Manchester City's modern era now stretches from Sheikh Mansour's Abu Dhabi United Group buying the club for £200m in September 2008 to a reported verdict on 115 Premier League charges. The point is not just the size of the case, but how far back the story reaches. City were referred to an independent commission in early 2023 over a nine-year period between 2009 and 2018, after a four-year investigation.
The path to the commission
The scale of the case is clear enough without dressing it up. The club faced 115 Premier League charges, and the hearing into those charges lasted 12 weeks before ending in December 2024. Those dates matter because they show how long the legal process has sat alongside City's football story.
The club's own stance has been consistent. Manchester City deny the charges, and according to the club they have "irrefutable evidence" proving their innocence. The process has also been described by the club as "prejudicial".
City on and off the pitch
The charges do not sit in a vacuum. In February 2016, Pep Guardiola agreed to replace Manuel Pellegrini and signed a three-year contract. Two years later, City became the first team in Premier League history to win the title with 100 points in May 2018, then won the Champions League for the first time by beating Inter Milan in June 2023.
That run of success is why the timeline feels so long. City's rise, from the 2008 takeover to the current verdict stage, covers the period in which they turned into serial winners and became one of the most scrutinised clubs in English football. The next concrete step is the sanction stage, with punishment still to be confirmed after the reported verdict.
Written by Jack Mercer with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 1 outlet. How we work →
