Manchester City were found guilty of 114 of 115 Premier League financial rule breaches on Friday 25 September 2026. The independent commission ruling covered nine seasons of alleged breaches between 2009 and 2018. No sanction has been set, and the club are expected to appeal.

Against that backdrop, Football Insider reported that Haaland has reached a personal decision not to remain at the Etihad if the worst-case punishment lands. Journalist Pete O’Rourke summed up how the striker’s camp is said to be thinking.

“The club are under no illusions that Haaland would not be willing to stay put and help them fight their way back to the top.”

Arsenal are the name most consistently attached to the 26-year-old, alongside Real Madrid, with both clubs said to have made early contact with his representatives through the same report. Sources speaking to FootballTransfers went further and described an Arsenal move as a certainty if the door opens.

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“Arsenal would, without any shadow of a doubt, make a serious play to bring Erling Haaland to the Emirates.”

The contract that leaves City in control

The obstacle nobody in north London can wish away is the paperwork. Haaland’s deal runs until 2034, and no relegation clause exists in it, according to Football Insider’s reporting. That contradicts earlier suggestions such a get-out had been written in, and it leaves the striker on City’s terms even in the worst-case scenario.

The length of the deal, combined with the absence of a release trigger tied to relegation, would keep any fee under City’s control rather than the buyer’s.

Haaland’s camp denies contact

Not every outlet is buying the frontrunner narrative. thehardtackle.com reported on 28 September that Arsenal are yet to make any contact regarding Haaland, and that the striker’s camp denies talks with the club. The same report described Manchester City as relaxed about his future despite the verdict.

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That leaves two competing versions from the same day: Football Insider’s, in which Arsenal and Real Madrid have already opened lines to Haaland’s representatives, and thehardtackle.com’s, in which no such contact has taken place.

A 14-day appeal window

Under Premier League rules, both sides have 14 days from a verdict to appeal, taking the case beyond 9 October 2026. No punishment has been announced, and no sanction can trigger Haaland’s reported exit clause of thinking until one is.

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