Premier League clubs fear Man City appeal will drag case deep into next season

Manchester City are expected to lodge an appeal before Friday’s deadline after an independent commission found them guilty of breaching Premier League financial rules, with the club’s hierarchy vowing to fight the verdict in what has become an increasingly bitter legal battle.

Premier League clubs are now growing anxious that the appeal process will spill into next season, with no fixed timetable in place for its conclusion. The concern is particularly acute given City remain in contention for the title — a scenario that would create significant awkwardness if they were crowned champions while the case remains unresolved.

The club’s chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak and former chief executive Ferran Soriano have both stated publicly that City intend to contest the findings at every stage. The original 115 charges were first lodged by the Premier League in February 2023, though the allegations themselves date back to 2018.

Beyond the appeal, City also face the prospect of compensation claims from rival clubs, which could run into hundreds of millions of pounds. Sports barrister Yasin Patel, of Church Court Chambers, offered a sobering assessment of the timeline: “If the current situation relating to sanctions and the appeal can be finalised within this football season, it would be some achievement, as one would expect Manchester City’s appeal process to take some time. In relation to other clubs seeking compensation, we can safely say that unless some collective deal or agreement is reached, this will stretch well into 2027 and more likely, 2028.”

As for potential sanctions, the Premier League retains the power to expel City from the top flight, though some clubs believe a substantial points deduction — large enough to trigger relegation — combined with a lengthy transfer ban is the more probable outcome. City’s owners could also face having the club stripped from them under powers granted to the Independent Football Regulator.

The Football Association has yet to formally intervene but is expected to do so at some stage in its capacity as the governing body of English football, at which point scrutiny could extend beyond the men’s first team.

City’s Women’s Super League side, who recently won the WSL title, remain unaffected by the proceedings. Manager Andree Jeglertz described the situation as “business as usual” for his squad. The charges against the men’s club cover the period from 2009 to 2018, predating the WSL’s establishment as a fully professional league, meaning no equivalent investigation is under way on the women’s side.