26 Sep 2026 09:13:04
Ed001
What do you think will happen to city now?
I can see a massive fudge from the EPL
It's now a fact. Not an accusation.
Independent appeal within 14 days. With no right to go any further, sounds good.
{Ed001's Note - they will appeal & lose. Then be hit with point deductions & fines.
26 Sep 2026 12:14:22
I personally don't think much will come of it. Look at it this way, the owner is a UAE royal. They guy is super rich, and is backed up or connected to other super rich people. Any action which would take place against City is probably already known by him. If Man city would be relegated, for example, one would of thought that he would of sold up a long time ago.
The fact that that has not happened, tells me the punishment will not fit the crime. You imagine how much City would lose in value of the club if they were relegated? Not to mention the financial implications on the Premier League, who incidentally, seem more concerned with punishing the "little guys" in the league. Money talks, and corruption is everywhere.
26 Sep 2026 12:44:57
You would have to give a points penalty statistically impossible for them to avoid relegation for it to be workable, otherwise it becomes a siege mentality challenge to the club. They're capable of getting 100 points+ so whatever the number is now should be an absolute minimum to remove any hope of achieving and ensures they finish in last place.
Then add another 50 to give them back on appeal!
26 Sep 2026 13:34:16
They will have to take their punishment.
I'm not into the redistribution of trophies and compensation. It would be too complicated.
However, a fine that is shared with lower tiers, relegation to league 2 and a 30 point handicap for every year they cheated would keep them out of the CL for a decade.
26 Sep 2026 12:46:35
If your right edd1 then all Premier League teams should refuse to play against city because points loss and fines does not justify
What city have done. City is owned by a Saudi prince worth billions so what does a fine achieve it would be like water off a ducks back.
Points deduction would possibly be the answer but what affect would it cause to the leagues EPL / EFL. It has to be a punishment to fit the crime so other football club do not ever try and cheat.
{Ed001's Note - there is no Saudis involved. They are owned by an Emirati.}
26 Sep 2026 14:14:01
The knock on effect from other clubs suing them will be interesting.
Clubs that missed out on European comps because they finished 1 place lower! Champions league qualification is a big deal.
Effectively they have denied other clubs revenue by cheating them out of what they may have been entitled too.
I agree I'm not interested in getting number 21-22 awarded to us without actually winning it on the pitch.
I honestly would love to see a campaign of sustained booing of City every time they touch the ball in every game. It would make them effectively untenable as a club. All of the other teams should make it clear that what they have done is just not acceptable.
The Premier League allowing this to drag on so long and the way city have behaved during the past 9 years must be known throughout football. It's not alleged now it's fact. 114 deliberate acts of cheating.
The Premier League is not fit for purpose. It should now be overhauled and an independent body with power to punish given overall ability to sanction. Having their own voting platform the way its setup needs adjusting. We all know the big clubs can dictate the pace as is clear the way this has dragged on. That cannot happen again.
Everton Forrest Leicester amongst others never had the ability to drag out their case.
They are the bench mark for what should come. City won't get anything in line with the above. Let's see.
26 Sep 2026 15:34:11
It's probably worth waiting to see what the punishment will be rather than speculate. The size and scale of the situation is unprecedented so you can't really say what the scale of the punishment will be.
26 Sep 2026 16:27:54
"BBC Sport has been told there has been little appetite from within the Premier League - both the organisation and clubs - for past titles to be stripped from City
Does that put an end to it?
Not quite, as the decision will be made by an independent panel which is yet to hold a "sanction hearing". That means it cannot be ruled out, although a points deduction, huge fine or possibly even expulsion from the Premier League are thought to be more likely".
26 Sep 2026 19:14:22
The statement from the City Chairman today shows arrogance and a total disrespect for the league and the teams impacted by him cheating on an industrial scale.
26 Sep 2026 19:43:17
I assume any appeal could take years as well, ed001? Thanks!
{Ed001's Note - I would expect they would have the sense to set limits on the time it can take.}
26 Sep 2026 20:14:30
Why is not one talking about expulsion? I am also pessimistic that they will be properly punished, but a points deduction even if heavy and spread over years is just not enough. They need to be expelled from the league which is a possible penalty and should be considered.
If I had my way, it would be a permanent expulsion due to the fact that they are guilty of trying to cover it up and waged legal warfare to delay and avoid punishment. You can't let clubs think there is a way to cheat and benefit from it so a statement needs to be made in this case.
27 Sep 2026 00:32:18
City need to be relegated. Juventus and Rangers where relegated. Titles removed. City owners need to be expelled from the Premier League. Anything less and the Premier League is stained forever. City will never recover from this. Cheating from 2009-2023. That's 14 years. The punishment must fit the crime.
27 Sep 2026 03:41:54
Snuggle, I don't agree with permanent expulsion at all. The owners, the people involved in covering it up should get punished, point deduction for club but to permanently expel them from league is too much.
The fans of the club haven't done anything wrong, the 100's of local people who work at the club (stewards, match day staff) haven't done anything wrong so for me it's a step too far.
27 Sep 2026 09:57:22
Incredible Bulk, I would be incredulous if it really was a slap on the wrists for City, it is pretty unfathomable considering every other team in the PL, especially the likes of United, Liverpool, Arsenal, etc. would be absolutely irate. Yes City have money and bring money to the league, but any other of the biggest clubs in the league, including Spurs, have more fans locally and internationally than City, who are when it comes down to it not a traditionally big club.
Would the league risk the ire of the 'big 6', alongside the likes of Forest and Everton and every other club impacted by their cheating, by giving City a telling off, or would it not be in their best interests to have City pay the penalty to placate everybody else and hope they can do something to sweep this colossal muck-up on the part of everyone involved under the carpet and hope it doesn't develop into something with generational league-wide repercussions? The financial and reputational repercussions would appear to be considerably less if they went down the latter route.