What City’s Verdict Means Next

Good morning. The Premier League has ‘little appetite’ to strip Manchester City of previous title wins, rising transfer fees are a cause for concern in European football, and everything else you need to know.

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The Premier League - both the organisation and its clubs - has ‘little appetite’ to strip Manchester City of their past titles after reports said the club had been found guilty of almost all the charges in English football’s most high-profile case. On Friday, reports said that City were found guilty of 114 of the 115 charges related mostly to the period between 2009 and 2018 and brought against them in February 2023. The charges relate to alleged failure to provide accurate financial information, secret payments, and breaches of Uefa and Premier League financial rules — read the details here.

City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak has since said the club remains confident it is innocent. City are now expected to appeal, but on limited grounds such as fraud, misconduct, or gross unfairness by the arbitrator. They have 14 days to appeal, and the hearing should conclude within 12 weeks. Notably, this would put an end to the case, as City cannot appeal to sport’s highest court, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (Cas).

A three-person commission, not the Premier League, will set City's punishment, which can include a fine, points deductions, expulsion from the top flight, or other sporting sanctions. If they are expelled from the Premier League, reports suggest the English Football League (EFL), which operates the three divisions immediately below the top flight, would be willing to kick City out of the EFL too.

Premier League clubs are now seeking legal advice about compensation relating to the charges. If successful, some claims could be worth more than £200m. Four clubs — Arsenal, Man United, Liverpool, and Tottenham — preserved their “right to sue” before the statute of limitations passed. In other words, those four clubs took a procedural step that the others apparently didn’t. Other clubs may face greater difficulty bringing claims because they did not preserve those rights, although the legal position remains unclear.

The verdict in Manchester City’s long-running dispute with the Premier League could create fresh friction between the UK and UAE just as relations between the two countries have begun to improve, according to the Financial Times. City and its owners have maintained that the club is a private investment by Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan rather than an investment by the Abu Dhabi state, although the club has become closely associated internationally with the emirate.

UK ministers have sought to keep the City dispute separate from the wider bilateral relationship, stressing the Premier League’s independence from government. The greater diplomatic risk may come if the case develops into broader criticism of Abu Dhabi. The UAE has previously been frustrated by British scrutiny of Emirati-linked investments, including the blocked Abu Dhabi-backed bid for the Telegraph. Both governments therefore have reason to limit any wider fallout at a time when defence, trade and investment have become increasingly important parts of the relationship.

The reports come during a difficult period for Gulf-backed sport more broadly. Saudi-funded LIV Golf filed for bankruptcy protection this month after spending more than $5bn and losing the financial backing of Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund.

UEFA finance chief Andrea Traverso has warned that rising transfer fees and growing transfer debt are creating a “more fragile model” for European clubs, with English teams particularly exposed. Spending across Europe broke €10bn for the first time this summer, with English clubs accounting for almost half of the total.

English clubs paid an average of €24m per incoming player, compared with less than €5m across Europe’s other major leagues. “These costs are currently being offset in part by significant transfer profits, but this creates a more fragile model,” Traverso said, warning that clubs are becoming increasingly reliant on rising player values and future income to fund previous spending.

The figures also underline the Premier League’s financial strength, with English clubs able to spend at a level unmatched elsewhere in Europe. However, Traverso warned that any slowdown in player demand or a fall in transfer values could put pressure on clubs’ profitability and financial sustainability.

• Spain beat England 3-2 at Wembley in the Nations League and the world champions' unbeaten run now stands at 39 games (Match Report) | Jurgen Klopp’s second game in charge of Germany ended in a 1-0 defeat to Greece on Sunday (More) | Nations League matches continue on Monday (Sept 28), including Belgium vs France, Turkey vs Italy, Sweden vs Poland and Northern Ireland vs Hungary; see all the fixtures (More)

• The FA has ordered an FA Cup qualifier to be replayed on Tuesday (Sept 29) after the referee wrongly awarded an indirect free-kick instead of a penalty retake (More)

• Kylian Mbappe is expected to be out for around two weeks with a knee hyperextension, suffered while scoring France's winner against Turkey, but should be back for El Clasico on October 25 (More)

• Alexia Putellas scored her first WSL goal in London City Lionesses’ 2-0 win over Brighton (Match Report); see all WSL results (More)

• World Cup viewers were exposed to junk food, alcohol and gambling branding every seven seconds, a new study finds (More)

• Lionel Messi scored his 76th career freekick in Inter Miami’s match against Columbus (Watch); see all MLS results (More) and Standings (More)

• The USMNT beat Peru 4-1 in Mauricio Pochettino's first match of the 2030 cycle. He handed debuts to 11 players, eight of them teenagers, and 19-year-old Justin Ellis scored inside four minutes at his club's home ground (More)

• Racing Louisville and Boston Legacy have both been eliminated from NWSL playoff contention after 2-0 defeats to San Diego Wave and Seattle Reign respectively (More) | Gotham FC beat Chicago Stars 3-1 to extend their home unbeaten run (More)

• Cruz Azul drew 3-3 with Toluca after throwing away a 2-0 lead, with Gabriel Fernandez equalising in stoppage time (More); see the Liga MX table (Table)

• USL Championship Eastern Conference leaders Tampa Bay Rowdies drew 0-0 away at San Antonio FC to clinch a home playoff game (More); see every USL Championship result (More) and Standings (More)

• The Israel FA said that football and politics should remain separate after Ireland players voted to play their Nations League fixture against them; Ireland won 3-0 (More)

• South Africa beat Guinea 2-1 in Africa Cup of Nations qualifying, in the first game of Pitso Mosimane's second spell in charge (More) | Ivory Coast beat Ghana 2-0, while Morocco, Nigeria and Algeria also won; see all the results (More)

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Anthony Gordon.