Six more months! Potential date for ruling in Man City’s 115-charge FFP case as champions of England sweat on threat of points penalties or Premier League demotion

The reigning champions of England were made aware in February 2023 that supposed monetary mismanagement over the course of a nine-year period – between 2009 and 2018 – would see them thrust under the microscope.

An independent commission hearing began on September 16, with The Lawyer reporting that closing arguments are now being prepared – meaning that they could be heard in mid-December. It may, however, be that an end to the long-running saga is some way off.

Various punishments for City have been speculated on, ranging from points penalties to demotion out of the Premier League, but Stefan Borson has told Football Insider of why we are no nearer to knowing how the story will finish: “I think the key takeaway from the fact it’s gone this duration is that it’s going to take a long time to get the decision because of the volume of documentation that must have been gone through and the number of witnesses that must have been presenting to the panel. If this was in the courts, for something like a 12-week trial hearing, it could easily take over a year to get the decision.

“You would finish the trial and then just sit back and wait. At some point a year or more later, the decision comes out. I doubt it will be a year in this case before we get a decision, but I think it’s unlikely now that we are going to get anything before the end of March. We may not even get an initial decision before the end of May.

“We also understand from some of the coverage from The Lawyer publication that this is a split hearing. Within that split hearing, that means you are going to have liability, which is what’s going on now, and then if City are found to be liable, then there will be something on sentencing and sanctioning. Even if there is a decision before March, there is still some way to go.”

Unless they are cleared of any wrongdoing, City will likely appeal any sanctions handed out to them. That will drag the process out even further, with a cloud of uncertainty seemingly set to remain hanging over the Etihad Stadium well into 2025.