The verdict landed on Friday 25 September 2026. The consequence, if BBC Sport’s reading holds, will not be a rewriting of the record book.
BBC Sport editor Dan Roan reported that “there has been little appetite from within the Premier League, both the organisation and clubs, for past titles to be stripped from City”. An independent commission found the club guilty on all but one of the 115 charges relating to financial rule breaches between the 2009-10 and 2017-18 seasons.
The window matters. Manchester City won three Premier League titles inside it, 2011-12, 2013-14 and 2017-18, and stripping any of them would be a first in the English game. Roan reported that clubs have no wish to open that door.
What is still on the table
Title stripping “cannot be ruled out”, because the final call on penalties rests with the independent panel, not with the league itself. The panel has yet to hold its sanction hearing, which has not been scheduled.
Read also: Liverpool sweat on Isak after thigh knock proves worse than it felt during the game
More likely, Roan reported, are a heavy points deduction, a substantial fine or possibly expulsion from the Premier League. Recent domestic precedents show the range points deductions can reach: Everton were docked six points for a single breach in 2023-24, Nottingham Forest four, and further back Derby County took a 21-point hit in 2021-22.
The appeal has not started yet
The process is not over. Both sides have 14 days from judgment to lodge an appeal, and any challenge would be heard by a fresh three-person commission. The grounds are narrow, limited to “fraud, misconduct, or gross unfairness by the arbitrator”. Manchester City cannot take the case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), the Swiss-based tribunal that handles most global sports disputes.
Manchester City deny wrongdoing and are expected to appeal. The club has said the “process is ongoing” and that important elements still need to be completed.
Runners-up stay where they are
If the titles stay, so does everything downstream. Manchester United finished second to City in 2011-12 and 2017-18; Liverpool were runners-up in 2013-14. All three finishes would remain in the record book as they stand.
Read also: Expert: Virgil van Dijk will leave Liverpool as blockbuster exit takes shape
Several clubs from that period are separately understood to be exploring legal action to recover lost prize money, sponsorship value and European qualification revenue, according to theScore.
Read also: Federer opens up on the one thing he misses most from his tennis career
