The CEO of Manchester City picked up a camera, read a scripted defense, and tried to shred the biggest regulatory finding in Premier League history. Online, the loudest reaction was not about what he said. It was about his eyes.

The video, obtained by Sky Sports News and dated 29 September 2026, was never meant for the public. It was an internal message for staff and players, four days after an independent commission ruled against the club.

Soriano opens by framing the ruling as merely an “opinion,” before escalating. In the clip, he says the whole Premier League case rests on “a single false accusation; that the owner’s personal money was somehow and secretly put into the club via some sponsors from Abu Dhabi.” He insists the club has “irrefutable” evidence for the appeal, and pledges to take “all necessary action to protect the club and seek compensation from any party that tries to damage it.”

A staff memo that turned into an AI debate

Within hours, the clip was circulating on X and TikTok. The fixation was not on sponsorships or sanctions, but on the fact that Soriano barely closed his eyelids for the duration of the recording.

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Fans posted frame-by-frame screenshots and dared each other to spot a single blink.

“Unless I’ve missed it, either this video is at the very least AI-enhanced or Ferran Soriano has gone over three minutes without blinking,” one widely shared post read.

“Blink if you’re not guilty,” another user wrote.

BBC Verify ran the clip through an AI-detection model and found no SynthID watermark and no Content Credentials, which neither confirms nor rules out manipulation. Reporter Aisha Sembhi noted that “for most of this three-and-a-half minute long video, he’s not blinking,” but on closer inspection Soriano does blink twice near the end. Experts told the outlet that reading from a script into a camera is a sustained visual task, and reduced blinking is normal.

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What the commission actually ruled

On 25 September 2026, an independent commission found City guilty on 114 of 115 charges covering the seasons from 2009-10 to 2017-18.

The charges include failing to provide accurate financial information, breaches of the Premier League’s profit and sustainability rules, breaches of UEFA’s financial regulations, and 35 counts of failing to cooperate with the investigation itself.

At the heart of the ruling: between 2009 and 2018, City declared £949.94 million in commercial revenue from Abu Dhabi sponsors, but the commission concluded that only £119.25 million of that figure was actually paid for by the sponsors themselves. The gap is roughly £830 million.

The appeal, and the clock

Sanctions have not been set. Everything from a heavy fine and points deduction to expulsion from the competition remains on the table, and City have confirmed they will appeal the finding. Under Premier League procedure, a final outcome may not land until 2027.

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Earlier on 29 September, when reporters approached Soriano outside the club’s offices, he told them only, “I have nothing to say.” The internal video surfaced the same evening.

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