By Lori Ewing and Chiranjit Ojha
Sept 28 (Reuters) – Manchester City may face sanctions ranging from fines and a points deduction to relegation after being found guilty of 114 breaches of Premier League financial rules but the road to any enforcement remains long with the club expected to appeal.
A soccer source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, confirmed Friday’s media reports that the independent panel found City guilty on all but one of the charges and told Reuters on Monday that the process was expected to “drag on.”
City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak responded to reports of a guilty verdict with an open letter to fans, saying the club, who have always denied wrongdoing after the charges were announced in February 2023, remain confident of proving their case.
“The Premier League process still has a long way to run, and our confidence and intent in proving the club’s innocence is just as strong as when this began,” he wrote on Saturday.
A three-person board would hear the case if City appeal after the guilty ruling by the independent judicial panel.
They cannot go to sport’s highest court, the Court of Arbitration for Sport, which overturned City’s two-year Champions League ban, imposed by European soccer’s governing UEFA for overstating sponsorship revenue between 2012 and 2016.
But the appeal process may be a long way off given the number of charges, covering nine seasons from 2009 to 2018, which required a four-year investigation before charges were announced.
A LONG TIME IN LIMBO
It is possible that the current Premier League season, in which City lead the table after five straight wins, may end without an official verdict and punishments being announced, leaving the world’s richest soccer league in limbo.
Even if the verdict and punishments are announced, the appeal process may delay the imposition of any sanctions while the season continues or even concludes.
But if the case is wrapped up before the end of the campaign, a large points deduction may plunge City from being a title contender into a relegation battler.
If the charges stand, the points deduction may even be big enough to make it practically impossible to avoid the drop.
But there is also the possibility that City may face an even harsher punishment, as Juventus did following a corruption case surrounding the manipulation of referee assignments that rocked Italian soccer two decades ago.
While many clubs faced heavy sanctions including points deductions, Juve paid the biggest price following the “Calciopoli” scandal, as they were stripped of two Serie A titles and relegated to Serie B.
The 2004-05 Serie A season no longer has a champion, while the 2005-06 title was awarded to Inter Milan.
A similar retroactive change in the Premier League’s championship history could affect all clubs and the credibility of the competition itself.
There may also be legal challenges from other clubs, claiming lost prize money and missed financial opportunities, if City are judged to have gained a sporting advantage from the activities they have been charged with.
(Reporting by Lori Ewing in London and Chiranjit Ojha in Purulia, India; Editing by Ken Ferris)
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