Manchester City discover when the hearing over their alleged 115 breaches of Premier League financial rules will take place, according to a report.
It has now been 18 months since Citizens supporters were rocked by the news that their club had been charged by the Premier League for alleged financial irregularity between 2009-10 and 2017-18 following a four-year investigation - charges that the club have emphatically denied.
Man City are alleged to have failed to provide accurate financial information relating to sponsorship income, revenue and operating costs and have also been accused of offering a secret contract to one of their managers during this period who was receiving more money than officially stated.
The reigning Premier League champions have also been accused of failing to comply with UEFA's Financial Fair Play rules during a five-year period and are said to have not fully co-operated with the Premier League's investigation.
Premier League CEO Richard Masters has said that he "could not confirm" the exact date of Man City's hearing, but a report from The Times states that the hearing is set to begin next month, with the outcome known early in the New Year.
© Reuters
Man City to discover outcome of 115 hearing in spring 2025?
The independent commission were initially expected to begin proceedings in November, but sources with knowledge of the case have now suggested that it has been brought forward and will start in mid-to-late September, unless there are further legal delays.
It is expected that the formal hearing with the independent commission will last for around 10 weeks, and Sky Sports News claims that a decision over Man City's 115 charges is unlikely to be made public before the spring of 2025.
Even then, if the independent commission come to the decision that Man City are guilty of some, or all of the charges against them, the Citizens would be expected to appeal the decision, which would further delay the imposition of any potential points deductions or other sanctions.
Premier League chief Masters has acknowledged that the legal cases facing the Premier League champions and others clubs has created "uncertainty and frustration" ahead of the 2024-25 campaign.
There are also outstanding cases involving Everton and newly-promoted Leicester City in relation to alleged breaches of the Premier League's Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR), while Chelsea are believed to be under investigation over a potential rule breach under former owner Roman Abramovich.
© Imago
Masters: "There is no happy alternative to enforcing the rules"
At the Premier League's launch event on Tuesday, Masters was asked by Sky Sports News if the unresolved financial investigations into all the aforementioned clubs were a big issue for the league, and he said: "It does matter, and I understand it creates uncertainty and some frustration but there is no happy alternative to enforcing the rules, which everyone has agreed at the beginning of each season.
"They have looked each other in the eye and shaken each other's hand and said 'we will abide by these rules'. So the Premier League has to enforce rules.
"Whatever difficulty or frustration that creates is part of maintaining and protecting the Premier League's competition, its core values, competitive competition. And that's really my role, and that's what I want to continue doing."
Masters added: "I think it does need to be resolved. It's not in our hands. It's in the hands of an independent panel. They are in charge of the timing and the running of the process, and we must let them get on with it."
Meanwhile, it is understood that Man City's separate legal dispute with the Premier League in relation to a campaign to remove the Associated Party Transaction (APT) rules has no bearing on the hearing over their 115 charges.
Oliver Thomas
