Man City FFP charges could be dropped and the club will skip over €200m

Man City FFP charges could be dropped and the club will skip over €200m

Man City and the Premier League logo

A football finance expert has commented on Manchester City’s decision to invest around £200m during the January transfer window amid FFP fears.

 

At the start of 2023, Man City‘s charges for alleged breaches of the Premier League’s Financial Fair Play rules emerged.

 

Man City are accused of breaching over 100 rules and was referred to an independent commission following the Premier League’s four-year probe into their conduct between 2009 and 2018.

 

This case has already dragged on for far too long, but it is finally nearing a conclusion after the hearing concluded towards the end of 2024. It’s been reported that the initial verdict – which could be impacted by an appeal from either side – should be announced in March.

 

Pep Guardiola‘s side are facing several potential punishments if they are found guilty; they could be given a huge fine, points deduction, transfer ban, expulsion from the Premier League or be stripped of their titles.

 

Earlier this week, pundit Ally McCoist ruled out one ‘very harsh’ punishment if they are found guilty of breaching FFP rules.

 

Now, former Man City advisor Stefan Borson claims they are “confident” two potential FFP consequences won’t impact them.

 

“It seems to be simple business logic,” Borson said during an appearance on talkSPORT.

 

 

“If you’re sat in a boardroom and you have serious concerns about the outcome of any litigation or any uncertainty, and that apply also to promotion and relegation. If you have uncertainty within the boardroom, especially of this sort of scale, then you would be cautious if you were nervous about the outcome.

 

“Because a consequence of that case going against them is that they will have to slash the wage bill very quickly and there is going to have to be a fire sale of footballers.

 

“There seems to be no way you can go and get within a championship-type Financial Fair Play regime. To me, you have to think of it as a business.

 

 

“But as owners and as a business, I would have thought that if they had severe doubts about the case, they would have been more cautious.”

 

He added: “I think it’s pretty clear if you’re signing a player for £80m, they’re on a substantial wage and we know that City have made no attempts to bring down their wage bill from last year. Their wage bill was £412m last year.

 

“By the time you add in agent’s fees, we’re at £200million and of course we know that’s come towards the end of the 115 [charges] case.

 

“That to me, along with the stadium rebuild, suggests a level of confidence.”

 

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