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From the latest transfer news, quizzes, videos, features and interviews with the biggest names in the game, plus lots more.Signup +Once a week...And its LIVE!Sign up to our FREE live football newsletter, tracking all of the biggest games available to watch on the device of your choice. Never miss a kick-off!Signup +Join the clubGet full access to premium articles, exclusive features and a growing list of member rewards.Explore An account already exists for this email address, please log in.Subscribe to our newsletterIts been three years since the Premier League first announced that they were referring Manchester City to a commission for alleged breaches of the divisions financial rules over a nine-season period, which was later extended through to the end of the 2022/23 season.And it is now 14 months since the commission led a hearing into the charges in London, with legal representatives for both the Premier League and Manchester City gathering to make their case in front of a three-person panel.Yet we still sit here, waiting, with no more clarity as to how the commission will decide or what the punishments will be.You may likeManchester City 115 charges case with verdict 'imminent'Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola could EXIT amid three-year legal battle: reportLeicester City hit with major points deduction after �200m loss and financial rule breach: reportManchester City's 115 charges sanction remains up in the airIt is thought there may be as many as 134 separate charges leveled against City, with the Premier League attempting to leave as little space as possible for the club to wriggle out through gaps in the league rules.The accusations include inflating the value of sponsorship deals with the owners other companies and secret payments to players and managers that, had they been properly accounted for, would have left the club in contravention of those rules. The Premier League also allege that City have obstructed their investigation into the claims. City have consistently denied the allegations in their entirety.As the Guardians Paul MacInnes reports, the longer it drags on, the more apathetic Citys rivals have become about the potential outcome.A lot of that is to do with a simple loss of interest in an investigation that began seven years ago. The rival chairmen who were most upset by Citys alleged infractions, Tottenhams Deniel Levy and Arsenals Tim Lewis, have both departed their clubs and no longer have a say in Premier League meetings.Get FourFourTwo NewsletterThe best features, fun and footballing quizzes, straight to your inbox every week.Contact me with news and offers from other Future brandsReceive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsorsBy submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.More pertinently, two entire reforms to the Premier Leagues financial regulations have been passed since the period of the initial allegations against City. That has lessened the knock-on effects of the City case whatever the decision.If the same rules were still in place, a decision overwhelmingly against City would raise questions about who might be next in the Premier Leagues sights and whether everything is quite as in-order at other clubs as it should be.If instead the decision were to come out broadly in Citys favour, it would prompt concerns from clubs outside the Premier Leagues very elite about whether it was simply too easy for the wealthiest clubs to bend the rules without consequence.You may likeManchester City 115 charges case with verdict 'imminent'Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola could EXIT amid three-year legal battle: reportLeicester City hit with major points deduction after �200m loss and financial rule breach: reportBut in light of the changes to the rules, rival clubs increasingly regard the City case with a shrug: Those rules dont apply anymore, doesnt really affect us one way or another.Nonetheless, the Premier League have spared no expense in attempting to send a message that they are not willing to give up an inch on enforcing their financial rules. Everton and Nottingham Forest found that out for themselves in 2023/24. The Premier Leagues legal costs have duly soared.That is only likely to have strengthened the Premier Leagues resolve to hit City hard if the panel eventually delivers a set of verdicts that give the league permission to wield the punishment hammer a feeling that was reinforced by their involvement in the EFLs case against Leicester City this week.Unsurprisingly after the way Leicesters lawyer left the Premier League rulemakers with significant amounts of egg on their faces in 2024, the top flight authorities who were last season told they did not have the jurisdiction to apply the punishment themselves are reported to have pushed for an even more significant punishment than the six-point deduction Leicester have received.The Telegraphs esteemed John Percy reports that the Premier League had wanted Leicester to be docked 20 points, which would have put them firmly into the Championship relegation zone with dim hopes of survival. As it is, they remain out of the bottom three on goal difference. For now, anyway.There has been some suggestion that the Premier League may yet appeal the decision on the grounds of undue leniency. (Leicester, for their part, are appealing that their deduction is disproportionately harsh.)The Premier Leagues brutal approach to the Leicester case may well have caused a few backs at Manchester City to straighten just a little bit more. After all, if they are willing to go after Leicester with such a heavy hand for a handful of charges, what punishment might they be willing to mete out for the dozens of charges against Manchester Citys name if the commissions decisions go against them?If the Premier Leagues case succeeds, the potential consequences for City range from fines, points deductions, suspension, expulsion from the division, or any combination of the above. City could even be retrospectively stripped of the titles they won in the period in question.As it stands, though, we still have no idea whether the Premier Leagues allegations or Citys denials will win out on a single one of the charges, let alone the full complement of over one hundred.Even when the verdict is eventually delivered, that is unlikely to be the end of it. There remains the possibility even the likelihood of one or both parties referring the verdict to an appeals panel, then to arbitration, and then potentially through the English legal system. If it went all the way, that would mean going first to the High Court, then potentially Court of Appeal, and possibly even, finally, the Supreme Court.No doubt there is good reason for the delay. The most compelling of those reasons is that with such a potentially lengthy appeals process, the commission wants to make sure their verdict is as watertight as possible; there would be little point in publishing findings that were too open to being exhaustively picked over, re-litigated and overturned down the line.But for those interested in the swift administration of justice, the wait grows increasingly interminable.TOPICSManchester CityLeicester CityPremier LeagueSteven ChickenSocial Links NavigationSteven Chicken has been working as a football writer since 2009, taking in stints with Football365 and the Huddersfield Examiner. Steven still covers Huddersfield Town home and away for his own publication,WeAreTerriers.com. Steven is a two-time nominee for Regional Journalist of the Year at the prestigious British Sports Journalism Awards, making the shortlist in 2020 and 2023.
