Arsenal dragged into Man City trial scandal

Carlo Garganese

Updated: 6 Apr 2025 11:07 BST
5 min read

Pep Guardiola, Man City, Mikel Arteta, Arsenal — © IMAGO

Manchester City have dragged Arsenal and other Premier League clubs into the scandal that could see the champions relegated and stripped of titles.

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City are currently awaiting the verdict from the trial over their alleged 130 breaches of Premier League financial rules.

A verdict in the much-publicised case is expected imminently, with City being charged with 130 alleged financial breaches.

An independent hearing has officially concluded following a four-year investigation conducted by UEFA.

Man City have denied any wrongdoing, but the club have been accused of failing to provide accurate financial information from 2009 to 2018, and failing to co-operate from 2018 to 2023.

If found guilty then City face the prospect of a massive points penalty and even relegation, as well as possible Premier League titles being stripped.

City drag Arsenal into scandal

City have now dragged Arsenal and others into the scandal.

According to The Times, City have accused the Premier League of ignoring unfair financial contributions that Arsenal, Everton, Brighton and Leicester have received.

City have highlighted shareholder loans that these four clubs have received, with Arsenal collecting £259 million in such a way in the 2022-23 season, Everton handed £450m, Brighton £406.5m the year before and Leicester £265m.

City are unhappy that while they have been trialled over alleged inflated sponsorship deals linked to club owners, the Premier League has ignored these massive owner-funded loans that Arsenal and the others have benefitted from.

City argue that these shareholder loans should not fit into the category of organic income if their scrutinised sponsorship deals don’t.

Arsenal, Everton, Brighton and Leicester have been given an unfair advantage and “preferential exemption” from the Premier League, according to City.

City have won eight Premier League titles and 24 trophies in total since the Abu Dhabi United Group purchased the club in 2008, spending over €2.5 billion on new players in the process.

© IMAGO - Man City could be relegated from the Premier League if they are found guilty

Football Finance expert Kieran Maguire explained recently that we can expect relegation and resignations galore if City are found guilty.

"What I've heard from a few parties already, and I've spoken to a few people today, is that it could be, that there will be a conclusion as to whether Manchester City are guilty or not guilty of individual charges. But the punishment might not be included in this initial report,” Maguire told the Manchester Evening News of the imminent verdict.

"If Manchester City are only found guilty of non-cooperation with the Premier League investigation and I think we can expect something in line with what we saw from UEFA. In that it will be a fiscal penalty.

"If Manchester City are found guilty of misrepresentation, which is effectively corporate fraud, then I think we have to be looking at a significant points deduction. On the basis that, again, if you read the commission reports for Nottingham Forest and Everton, they stressed that they were minor breaches of the rules.

"What Manchester City is being accused of, is effectively fraud over a longer period of time. So therefore, the punishment has to be scaled appropriately.

"I don't think they can relegate the club as such, because this is a Premier League punishment," Maguire said. "The Premier League doesn't control the EFL, so therefore the commission would have to set a tariff - a punishment that will be so severe in terms of points deductions that it would effectively guarantee relegation.

"But they can't do what we saw with Rangers and the SPFL and relegate them to League Two or similar."

Maguire stressed that in addition to relegations if City are found guilty, he also expects the Man City board to step down.

"It brings the governance of Manchester City into disrepute, if found guilty, I don't see how the board of directors can survive because again, looking for precedent, if you look to see what has happened in Serie A and Juventus," he added.

"When Juventus were found guilty of effectively misrepresentation a couple of years ago - this was when they said players had taken big pay cuts during covid and that wasn't the case, the board of directors had to resign.

"If people from Manchester City have made statements, sworn statements to the commission and it's been concluded that those are misrepresentations, then the board of Man City has to be replaced."