Premier League set for long wait as Man City face prospect of sanctions

Sept 28 : Manchester City may face sanctions ranging from fines and a points deduction to relegation after being found guilty of 114 breaches of Premier League financial rules but the road to any enforcement remains long with the club expected to appeal.

A soccer source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, confirmed Friday's media reports that the independent panel found City guilty on all but one of the charges and told Reuters on Monday that the process was expected to “drag on."

City chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak responded to reports of a guilty verdict with an open letter to fans, saying the club, who have always denied wrongdoing after the charges were announced in February 2023, remain confident of proving their case.

"The Premier League process still has a long way to run, and our confidence and intent in proving the club’s innocence is just as strong as when this began," he wrote on Saturday.

A three-person board would hear the case if City appeal after the guilty ruling by the independent judicial panel.

They cannot go to sport's highest court, the Court of Arbitration for Sport, which overturned City's two-year Champions League ban, imposed by European soccer's governing UEFA for overstating sponsorship revenue between 2012 and 2016.

But the appeal process may be a long way off given the number of charges, covering nine seasons from 2009 to 2018, which required a four-year investigation before charges were announced.

A LONG TIME IN LIMBO

It is possible that the current Premier League season, in which City lead the table after five straight wins, may end without an official verdict and punishments being announced, leaving the world's richest soccer league in limbo. 

Even if the verdict and punishments are announced, the