'The club is innocent': Man City confirm appeal, hearing expected within 12 weeks

[p]The league said on Tuesday that[b] [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/manchester-city/Wtn9Stg0/"]Manchester City[/a] ‌[/b]had used "sham" commercial contracts as part of schemes to inflate revenue and understate costs by more than £900 ‌million over nearly a decade.[/p][p]City were found guilty of all charges relating ‌to breaches of the league's financial rules over nine seasons from 2009/10 to 2017/18, as ‌well as three out of four charges concerning failures to cooperate with the ‌investigation.[/p][p]The club has denied wrongdoing throughout the process.[/p][h2]'The club is innocent'[/h2][p][b]"Manchester City Football Club can confirm that at 7 pm 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,"[/b] the club said in a statement.[/p][p][b]"The ‌Club’s firm position is that, on multiple grounds, the opinion contains clear material errors, of law, ​principle and fact and is unsafe.[/b][/p][p][b]"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."[/b][/p][p]The appeal will be heard by an independent three-member Appeal Board appointed by the Chair of the ⁠league’s Judicial Panel.[/p][p]"The club lodged ​the appeal to the Chair of the Judicial Panel," the league said in a statement. [b]"The independent Appeal Board hearing will remain private and confidential until publication of the outcome is permitted."[/b][/p][embed guid="a4e64670-fa68-4391-b255-9f4983fdeb38" url="https://x.com/ManCity/status/2105972881612214635" social-type="twitter" /][h2]What happens next?[/h2][p]The Premier League's rules state that an appeal hearing should be held within 12 ‌weeks of an appeal being lodged, with a decision due within 30 days of the hearing concluding.[/p][p]The appeal will take place in private, as did the original hearings. The board will review the commission's decision, but will not conduct a full rehearing of the case.[/p][p][b]The board can dismiss the appeal, allow it, refer the case back to the commission for further consideration or alter any sanction or compensation order imposed.[/b][/p][p]A decision by the appeal board is final and cannot be challenged further except in limited circumstances that permit a subsequent arbitration process.[/p][p]With potential sanctions including heavy fines, ‌points deductions and other sporting penalties, and with relegation or the removal of titles ​also discussed as possible outcomes, the case could have consequences across the league.[/p][p][b]City ‌can also separately appeal against any sanctions.[/b][/p][p]It remains unclear whether sanctions will be announced before the appeal is heard, and whether they would take effect immediately.[/p][p]A league representative told Reuters they could not discuss the process for confidentiality reasons.[/p][p]While the fate of the case remains unresolved, the season will continue, with leaders ⁠City looking for their sixth straight ⁠league win when they visit [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/liverpool/lId4TMwf/"]Liverpool[/a] ‌on October 11th.[/p][infobox id="56fa417b-668f-4479-b327-8fea98ffaefc" /]