Man City charged with financial rule breaches by Premier League

Britain's Premier League has charged Manchester City Football Club with more than 100 breaches of its financial rules after a four-year investigation.

The current champion has been referred to an independent commission over alleged rule breaches between 2009 and 2018. If found guilty it could be fined, expelled from the league or have points deducted.,

City said it was "surprised" by the charges and are supported by a "body of irrefutable evidence".

"Manchester City is surprised by the issuing of these alleged breaches of the Premier League Rules, particularly given the extensive engagement and vast amount of detailed materials that the EPL has been provided with," the club said in a statement.

In a statement, the Premier League said City breached rules requiring them to provide "accurate financial information that gives a true and fair view of the club's financial position", including details around club revenue, which includes sponsorship income and operating costs.

Further alleged breaches relate to rules requiring full details of manager remuneration - from the 2009-10 to 2012-13 seasons, when current Italy manager Roberto Mancini was in charge - and player salaries between 2010-11 and 2015-16.

The Premier League said City breached rules related to Uefa regulations, including Financial Fair Play (FFP), from 2013-14 to 2017-18, as well as Premier League rules on profitability and sustainability from 2015-16 to 2017-18.

In 2020 European football governing body Uefa ruled that City committed "serious breaches" of FFP regulations between 2012 and 2016, but a two-year ban from European competitions was overturned by the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com