Manchester City have lodged their appeal against an independent commission finding them guilty of all charges related to serious breaches of Premier League financial rules. The club insists they are innocent and described the judgement as an opinion containing clear material errors. The commission found that between 2009/10 and 2017/18, Man City arranged sham contracts with commercial partners as part of a disguised funding scheme to artificially inflate revenues by £830m.
City confirmed their appeal was submitted just before the Friday deadline. In their statement, they reiterated their innocence and claimed irrefutable evidence supports their position. Sky Sports' Kaveh Solhekol noted the club's refusal to call the ruling a judgement, questioning their cooperation with the investigation.
City's appeal strategy is expected to argue that extra sponsorship funding came from the Abu Dhabi government rather than the club's owners. This argument was previously rejected by the commission. The club is majority owned by Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, a member of Abu Dhabi's ruling family and UAE vice-president.
Source: Sky Sports Champions League · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing