Ex-City chairman warns money alone not enough punishment after 114 financial rule breaches

Manchester City face an anxious wait for their punishment after an independent panel found the club guilty of breaching Premier League financial regulations 114 times between 2009 and 2018 — a verdict that has sent shockwaves through English football and prompted City to announce they will appeal.

David Bernstein, who served as City chairman from 1998 to 2003, said he was left in shock by the ruling and issued a stark warning about what an appropriate sanction might look like. “If they are found, after the appeal, guilty of 115 charges, my beloved club is going to face a very severe penalty,” the 83-year-old told Times Radio. “All I would say is that money is not sufficient — it would have to be something, unfortunately, more drastic than that.”

Bernstein, who also served as FA chairman, was emphatic that the speed of the appeal process matters as much as its outcome. “This whole process has taken too long already,” he said. “The appeal process cannot go on for year after year — I think that would be a disaster. Not just for this particular case but for English football generally.”

The original charges were brought against City in 2023, and the 12-week hearing ran from 16 September to 6 December 2024. The panel found the club had operated in breach of Premier League financial rules across a nine-year window that coincided with a period of extraordinary success — City claimed eight Premier League titles during the broader era in question.

Potential punishments include relegation, a points deduction, and the stripping of titles, though no sanction has yet been determined. City have consistently denied any wrongdoing throughout the lengthy process.

Bernstein, who described himself as a City fan of 70 years, said the verdict had cast a shadow over the club’s modern era. “To see all this tarnished in this way is very sad. I feel particularly bad for the wonderful supporters of the club who’ve stayed with the club through thick and thin.”

Separately, other Premier League clubs are understood to be exploring potential legal action against City, with sides seeking financial compensation given the competitive advantages City may have gained during the period covered by the breaches.