Man City guilty of using 'sham' deals to distort finances, Premier League says

Key Points:

• Manchester City was found guilty by an independent Premier League commission of using "sham" commercial contracts to inflate revenue and understate costs by over £900 million across nine seasons from 2009-10 to 2017-18, breaching financial rules significantly.
• The commission identified that some sponsors paid only part of their fees, with the remainder funded by the club's owner, Abu Dhabi United Group, and that the club also recorded artificially reduced operating expenses, creating a false appearance of compliance.
• The club denied wrongdoing and announced it will appeal the decision, claiming the commission's opinion contains material legal and factual errors; no sanctions have yet been imposed, leaving potential consequences uncertain.
• The case is described by Premier League CEO Richard Masters as the most significant in the league's history, raising broader concerns about financial governance and the league's ability to regulate powerful clubs.
• British sports minister Lisa Nandy called for a swift and fair resolution to uphold the integrity of the Premier League, while City’s CEO Ferran Soriano rejected the allegations as based on a single false accusation and pledged to fight the charges vigorously.