Manchester City have been charged by the Premier League with more than 100 alleged breaches of financial regulations.
The Premier League have released a statement confirming the charges against City, following a four-year investigation into the club’s finances which began in December 2018.
The investigation into the Premier League champions began after German investigative website Der Spiegel published documents which alleged multiple breaches.
Following an investigation in 2020, UEFA banned City from European competition for two years and hit the club with a €30m fine, However, the ban was overturned and fine reduced to €10m following an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
The reduced punishment came after the court ruled that the majority of the alleged breaches ‘were either not established or time-barred’. According to the Times, however, there is no time restriction on offences under Premier League rules and City could now face further punishment.
City’s alleged offences include overstating sponsorship income to meet FFP regulations, with money reportedly brought into the club from their Abu Dhabi owners and not sponsors linked to the Middle East.
Other alleged offences include breaking rules regarding the recruitment of young players and inflating the contract of former manager Roberto Mancini through a secret contract with an Abu Dhabi club.
The report says that the investigation ‘could lead to a range of sanctions including a points deduction or even expulsion from the league’.
