Manchester is waiting for the consequence, and across Europe the possible aftershocks are already clear. Manchester City have been found guilty of 115 charges involving serious breaches of Premier League financial rules between 2009/10 and 2017/18, leaving the scale of any punishment as the decisive unanswered question.
No sanction has yet been set. The options under discussion range from a financial penalty or the removal of honours to points deductions, with the latter potentially applied in markedly different ways and carrying profound implications for City’s place in the European game.
Quick facts
- Manchester City were found guilty of 115 financial-rule charges covering 2009/10 to 2017/18.
- Possible punishments include a fine, title removal and points deductions; no final penalty is known.
- A deduction could mean relegation to the Championship or reduced totals across several seasons.
- Erling Haaland, 26, is contracted to City until June 2034 after extending his deal in January 2025.
- Extended absence from the Champions League could put City’s leading players in demand across Europe.
Automatic relegation would send City into the Championship, while a rolling or multi-season points penalty could make qualification for the Champions League difficult for years. It is that second possibility which would most alter the club’s ability to keep a squad built for annual participation in Europe’s major nights.
Haaland is the most obvious name in that calculation. The Norway striker’s long contract appears to give City substantial protection, but even a deal running to 2034 may be tested if a sporting penalty were to remove Champions League football for five seasons.
Several other players could become targets for clubs on the continent should the outlook at the Etihad Stadium darken. Left-footed Croatian defender Josko Gvardiol, 24, has a profile that would suit Barcelona, while Enzo Fernández, 25, has only recently arrived after being linked with Real Madrid.
Rayan Cherki, 23, and Elliott Anderson, also 23, would add further appeal. Anderson was regarded as the Premier League’s outstanding central midfielder last season and has become a key figure in England’s midfield.
The broader group of potential interest includes Jérémy Doku, 24, Rúben Dias, 29, goalkeeper Gianluigi Donnarumma, 27, Antoine Semenyo, 26, Phil Foden, 26, Marc Guéhi, 26, and 18-year-old Ayyoub Bouaddi.
Any exits would depend on the eventual form of the punishment. A one-season spell in the Championship, similar to Juventus’s post-Calciopoli demotion in Italy, could be easier to manage: City might loan players who refuse second-tier football and bring them back for a Premier League return.
A long sequence of deductions, by contrast, could keep the club outside Europe for an extended period and make departures more permanent. Until the sanction is announced, the future of City’s trophies, league position and highest-profile players remains unsettled.
