Bank on That – Man City Could Owe Prem Rivals a MAMMOTH Prize Pay-out if Potential Sanction is Followed

Bank on That – Man City Could Owe Prem Rivals a MAMMOTH Prize Pay-out if Potential Sanction is Followed

With 1,329 days having passed since Manchester City were charged with 115 potential breaches of the Premier League’s financial rules, a verdict has finally been reached.

The Athletic were the first to report that Manchester City were found guilty on all but one charge, meaning the multiple Premier League winners had broken 114 rules.

The Citizens have obviously appealed the decision, which means a verdict and therefore punishments have not been announced yet. However, there has been plenty of discussion in the footballing world as to what the consequences should be for City.

🚨 EXCLUSIVE: Manchester City found guilty on virtually all charges relating to breaches of Premier League financial regulations. #MCFC expected to appeal against verdict issued by independent commission. Sanctions undecided, process ongoing @TheAthleticFC https://t.co/Muxqp4beK9

— David Ornstein (@David_Ornstein) September 25, 2026

Potential £500m pay-out

One of the potential sanction routes could see Manchester City pay-out over £500m to fellow Premier League competitors. This is due to the Premier League prize money that clubs did not receive because of the Citizens placement in the league for that respective season.

These theoretical financial figures span from the 2011/12 season all the way to the 2025/26 campaign, with over 38 clubs affected across this period. The data for the 2025/26 season hasn’t been confirmed yet, meaning that the financial figures for this campaign are only estimates.

Everton would be the biggest winners from this punishment, as they would be eligible for a whopping £28.9m! City’s rivals, Manchester United, are not far away from Everton’s lost prize money, as The Red Devils would be owed £28.1m.

As for the rest of the traditional ‘top six’, Arsenal, Liverpool, Tottenham and Chelsea, would all receive a sum over the £20m mark.

This would only be possible of the bases that Manchester City would be removed from the Premier League from all the seasons going back to the 2011/12 campaign, meaning each team would therefore move up a position in the table.

However, some clubs have already been proactive and implemented some action a few years ago in case of this eventuality. Manchester United, Arsenal, Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur have all reportedly kept their rights to claim compensation two years ago.

All of these teams, except Tottenham Hotspur, finished second to Manchester City in the club’s title winning seasons, which not only denied them of a Premier League title, but also the money that comes with winning England’s top flight league.

Moreover, this quartet of clubs, amongst many others, would have failed to achieve Champions League football, as well as other European competitions, due to City’s placement in the league.

This has denied clubs of the commercial and sporting revenue that would have been on offer if those said teams had qualified for their respective European competition.

If Man City were forced to pay up, it would be a huge blow to the club for the near future. And that is without even discussing the possibility of a points deduction.

Whatever the punishment may be for Manchester City, assuming their appeal is unsuccessful, it has to be of a serious and unforgiving nature to ensure clubs don’t behave like this again in the future.

"I think the ramifications could be significant."

Football finance expert Kieran Maguire speaks about what sanctions Man City could face, after sources have told BBC Sport that the club has been found guilty on the majority of the 115 breaches of the Premier League's financial… pic.twitter.com/aK8mrNQcKD

— Match of the Day (@BBCMOTD) September 25, 2026