LONODN (Reuters) - The Premier League has referred Manchester City to an independent commission over more than 100 alleged breaches of finance rules since the club were acquired by the Abu Dhabi-based City Football Group.
The referral came weeks before the expected publication of a government white paper set to recommend the establishment of an independent regulator in English soccer to deal with the game’s finances, club ownership and corporate governance.
City, the world’s highest revenue-generating club last season according to Deloitte, are alleged to have committed multiple financial breaches between 2009 and 2018, the league said on Monday.
League rules state that charges such as those faced by City could, if proved, result in a club being expelled from the Premier League in the worst-case scenario.
Offending clubs may alternatively be deducted points, fined or reprimanded.
While it remains to be seen what sanctions the commission imposes on City, a stricter stance by the Premier League on club finances could deter potential investors in clubs like Manchester United, according to a sports finance lawyer.
Both Manchester United and Liverpool are seeking new investors, in large part due to Middle Eastern investment in clubs such as City and Newcastle United and the collapse of a planned Super League, industry experts have told Reuters.
The charges stem from a Premier League investigation into City’s financial dealings launched four years ago, after the release of a tranche of “Football Leaks” documents obtained by the German publication Der Spiegel.
City were subsequently banned from the Champions League by European governing body UEFA for two years, but successfully appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), which overturned the ban in 2020.
The club were fined 30 million euros ($32.28 million) by UEFA, which CAS reduced to 10 million euros.