Football’s Biggest Bombshell: Manchester City Reportedly Found Guilty on 114 of 115 Charges
Reports say an independent commission has ruled against the Premier League champions-turned-defendants. The league hasn’t confirmed it, the club plans to fight on, and sanctions are still undecided.
For years, “the 115 charges” has been one of the most debated phrases in English football. On September 25, reports emerged that the case had finally reached a verdict — and that it went heavily against Manchester City.
What has been reported
According to The Athletic, followed by AFP and other outlets, an independent commission found City guilty on 114 of the 115 Premier League charges. The allegations covered financial reporting, player and manager remuneration and failures to cooperate with the league’s investigation, spanning the 2009 to 2018 seasons.
Important caveat: the Premier League has not publicly confirmed the outcome. A league spokesperson told Reuters the process remains confidential and declined to comment on the reported findings.
City’s response
The club has said the process is ongoing and is expected to appeal. Chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak reaffirmed his confidence in City’s innocence. Under Premier League rules, any appeal goes to an internal independent panel rather than the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
What could happen next
No sanctions have been decided. Possible penalties range from fines and points deductions up to expulsion from the league, and pundits have debated whether stripping past titles is realistic. The reaction was immediate in the betting world, too: several major UK bookmakers paused wagers on City being relegated once the news broke.
Until the process is formally concluded and any appeal is heard, the story remains unresolved. But if the reported findings are upheld, it would rank among the biggest scandals in football history.
This story was written by the Celestia Times newsroom based on the reporting linked above. Details in developing stories can change; see our corrections policy to report an error. Illustration is original artwork, not a photograph of the events described.