Manchester City’s annual wage bill has reached £289.0M, above Arsenal’s £234.8M, as the club contests a verdict in a long-running Premier League financial case.
The club, owned by the Abu Dhabi United Group, has grown from a valuation of £120 million in 2008 to estimates exceeding £6 billion.
In February 2023, after a four-year investigation, the Premier League charged City with more than 100 alleged breaches of its financial rules. The club was sent to an independent commission over allegations concerning the period between 2009 and 2018.
That hearing was held behind closed doors. It began in September 2024 and ended that December after around 12 weeks.
The commission found City guilty of all but one of the 115 counts it considered, meaning the club was found to have broken the majority of the rules it had been accused of breaching. It concluded that City knowingly broke the rules and had ‘inflated’ its accounts by more than £900m.
The Premier League had said City failed to meet requirements to provide accurate financial information showing a true and fair picture of the club’s financial position. City strongly denied every charge, saying its case was backed by “a comprehensive body of irrefutable evidence”.
City spent roughly £1.2bn on players between 2009 and 2018, a net spend of about £900m. It was more than any other club spent on players during that period. The club won eight trophies in those years, including three Premier League titles, three League Cups, one Community Shield and one FA Cup.
City had said it would appeal if it was found guilty. It has announced an appeal against the verdict.
The sanctions have yet to be decided. Other Premier League clubs have been told of the panel’s decision and have sought legal advice on whether they could bring compensation claims.
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