Manchester City v Premier League battle set to drag on beyond season
Manchester City will face another lengthy wait to discover their punishment if they are found guilty of breaching the Premier League’s financial rules, as the much-anticipated verdict of the independent commission will be delivered in stages.
The initial judgement of the commission, which finished hearing the case 13 months ago, will only deal with matters of liability and will be followed by a separate sanctions hearing if any of the Premier League’s 130 charges are upheld.
Manchester City, who have always denied any wrongdoing, would also have the right to appeal both the verdict and any subsequent sanctions. Any appeal would most likely take place after a sanctions hearing, unless City’s legal team concluded that the commission has made clear errors in points of law in reaching their verdict.
The Manchester City case differs from recent profit and sustainability rules (PSR) charges brought by the Premier League against Everton and Nottingham Forest, who both accepted they had breached spending limits and therefore received their points deductions at the same time as the commission published the guilty verdicts.
In both cases the hearings were focused on the extent of the breach and the clubs’ claims for mitigation, although Everton did appeal against the initial 10-point deduction imposed by the commission, which was subsequently reduced to six.
Manchester City strongly deny breaching financial fair play rules however, and the commission’s judgement will focus on whether they are guilty of each charge. A source who has been involved in similar cases explained that such is the number and range of the charges that it would have been impossible for both parties to make submissions on sanctions during last year’s hearing, and that will take place at a later date.
The prospect of an additional hearing means it is likely that the case will drag on beyond the end of the season, more than three years after City were first charged by the Premier League.
In the Lucas Paqueta spot-fixing case the West Ham player was cleared of four charges brought by the Football Association in July but found guilty of lesser offences involving non-co-operation, and it took a further three months for an independent commission to confirm his minor punishment, a written reprimand and warning over his future conduct.
Given the complexity of the Manchester City case, it is impossible to speculate when any sanctions hearing would take place, if needed. The only circumstances in which a verdict will be reached more speedily would be if the Premier League and City reach a negotiated settlement, which remains a possibility.
Bittersweet Ashes win for Aussies
England’s Ashes implosion in the two-day first Test in Perth last month could lead to job losses at Cricket Australia, who lost more than £1.5m in projected revenue from ticket sales and hospitality due to the early finish.
Cricket Australia was already planning a redundancy programme after recording losses of £5.5m in 2024-25 despite hosting India in the four-match Border-Gavaskar Trophy series, and had been relying on the Ashes to plug the shortfall.
Although a record crowd of 101,514 attended the Perth Test, surpassing last year’s aggregate attendance of 96,463 when India won in four days, Cricket Australia had projected far more and may have to intensify their planned cuts as a result.
The difficult financial outlook will magnify the importance of the planned part-privatisation of Big Bash League franchises, which is expected to take place next year.
League One clubs talked out of £45 tickets
Fifa is not the only body seeking to cash in on American ticket pricing models, with several US-owned clubs in the EFL seeking to implement an aggressive increase in their ticket prices.
A number of clubs in League One have held talks about setting prices for match day tickets as high as $60 (£45) as they attempt to stem losses that averaged around £5m last season, with the EFL playing an important role in pushing back on the inflation-busting rises, telling the owners that they would alienate fans and damage crowds.
TNT may return for Champions Cup
Premier Sports secured record viewing figures for the return of the Champions Cup 10 days ago, with almost 100,000 watching their live coverage of Bath v Munster, but the modest numbers illustrate how European rugby’s main club competition has drifted from mainstream view since its glory days when the BBC showed live coverage of the Heineken Cup.
The BBC had the original contract when the Heineken Cup was launched as a deliberate attempt to ape the success of football’s Champions League in 1995. Sky Sports snatched the rights eight years later, since when the competition has experienced diminishing TV returns, with BT Sport, TNT Sports and now Premier Sports buying the rights.
Premier Sports is halfway through a three-year contract to broadcast all 63 Champions Cup matches after TNT walked away due to soaring production costs two years ago, with a new tender for the next cycle after 2027 onwards expected next year.
Having declined to bid for the new Nations Championship, which has been bought by ITV, TNT is expected to return to compete for the Champions Cup to complement its coverage of the Prem and cement its position as the home of club rugby, which would be a boost for the struggling competition.