Man City’s Nightmare Deepens: Could the Regulator Force Their Owners Out?

Manchester City are heading for the most pivotal moment of their modern history, and the fallout could reach far beyond the Premier League. Found guilty on 114 charges, the club now faces a growing list of watchers, and one of them holds the power to remove its owners from English football entirely.

The Verdict That Shook English Football

An independent commission found City guilty of breaching Premier League rules on financial reporting and of obstructing the investigation that followed. The ruling covered 114 charges in total.

The commission found that City artificially inflated revenue by more than £900 million between 2009 and 2018. That, in turn, allowed the club to spend far beyond the limits set by Premier League regulations.

Both the club’s appeal and the punishment they are due remain pending. Nothing is settled yet, but the stakes could hardly be higher.

What Punishments Are on the Table?

The range of possible sanctions is wide and potentially severe. The Premier League has the power to expel City entirely, impose points deductions and restrict player registrations.

City could also be stripped of titles and handed heavy fines. Which of those tools, if any, will be used is still unknown.

The Appeal Battle

The case has moved beyond the guilty verdict and into the appeal stage. City’s owners have promised to share ‘irrefutable evidence’ that was not unearthed during the earlier proceedings.

That promise sets up a major fight over whether the original findings can be overturned or softened.

More Scrutiny Is Circling

The Premier League is no longer the only body paying attention. According to the Mirror, City face a probe on behalf of the Greater Manchester Combined Authority over loans of taxpayers’ money to firms owned by City owner Sheikh Mansour.

The club is also facing scrutiny from England’s new Independent Football Regulator.

Financial Reporting Council Steps In

It has also been confirmed in the House of Commons that the Financial Reporting Council has assumed control of ‘regular consideration’ of the scandal. A preliminary investigation is already underway.

Taken together, these developments turn a sporting dispute into a much wider test of accountability.

The Regulator’s Ultimate Weapon

The Independent Football Regulator was established by the Football Governance Act 2025. Its powers include the right to remove owners from football altogether, forcing a sale of the club.

City have been warned this is one of the punishments they could face beyond the Premier League’s own sanctions.

‘Absolute Power’

Speaking on The Rest Is Football, as reported by the Mirror, regulator chair David Kogan said the body is keeping its powder dry for now. He made clear who holds the final say on whether City’s owners can continue.

‘We have the power to ask an owner to step away from a club if we believe that they run a club in a way that is neither fit, fair or done with propriety. We’ve got absolute power to do so.’

Kogan stressed there would be no rush to judgement. ‘We will look at the individuals who’ve given evidence, we will look at the individuals involved with the club and we will take a judgement call,’ he said.

He added that the regulator will decide whether to mount its own investigation only once all questions have been answered. Pre-empting that, he said, ‘would be a colossal mistake’.

What Happens Next?

For now, the story has several moving parts: a pending appeal, an undecided punishment, a preliminary financial probe and a regulator watching closely. Any one of them could change the course of the club’s future.

City’s promise of fresh evidence may prove the defining factor. If the appeal falls short, the focus will shift to sanctions and to whether the regulator decides to act.

Whatever the outcome, this saga is far from over, and the decisions ahead could reshape English football’s approach to financial rules and ownership for years to come.