The booing of the Premier League and Champions League anthems before kick-off has become a regular feature at Etihad Stadium. Fans turned up the jeers against Ipswich last Saturday, the club's first home game since being found guilty of breaching the Premier League's financial rules.
"I can't remember a Premier League or Champions League home game where the anthems haven't been booed," season-ticket holder Dave Wilson told BBC Sport. The discontent can likely be traced back to February 2023, when 115 charges for breaching the rules were first announced. Everton fans had earlier shown similar anger at Goodison Park, booing the anthem and holding up red cards marked "corrupt" under the Premier League logo. City supporters did not organise a similar display, but their anger was clear.
Fans' frustration with UEFA also runs deep. In 2014, UEFA fined City £49m and capped their Champions League squad size after they failed Financial Fair Play rules. Six years later, the Court of Arbitration for Sport overturned City's two-year European ban after clearing them of "disguising equity funds as sponsorship contributions". Wilson said City fans generally feel targeted, "rightly or wrongly".
City are currently top of the table with seven wins from seven league games, but they remain in limbo as they await the outcome of their appeal and any potential sanctions. Nick Clarke, interim chair of The Citizens Trust, said the anthem booing was "totally organic" and that most fans believe the Premier League is "not fit for purpose" in regulating itself.
Source: BBC Sport Football · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing