Man United players could claim millions in damages if Man City found guilty of rule-breaking

Manchester United have assessed the financial ramifications of Manchester City’s Premier League rule-breaking, with both the club and its players potentially in line to claim millions in compensation if City’s appeal fails, according to The Athletic.

United players could have individual claims for reparations after missing out on Champions League qualification during seasons in which City are alleged to have broken financial rules. Weekly wages for most Premier League squads are typically reduced by 25 per cent when a club fails to qualify for the Champions League — a reduction that, across a full squad, is likely to amount to millions of pounds.

City pipped United to fourth place on goal difference in the 2015/16 Premier League season, and United finished as runners-up to their city rivals in 2011/12, 2017/18 and 2020/21, though the last of those falls outside the nine-season window — 2009/10 to 2017/18 — covered by the independent commission’s findings.

The Athletic reports that United are focusing primarily on the seasons in which City’s final league position most directly affected their own finances. Other Premier League clubs are also said to be exploring the impact City’s alleged conduct had on their own prospects during those years, with such assessments having been under way for some time.

Section W of the Premier League’s rules provides a formal route to compensation, as demonstrated by Burnley’s £35m case against Everton. Moving up a single place in the Premier League table is worth approximately £2–3m, while the financial gap between Champions League and Europa League participation is stark: clubs earn £16m simply for entering the Champions League league phase, compared to £4m for the Europa League.

United are one of four clubs — alongside Arsenal, Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur — that lodged legal notices ahead of a potential statute of limitations deadline in 2024, formally registering possible compensation claims for arbitration.

An independent commission has since found City guilty of all charges relating to serious breaches of the Premier League’s financial rules, concluding that City were significantly in breach of spending limits and accusing the club of ‘sham’ deals designed to artificially inflate their revenue by £900m over the nine-year period.

City maintain their innocence and have appealed to the chair of the judicial panel, arguing that the commission’s decision “contains clear material errors, of law, principle and fact and is unsafe.” Until that appeal is resolved, no sanctions — and therefore no compensation claims — can be formally pursued.