Manchester City have filed an appeal against an independent commission's ruling that found the club guilty of serious breaches of the Premier League's financial rules, as the club seeks to overturn the decision and avoid potentially severe sanctions.
The Premier League announced on Tuesday that City had used "sham" commercial contracts as part of schemes to inflate revenue and understate costs by more than £900 million ($1.19 billion) over nearly a decade.
The club was found guilty of all charges relating to breaches of the league's financial rules across nine seasons, from 2009-10 to 2017-18, as well as three out of four charges concerning failures to cooperate with the investigation. The club has denied wrongdoing throughout the process.
"Manchester City Football Club can confirm that at 7pm on Thursday 1st October 2026 the Club lodged its comprehensive Appeal against the opinion of the Premier League Commission, in relation to the Premier League disciplinary matter," the club said in a statement on Friday.
"The Club's firm position is that, on multiple grounds, the opinion contains clear material errors, of law, principle and fact and is unsafe."
"The Club is innocent of the accusations made by the Premier League and a comprehensive body of irrefutable evidence exists in support of all of its positions, relating to this case."
The appeal will be heard by an independent three-member appeal board appointed by the chairperson of the league's Judicial Panel. The hearing will remain private and confidential until publication of the outcome is permitted, the Premier League said.
Under the league's rules, a hearing must be held within 12 weeks of an appeal being lodged, with a decision due within 30 days of the hearing concluding. The board will review the commission's decision but will not conduct a full rehearing of the case.
The board may dismiss the appeal, allow it, refer the case back to the commission for further consideration, or alter any sanction or compensation order imposed. A decision by the appeal board is final and cannot be challenged further, except in limited circumstances that permit a subsequent arbitration process.
Potential sanctions against City, as outlined by the Premier League, could include a reprimand, a fine, suspension, a points deduction, or, in the most severe scenario, expulsion from the competition. No team has ever been expelled from English football's top flight. City can also separately appeal against any sanctions imposed.
It remains unclear whether sanctions would be announced before the appeal is heard, or whether they would take effect immediately. A league representative said they could not discuss the process for confidentiality reasons.
A central element of City's appeal is expected to focus on how its Abu Dhabi-based sponsorship deals were funded. The commission found that sponsors in Abu Dhabi paid only £119.25 million ($158.4 million) of the £949.94 million ($1.26 billion) stated in club accounts, with the remaining £830.69 million ($1.1 billion) paid by the Abu Dhabi United Group (ADUG), the private company of Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, who bought City in 2008. Mansour is a member of the United Arab Emirates ruling family.
City contended that "no part" of the deals was funded by ADUG and that the Abu Dhabi government, which owned the sponsors, had helped to fund the deals "from time to time." The commission rejected that explanation as untrue, concluding it was "concocted well after the event" to disguise the source of the funding.
Commentators have described the case as unprecedented in scale, noting that it brings together the multibillion-pound business of football, the legal and regulatory mechanisms designed to govern it, and the increasingly complex relationship between sport, political power, and international investment.
While the case remains unresolved, the Premier League season continues. City are currently among the league's leading sides and are scheduled to visit Liverpool on October 11.
