Manchester City has been found guilty of the majority of 115 financial rule breaches, spanning from 2009 to 2018, yet the word from within the Premier League is there’s “little appetite” to strip the club of the eight trophies they won during that controversial period. While fans of rival clubs are absolutely screaming for those titles to be taken away, it looks like the league itself, and even many of the other clubs, aren’t so keen on changing history.
Guilty Verdict: 115 Charges and a Cloud Over a Decade of Glory
Let’s get real for a second: Man City has been hit with a whopping 115 charges, and they’ve been found guilty of the majority of them. This isn’t some minor infraction we’re talking about; these are serious accusations, primarily centered on inflating sponsorship revenue from connected companies and making “off the books” payments to get around football’s financial rules. It casts a huge shadow over the trophy-laden era City has had since Sheikh Mansour took over in 2008. The question isn’t *if* they broke the rules, but what happens now that they’re caught. Jose Mourinho, almost two years ago, even cheekily suggested his former club Manchester United could be handed the 2018 Premier League title that City won. United finished 19 points behind City that season, his final full campaign at Old Trafford, so you know he felt robbed even then.
What’s Actually On The Table For Punishment?
So, if stripping titles isn’t the preferred option for the league, what are we looking at? The decision ultimately rests with an independent panel, which has yet to hold a “sanction hearing.” That means we can’t completely rule out title stripping, but a points deduction, a massive fine, or possibly even expulsion from the Premier League are thought to be more likely outcomes. While Premier League rules don’t directly mention stripping titles, they do allow the disciplinary commission panel to impose any penalty “as it shall think fit.” Many argue that the scale of the wrongdoing absolutely warrants stripping titles, especially if those titles were won unfairly because misrepresenting revenue and costs gave City a crucial competitive advantage.
If the titles *were* to be reallocated, it would be wild. Manchester United would get the 2011-12 and 2017-18 Premier League titles, while Liverpool would snag the 2013-14 Premier League and 2015-16 EFL Cup. Stoke City would get the 2010-11 FA Cup, Sunderland the 2013-14 EFL Cup, Arsenal the 2017-18 EFL Cup, and Chelsea the 2012-13 Community Shield. This kind of retrospective action also opens a “can of worms,” with some asking if Chelsea’s trophies from the 2010s should also be scrutinized after their own findings of secret payments to agents.
The sanction hearing is coming. The football world is watching, waiting to see if asterisks will truly be applied to Man City’s most glorious period.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by BBC Sport.
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