Manchester City appeals to Premier League over financial irregularities

Manchester City lodged its appeal on Thursday at 19:00 local time (18:00 GMT), after being found guilty this week by the Premier League for inflating its budgets between 2009 and 2018, an irregularity that, according to the investigation, exceeds €1 billion.

Club statement

The Manchester club issued a statement announcing that on Thursday, at 19:00 local time (18:00 GMT), it lodged the appeal. In the text, City stated that the Premier League's opinion contains clear material errors of law, principle and fact, and that it is not reliable.

The club declared that it is innocent of the Premier League's accusations and that it possesses a substantial body of irrefutable evidence supporting all its positions. It added that it will respect the remainder of the process and that it is limited to commenting until all procedures are completed.

Procedures and sanctions

Once the appeal is lodged, a twelve‑week period opens for its examination, followed by a five‑day consecutive hearing and, subsequently, thirty days to determine the outcome.

According to the investigation and the verdict of the Premier League and the independent commission, City inflated its budgets for almost a decade, from 2009 to 2018, which resulted in a distortion of its accounts of more than €1 billion.

During that period, the English side secured eight trophies, including three Premier League titles.

The Italian statement confirms that the club submitted its detailed appeal on Thursday, 1 October 2026 at 19:00, reiterating the same position of innocence and the existence of incontrovertible evidence.

Manchester City maintains its firm stance and hopes that the judicial process clarifies the alleged errors, which could have significant repercussions for the Premier League's financial regulations.