“Very real” Man City demotion if found guilty of financial doping following the Everton case
According to the precedent set by Everton’s financial violations, Man City may be facing the “very real” possibility of relegation from the Premier League.
After a financial probe, Everton was deducted 10 points on Friday because the team had considerable losses between 2019–20 and 2021/22.
Due to the penalty, the Blues’ point total dropped from 14 to 4, which is the joint-lowest amount thus far, and they were demoted from 14th to 19th place in the league.
Though some worry that Everton has been singled out despite calls for an independent regulator, it could mark a significant turning point in the Premier League’s tough stance against financial doping.
However, a precedent has been created with 115 allegations against Man City and an ongoing inquiry into Chelsea’s finances under Roman Abramovich.
“The threat of a 30-point deduction or automatic relegation from the Premier League would look to be very real for both [clubs],” writes Martyn Ziegler of the Times.
Premier League clubs are reported to see a point penalty as a “minimum sanction,” provided that charges are “proven in an independent regulatory commission.”
The fact that Chelsea’s new ownership self-reported the violations makes charges against the team “inevitable.”
But because of the intricacy of their cases, Man City and Chelsea’s punishments would come with a far longer sentence than Everton’s.
Given that the lawyer assigned to oversee the disciplinary procedure is a known Arsenal supporter, Man City has already refuted the 115 allegations brought against them.
In an apparent attempt to drag out the proceedings as long as possible, the Manchester United team has also chosen to be represented by lawyer Lord Pannick KC, which is unusual in
The fact that Pannick is paid up to £10,000 per hour—more than most of the playing team—demonstrates how seriously Man City is treating this situation.
The club’s chairman, Khaldoon Al Mubarak, stated in a June in-house interview that they are “well run,” adding that the ownership was “very frustrated” by the widespread perception that allegations of financial doping were hurting the team’s performance on the field.
Al Mubarak attested that the club was “going through the legal process” and that the completion would “take whatever time” was necessary.
Man City reported record income of £712.8 million for 2022–2023 earlier this month, but very few people outside of the Etihad regard this as accurate.
