Manchester City reportedly face being ‘expelled from all football competitions’ if they are found guilty of breaking financial rules.
The hearing into Manchester City’s 115 alleged breaches of Premier League financial rules began on Monday with the club accused of financial impropriety spanning nine years from 2009.
The League charged City with a failure to provide accurate financial information and a failure to provide accurate details for player and manager payments.
An investigation was sparked by German outlet Der Spiegel publishing Football Leaks documents in 2018 and City stand accused of funnelling money from the club’s owners through sponsors in the United Arab Emirates.
According to The Telegraph, Manchester City could be kicked out of every tournament they compete in if they are found guilty of breaking financial rules.
It has previously been reported that most Premier League sides would not accept a one-off points deduction if City were found guilty, with many demanding an eviction from the division.
Now a look into the rules of English football’s two domestic tournaments has shown that their future participation in these competitions could be in doubt.
Clause 31 of the FA Cup rules states: ‘Where a club has been admitted to participate in the competition but is then removed from the league in which it competes (or its league fixtures are suspended), the Professional Game Board [PGB] may remove the club from the competition.’
The PGB consists of representatives from the Premier League and English Football League.
EFL Cup rules similarly define participating clubs as ‘each member from time to time of the league and each member from time to time of the Premier League’.
