Man City gets date to face 115 charges for alleged financial breaches.
Premier League CEO Richard Masters has confirmed that a date has been set for Manchester City’s hearing into 115 charges of alleged Financial Fair Play breaches.
Eleven months ago, Citizens fans and supporters across Europe were rocked by the news that the treble winners were being charged with a multitude of alleged misdemeanours, largely over a nine-year period.
City’s 115 charges include failing to provide accurate financial reports from the 2009-10 year to the 2017-18 year, as well as not cooperating with the Premier League during investigations.
In addition, the reigning Premier League, Champions League and Club World Cup winners have been accused of failing to submit accurate information relating to player and manager salaries, alongside breaching UEFA’s FFP stipulations and breaching Profit and Sustainability rules.
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If found guilty, punishments could range from transfer embargoes to relegation and stripped titles for the Citizens, who have strenuously denied any wrongdoing throughout, and no charges have been proven yet.
Since news of City’s charges became public, the Premier League have handed out their heaviest points deduction yet, taking 10 off of Everton for a breach of their Profit and Sustainability regulations.
On Monday, it was announced that the Toffees – who are appealing their 10-point docking – had been hit with another Profit and Sustainability rule breach for their 2022-23 accounts, as had Nottingham Forest.
Everton’s unprecedented punishment and Monday’s charges have naturally led to frustration from Toffees and Forest fans over a lack of action relating to Man City’s charges, which Masters addressed in front of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport on Monday.
The Premier League CEO insisted that the scale of the Man City charges means that such breaches will take longer to investigate, and he could not reveal the date for the hearing.
“I can [understand] but they are very different charges,” Masters said. “If any club, the current champions or otherwise, had been found in breach of the spending rules, they would be in exactly the same position as Everton or Nottingham Forest.
“But the volume and character of the charges laid before Manchester City, which I obviously cannot talk about at all, are being heard in a completely different environment. There is a date set for that proceeding. Unfortunately, I can’t tell you when that is but it is progressing.”
When asked whether the Premier League’s charges against Forest and Everton stemmed from the organisation’s desire to prove that it can operate without an independent regular, Masters responded: “No. We take our rule book very seriously.
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“It is a handshake between all 20 clubs. Clubs look each other in the eye and say we will comply with these rules. They expect the board, if clubs don’t comply with those rules, to take action.
“Nobody likes enforcing these financial rules. They were brought in in 2013-14 with the specific purpose of ensuring that unsustainable spending couldn’t go too far and a wrapper was put around how much clubs could invest in pursuit of their aims. It is the first time we have laid a charge in this way.”
Despite the plethora of alleged breaches looming over their heads, Man City marched to a historic treble in the 2022-23 campaign and have since added a first-ever Club World Cup crown to their cabinet.