Manchester City have reportedly been found guilty of 114 of the 115 Premier League charges brought against them, in a potentially historic development with implications across English football. The Athletic and The Times reported that the independent commission considering the case found City guilty on all but one of the alleged breaches, with Reuters subsequently reporting the findings while stressing that Manchester City are expected to appeal.
No punishment has yet been decided or announced. That distinction is crucial because the Premier League has declined to comment publicly on the reported verdict, describing the proceedings as confidential, while Manchester City say the process remains ongoing and that significant elements are still to be completed.
City have consistently denied wrongdoing throughout the case and are reportedly preparing to challenge the findings. For Manchester United supporters, however, the development inevitably raises questions about two of the most painful title races in the club’s recent history.
United finished second to City in both 2011/12 and 2017/18. Sir Alex Ferguson’s United finished the 2011/12 Premier League season level with City on 89 points, only to lose the championship on goal difference after Sergio Agüero’s stoppage-time winner against Queens Park Rangers.
Six years later, José Mourinho’s United finished second again. United accumulated 81 points in 2017/18, but Pep Guardiola’s City produced a record-breaking 100-point season and finished 19 points clear.
Both seasons fall within the wider period examined in the Premier League case. That does not mean United are about to be awarded two additional championships.
No sanction has been announced, and there is currently no established decision that City’s previous Premier League titles will be stripped. Even if titles were ultimately removed, it should not be assumed that they would automatically be reassigned to the teams that finished second.
Those questions would depend on the eventual disciplinary outcome and any subsequent legal or regulatory process. For now, title reassignment remains hypothetical.
The scale of the reported findings nevertheless makes the issue impossible for United supporters to ignore. City were originally referred to an independent commission in February 2023 following a lengthy Premier League investigation.
The allegations concerned financial information across a period beginning in 2009, alongside other alleged breaches involving remuneration, UEFA regulations, profitability and sustainability rules and cooperation with the Premier League investigation. City have always strongly rejected the allegations.
If the latest reporting is accurate, the focus now shifts from whether breaches occurred to what happens next. That process could still take considerable time.
City are expected to appeal, while any sanctions would have to be determined through the appropriate process. Reports have discussed possibilities ranging from financial penalties and points deductions to more severe sporting sanctions, but none should currently be treated as the decided punishment.
For United, there is therefore nothing to add to the honours list at this stage. The club remains officially a 20-time English champion, and the 2011/12 and 2017/18 titles remain Manchester City’s unless and until the relevant authorities determine otherwise.
But the reported verdict changes the context surrounding a case that has hung over English football for years. United supporters remember 2012 for Agüero’s goal and 2018 for City’s 100-point season. What happens next could determine whether those seasons eventually acquire a very different historical significance.
