UEFA president Aleksandar Ceferin reiterated his position that UEFA should investigate, prosecute and ultimately punish Manchester City for financial violations.In 2018, City were banned from the Champions League after receiving a two-year ban for breaching Financial Fair Play (FFP) rules.
City appealed the decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), but it was overturned. Ceferin spoke to The Telegraph as the Premier League is under investigation after sanctions were handed down to Nottingham Forest and Everton for high-level breaches of the Profitability and Sustainability Code (PSR). As of 2023, the city has been charged with 115 violations of the law, but has yet to make progress on those cases.Everton went 10 points clear of the Premier League after a charge last year, raising the prospect of City facing a harsher punishment. Ceferin and UEFA regularly monitor the club and its finances, which led to UEFA filing a lawsuit against City in 2018.
Commenting on the City incident, Ceferin told The Telegraph: “We know we were right. We won’t make a decision if we don’t think it’s right. As a lawyer for 25 years, I know that sometimes you win a case even when you know you will lose. And sometimes trust can lead to losing a case. In a sophisticated democracy, all you have to do is respect the court’s decision. I don’t want to talk about the situation in England. But I think the decision of our independent body was correct.
“I did not initiate this decision.”City have denied the Premier League’s claims. The timing of the decision was criticized, with Everton particularly punished. “They want to know what’s going on and what the consequences are. But I don’t want to go into the details of the process because I don’t know what the Premier League is doing.” Ceferin added. “Actually, I don’t want to criticize.
It wouldn’t be fair.”City’s rivals, including Liverpool, await the outcome of City’s case now that a trial date has been set. Premier League chief executive Richard Masters told a parliamentary committee in Westminster last week: “I understand [fan anger] but the allegations [from Everton and Manchester City] are very different.
