Henry's 2011 Etihad jibe proves prophetic as Man City found guilty of inflating revenue

Liverpool owner John Henry’s scepticism about Manchester City’s £400 million Etihad Airways sponsorship deal, expressed publicly in 2011, has taken on new significance after an independent commission found City guilty of 114 of the 115 financial charges brought against them by the Premier League.

City announced the landmark Etihad naming-rights deal in July 2011, less than a year after Fenway Sports Group completed their purchase of Liverpool. Henry’s reaction was pointed. Posting on X — then Twitter — he wrote: “How much was the losing bid?” Days later he returned to the theme, referencing then-Arsenal manager Arsène Wenger’s suggestion that City were seeking ways around Financial Fair Play rules. “A club’s best player has to be worth at least 10% of your naming rights,” Henry wrote. “Mr. Wenger says boldly what everyone thinks.”

The commission’s findings cover City’s financial conduct between the 2009/10 and 2017/18 seasons — a period during which the club’s inflated revenues gave them the headroom to spend heavily on players and wages following the arrival of their Abu Dhabi ownership. During that same window, Liverpool finished second to City in the 2013/14 Premier League title race and lost to them in the 2016 Carabao Cup final, before the two clubs engaged in a pair of historically tight title races in 2018/19 and 2021/22 under Jürgen Klopp.

Etihad Airways has responded to the verdict with a combative statement, rejecting “any implication that suggests the airline has ever been involved in improper commercial arrangements” and declaring that it “stands with the club.” The airline added that it would “seek the relevant legal counsel on the options and recourse available to protect its interests,” and indicated it could pursue legal action against the Premier League over the way its findings were presented.

The case represents one of the most consequential disciplinary proceedings in English football history, with City’s punishment yet to be determined following the commission’s ruling.