The Football Association has confirmed it holds powers to take disciplinary action against Manchester City and key individuals at the club, in the governing body’s first public comment since City were found guilty of multiple breaches of financial regulations.
In a statement, the FA said the independent commission’s decision had “significant implications for the integrity of the game” and that it was carefully considering the ruling and its implications, adding that it “will take action where appropriate.” The governing body said it would not comment further while proceedings between the Premier League and Manchester City remain ongoing, but would continue to monitor developments closely.
Manchester City intend to appeal against the commission’s verdict. After its hearings, the commission concluded that the club had used a “Disguised Funding Scheme” and “sham contracts” to boost its income by more than £900m between 2009 and 2018. The 40-page core judgment published this week redacted the names of those involved, though the FA could ask the Premier League for an unredacted version.
The FA will wait until the appeal process has concluded before deciding whether to act, with the Premier League’s rulebook indicating that should happen by the end of January. The body’s standard practice is to allow disciplinary proceedings run by leagues such as the Premier League or EFL to finish before it takes its own action.
Beyond the club itself, the FA has powers to take action against individuals proven to have broken rules and/or acted dishonestly, which the commission concluded had been the case at City.
The Chelsea case offers a recent template. In July the FA fined Chelsea £10m and imposed a suspended two-window transfer ban after the club admitted 74 breaches of its agent regulations, four months after the Premier League fined them £10.75m for the same offences, which related to unlawful payments to players and agents. The FA did not pursue individuals in that case because those involved were no longer working in football.
The governing body has also shown it is willing to charge individuals directly. It charged Southampton’s manager, Tonda Eckert, with misconduct over his role in the so-called Spygate saga involving Middlesbrough this summer, with a disciplinary hearing held last month that could result in a lengthy ban from football.