Manchester City found guilty of violating English Premier League regulations.. and the club appeals

It added that the committee found that the club had submitted inaccurate financial statements, concealed the true state of its finances from auditors and regulatory bodies, and had significantly exceeded the spending limits approved by the English Premier League and the Union of European Football Associations.

According to the investigation results, the inflated revenue amounted to 900 million pounds (about $1.2 billion), during the nine seasons under investigation.

The committee also convicted the club on most of the charges related to non-cooperation with the association's investigations, after it was found responsible for three out of four alleged violations of its duties of cooperation and disclosure in good faith.

The association has not yet announced the penalties resulting from the decision, confirming that their determination will be subject to a separate hearing before the independent committee, and that its procedures will remain confidential until its results are allowed to be published.

Richard Masters, CEO of the English Premier League, said that the decision identifies the facts related to what happened at Manchester City during that period, and explains how the club systematically violated the competition's rules over nearly a decade.

He added that the case, which he described as the most important in the history of the English Premier League, confirms the importance of applying the rules approved by the clubs themselves, in order to preserve the integrity of the competition and ensure equal opportunities among clubs.

Masters pointed out that the association will work to complete the remaining procedures quickly, including determining the appropriate penalty, in order to provide clarity for clubs and fans.

For its part, Manchester City expressed its disappointment and surprise at the committee's opinion, reiterating its commitment to its innocence of the charges brought against it.

The club said in a statement that it possesses strong and comprehensive evidence to support its position, and that it will continue to fight in its defense before the relevant regulatory and judicial authorities, affirming that the decision contains fundamental errors in law, principles, and facts that it is not sound.

It added that it will resort to the available means of appeal, noting that the procedures are not yet over, and that there are important aspects that still need to be resolved.

The case dates back to investigations that began after the association accused the club in February 2023, on the basis of alleged violations related to the submission of inaccurate financial information, the disclosure of player and coach salaries, compliance with spending regulations, as well as non-cooperation with the investigation.

Hearings before the independent committee began in September 2024, and lasted about three months, before the final decision was issued.

The case comes in the wake of the major transformation that Manchester City has witnessed since its acquisition by the Abu Dhabi United Development and Investment Group in 2008, as it was crowned during the following years with eight titles in the English Premier League, in addition to local and continental titles, most notably the UEFA Champions League for the first time in its history in 2023.

The issuance of the conviction decision does not mean determining the fate of the club's previous titles or its position in the competition, as the expected penalty and appeal procedures are still unresolved files.