The hearing into Manchester City’s 115 alleged breaches of profit and sustainability rules (PSR) has been paused in what could amount to a ‘huge headache’ for the Premier League.
An independent commission hearing to examine 115 charges laid by the Premier League against Man City started in September.
The Premier League opened an investigation into City way back in 2018 and after a number of legal delays, charges were finally laid in February 2023 and the club were referred to an independent commission.
The charges against the Citizens relate to the requirement to accurately report financial information, including around the value of sponsorship deals, the submission of details of manager and player pay information and to a club’s responsibility as a Premier League member to adhere to financial fair play rules.
The hearing is nearing its end, but it’s now claimed by The Times that the case will not be concluded before the end of the season, ‘creating a huge potential headache for the Premier League if sanctions are imposed which would have an impact on other clubs’.
Manchester City and the Premier League are currently preparing their closing arguments, but those aren’t due for a couple of weeks and then we will likely have to wait months for a judgement and several more months should either party appeal.
The report adds:
‘The Lawyer website has reported that the hearing at the International Dispute Resolution Centre in London has been paused while the two parties — City and the Premier League — prepare their closing arguments. These are not due to start until early to mid-December and it could be three months or more before the three-man commission issues a judgment.
‘If City or the Premier League were to challenge that judgment via an appeal that would probably take several more months.
‘One complex financial case heard by the High Court last year had a 13-week hearing, similar to the length of City’s, but a judgment has still not been issued a year later. Other less complex cases can take a much shorter time, but legal experts say it is impossible to predict how long City’s will take.’
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Former Everton CEO Keith Wyness claimed the appeal process after the verdict of Man City’s case could drag on until 2026.
Wyness told Football Insider: “Once the deliberations have been made public, and I imagine there will be a three or four-hundred-page document, there will likely be an appeal.
“There could also be a settlement, it all depends on the verdict reached. And I’m hoping common sense can prevail and that settlement can be reached to put an end to this.
“But if there is an appeal, it will go on just that much longer. We could be talking about the end of 2025 or even 2026. Let’s just wait and see how we go with the initial verdict and see if cool heads can prevail.”