minor crimes.

The Premier League has argued that City's case is different due to the depth, scale and complexity of the charges…

The latest on the Manchester City audience

It appears that proceedings between the Premier League and Manchester City will continue until 2025.

According to expert Stefan Borson, he told talkSPORT: “My understanding is that this is all continuing, which is in line with the original expectations about the length of the hearing.

“This week is Week 10 in person. So it looks like it's going to last a full 10 to 12 weeks.”

He continued: “The hearing has gone on for a long time.

“A 10- to 12-week trial or hearing in a commercial sense is a long time. They've obviously covered an enormous amount of territory.

“So, I think when it's over, assuming it's been run to the end and not stopped, it will take some time for them to deliberate and make a decision.

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“And that would push us towards 2025.”

Borson also explained what he believes has led to this case taking so long, adding: “That tells us some things about what's going on.

“I mean, there are a lot of witnesses who testify. Because in reality, that's what it's going to take most of the time.

“It is very likely that those witnesses are witnesses for the City of what really happened at that time.

“So it will include their evidence and cross-examination of it and also experts who will come in to talk about some of the technical aspects of the allegations.”

Outside of the hearing, where the verdict is still awaited, Manchester City have achieved two big victories in separate cases.

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The club won an important victory in September after the Premier League decided to abandon a planned vote about third party transaction rules.

In October, then won a big case against the top flight regarding sponsorship deals they were prevented from making earlier this year.

The city took legal action against the league over associated party transaction (APT) rules, arguing they were anti-competitive and have now been declared illegal by an independent panel.

As mentioned above, this No have some relationship with the 115 charges.

But it could indicate how the hearing on those issues might develop.

Below is an in-depth look at why the hearing on 115 charges is taking place and what the results could be for Man City…

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Why are Man City facing more than 100 charges?

Manchester City has been accused of violating FFP rules about 100 times for nine years, from 2009 to 2018.

His alleged crimes coincided with the club's growth into the dominant force in English football.

City won the Premier League three times during that period: in 2012, 2014 and 2018.

Their charges range from failing to provide accurate financial information, failing to comply with UEFA FFP rules and failing to disclose coaches' remuneration.

However, not all relate to financial issues: 35 relate to allegedly failing to co-operate with the Premier League investigation.

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Why Manchester City faces 130 charges

It has been widely reported that City face 115 charges, but the real number is 130 because the Premier League made an initial mistake in publishing its findings.

Therefore, these additional charges are not new and are in addition to those we all know.

The confusion comes from some of the alleged rule violations not being associated with particular seasons.

Therefore, some of the existing positions have been divided into new ones, but we do not know what categories they fit into, and that information is not public knowledge.

Charges explained

While the noncompliance offenses are self-explanatory, the first alleged noncompliance is the noncompliance for which the City faces the most charges.

Each Premier League club subscribes to a compliance code, which involves providing the league with accurate and up-to-date accounts.

The city, however, has been accused of inflate the value of your sponsorship which allowed the owner sheikh mansur to inject more money into the club.

Other charges include failing to provide accurate financial reports for player and coach compensation.

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The latter refers to the former Manchester City coach. Roberto Manciniwho had allegedly been paid more than £1 million annually in consultancy fees to Al Jazira in Abu Dhabi, in addition to his declared salary.

These alleged hidden payments were also said to have been awarded to players signed during that period, theoretically allowing City to build the foundations of success upon which Guardiola took over in 2016.

Citizens were fined around £27 million for alleged FFP violations by UEFA and imposed a two-year ban in 2020, which was later annulled by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) and the money was reduced to £10 million.

The panel found that some alleged violations were time-barred; The most important thing is that the Premier League investigation does NOT include a prescription.

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Testing process

Proceedings involving the Premier League and Man City began on Monday, September 16.

It appears that the formal hearing with the independent commission will last more than 10 weeks due to the complexity of the case and the depth of both sides' legal arguments.

But even once the hearing is over, the three-person panel overseeing the process must issue its verdict, which will likely be a document hundreds of pages long.

This is not expected until next year and potentially until March.

Whatever happens, the decision cannot be taken to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).

However, the club or the league could file an appeal, so there would be a new hearing.

So even though the case is almost over, it could still take a long time until there is a clear verdict due to the appeal process.

What does it mean for your future?

A series of sanctions could be imposed on the current champions should they be found guilty of any or all of the charges.

A substantial fine or a point deduction It would seem most likely, but City could also be expelled from the Premier League.

Other possible Premier League punishments include a transfer ban, which Chelsea experimented in 2019.

Similarly, spending limits could be imposed on City, who have spent £1.53 billion on players over the last ten years.

The Manchester club could even face relegation, although former City financial advisor Borson He explained that this is unlikely.

He told talkSPORT: “There can be no doubt that, if these charges are proven, this will end in at least relegation.

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“There is a suggestion of a conspiracy over, effectively, a ten-year period.

“If proven, this is very serious. No one would argue with that. The city will say, I promise you, that this is an accusation of the most serious nature.

“I find it highly unlikely that the alleged conduct took place over a ten-year period with the type of people who are involved in the club and the companies involved.

“It will be a huge call for any court or tribunal to suggest that this number of people have been dishonest and committed perjury.

“That would be a massive call for some KCs and perhaps a former financial director of a football club to make a call not only against city ​​of manchesterbut against numerous executives, against third parties and, of course, against potentially high-ranking members of foreign states.