Manchester City's financial case has picked up a fresh strand. Reports now link the club to an HMRC tax investigation that allegedly began in 2018 and was never officially closed, while senior figures are already worried about a separate problem: City could still reach the Champions League next season even if punishment comes first.
The HMRC probe is still hanging over City
SPORT1's report says HMRC launched the investigation in 2018 to examine whether City used complex structures to avoid tax. The same report says it was never officially closed and is separate from deliberate fraud allegations. That distinction matters, because it keeps the tax issue in its own lane rather than folding it into the Premier League case.
The scale of the main disciplinary fight is already hard enough. The Premier League commission found 114 breaches, while the club have lodged an appeal against the verdict. Add a tax probe that has been alive for eight years, and the sense is of a dispute that still has room to spread.
The Champions League problem
BBC reporting has raised a more awkward question. Senior football figures are concerned City could play in the Champions League next season even if they are relegated, and one source told the broadcaster that "licences are awarded on the basis of current financial performance, so the grounds to refuse one are unclear".
That concern is not just theoretical. City are already in the Champions League picture this season, sitting eighth with three points, while also top of the Premier League after five games. Any punishment would therefore land in the middle of a live season, not after the fact.
BBC also reported that any workaround would require "the sort of joined up thinking that's been a bit lacking so far". The issue is still unresolved, and City's appeal remains part of the backdrop. What is clear now is that the club's off-field fight is no longer just about one verdict.
Written by Jack Mercer with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 5 outlets. How we work →
