An independent commission has found Manchester City guilty on every financial charge laid against them for breaches committed between 2009-10 and 2017-18. The Man City guilty verdict carries real weight for Liverpool supporters, since City won the 2013-14 title by just two points over the Reds.
The commission ruled that City arranged sham contracts to disguise more than £830m in secret funding across nine seasons. City were also found guilty of all but one charge relating to non-cooperation with the investigation, and the club says it will appeal.
Man City guilty verdict: how the financial breaches unfolded
The charges covered nine seasons, from 2009-10 to 2017-18, a period in which City won three Premier League titles. According to the BBC Sport report on the verdict, the commission concluded that commercial deals were used to funnel in secret funding worth over £830m, dressed up as sponsorship income.
City were found guilty of every financial charge and all but one charge connected to their refusal to cooperate with the investigation. The Independent’s coverage of the ruling set out the scale of the case, which examined more than a decade of City’s finances.
For Liverpool, the sharpest detail sits in the 2013-14 season. City finished two points above the Reds that year, in a title race that went to the final weeks. The verdict has reopened that old question of what might have been.
Carragher calls for titles to be stripped
Jamie Carragher wants City’s titles removed from the record books. Speaking to BBC Sport, he said:
“I feel for the players… they’ll almost feel like a lot of their career is going to have an asterisk, or a lot of people will be calling it a sham. The players were told everything was fine. What the [City] hierarchy are coming out with now, they’re just gaslighting. I think the titles should be taken off their list. Whether other clubs get them is probably slightly different. City have not just hurt their own players.”
Carragher, who retired in 2013, pointed to Liverpool’s own near miss when he spoke to Sky Sports News, as reported by BBC Sport:
“Those players will never get that feeling, and it was robbed by Man City. No one remembers the medal. Giving trophies or medals back, it doesn’t mean anything. It’s not about medals, it’s about feelings.”
Micah Richards devastated by the reports
Micah Richards, who won the title with City in 2011-12, offered a very different reaction. Speaking on The Rest is Football podcast, as reported by BBC Sport, he said:
“The reports were troubling. I saw the words which were used by the Premier League in ‘sham contracts,’ and I felt absolutely devastated. I was at that club since I was 14 years old; I would die for that club. I achieved my dream at Manchester City, but then to hear these reports, and not only me as an ex-player, but the fans, what they have to go through, absolutely devastating.”
Richards, who has also given his verdict on Liverpool’s defence, described the toll on supporters he grew up around in Manchester:
“My digs man, he rang me and he was literally in tears and asking me about information, which I don’t know. I haven’t got the answers to tell him. That’s someone who’s supported the club for 60-odd years and the uncertainty around it is just heartbreaking. To have a headline of this nature for a club that I love so much, it’s been difficult. If you listen to the reports, they are damning. I feel saddened, I feel angry, I feel a little bit confused because, on the other side, you have City’s side of the story.”
What happens next for Man City and past title rivals
City continue to deny any wrongdoing, even after the Man City guilty verdict became public. Chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak said in a statement that the club remains confident of proving its innocence, while chief executive Ferran Soriano told staff and players in a video message that the commission had ignored what he called irrefutable evidence.
City have until 2 October to lodge a formal appeal against the findings. No sanctions have been confirmed yet, and any decision on penalties will only come once that process plays out.
For Liverpool, City remain the team to catch at the top of the table regardless of the verdict’s outcome. Our preview of the Man City clash covers the two clubs’ next meeting on the pitch. Off it, the 2013-14 title race will stay a point of debate among supporters for as long as the appeal process runs.
