Premier League CEO Masters urges patience on Man City charges as Arsenal demand clarity

Premier League chief executive Richard Masters has defended the pace of the independent commission examining Manchester City’s alleged 115 breaches of financial rules, insisting the process must be allowed to reach its “natural conclusion” — despite admitting it has taken “longer than perhaps anyone had expected.”

Speaking on the eve of the new Premier League season, Masters acknowledged widespread frustration but said his hands were tied. “There’s only one available option, which is to allow the process to reach its natural conclusion,” he told reporters. “I can’t talk about the substance of the case, I can’t talk about the timing of the case. Our rules are very clear about that.”

When pressed on whether the league could have done anything to accelerate proceedings, Masters pointed to the regulator’s role. “We’ve always said that the commission needs time and space to do their work,” he said. “In the end, it’s the league’s job as the regulator to provide the evidence, to put serious allegations in front of the independent commission, to establish the truth.”

City were originally charged in February 2022 and have consistently denied all allegations and any wrongdoing. The disciplinary hearing itself concluded over 18 months ago, yet no verdict has been delivered, a delay that has drawn growing criticism from within the top flight.

Arsenal chief executive Richard Garlick is the latest club official to publicly press for resolution. “It has gone on for a while,” Garlick told the BBC. “Everybody — the league and the teams — would want the clarity around what’s going to happen next. But it’s not something I can control, it’s not something I can speculate on. And I just hope that there is a solution very quickly.”

The frustration among club executives has been sharpened by a separate case concluded in June, in which Everton were ordered to pay Burnley £35 million following a breach of Premier League financial rules — a swift outcome that has thrown the length of the City proceedings into sharper relief.

Masters, for his part, offered no timeline. “I just have to accept the fact that people are frustrated and want to know,” he said, “and I can’t add anything further.”