Fans must be patient for the appeal outcome in the Manchester City case because it “cannot leave room for doubt,” a sport integrity chief has said.
The club were found guilty by an independent commission of breaking Premier League financial rules over a nine-season period, with the judgement made public on Sept. 29.
The commission found City clearly intended to breach the rules by inflating revenues or reducing costs by more than £900 million ($1.2m) through a series of “sham” arrangements in order to avoid breaking league and UEFA financial regulations.
The club have appealed against the commission’s decision, meaning the English top-flight season continues without a final outcome or knowledge of what sanctions — if any — the club may face.
That has led some observers to call into question the integrity of what unfolds on the pitch across the rest of the season, but Emanuel Macedo de Medeiros, the co-founder and global chief executive of Sport Integrity Global Alliance (SIGA), insisted the overriding priority must be to ensure justice is served.
“I understand the fans’ frustration, and I understand also the fans’ anguish, especially those who follow and support Manchester City,” he told the Press Association.
“This is not a pleasant situation for anybody, but the law is the law, and it must be served on its own time, without constraints.
“Being a lawyer, I know that justice sometimes is served slowly. That is not because those who are in charge of the procedures are lazy, or they neglect their duties. It’s because there cannot be room for doubt. There cannot be room for failure.
“There cannot be any breach of the constitutional rights that those who are being scrutinised or judged enjoy. But I think it’s fair to say that the process is coming to an end.”
Medeiros, speaking during Sport Integrity Action Month, insisted the significance of the case could not be underestimated.
“This is also a test, not just for the Premier League and the credibility of the whole system, it is a test for the entirety of European football,” he said.
“It has involved rivers of ink and hours and hours of public debate. It is a matter of utmost interest for the football community.
“But there are no reasons for speculating regarding due process, and I’m pretty sure that the case will be finished sooner rather than later. Justice is served when it is served on the right time, and I think everyone is aware of that and conscious about their responsibilities.”
The commission found City operated a “disguised funding scheme” whereby companies from Abu Dhabi paid a fraction of the sum recorded on the club’s books, with the balance settled by Abu Dhabi United Group (ADUG), the company through which Sheikh Mansour owns the club.
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That scheme was found to have inflated revenue by more than £830m over the nine-season period between 2009-10 and 2017-18.
The club were also found to have overstated income from image rights by almost £74m, and understated liabilities for staff contracts by almost £17m.
City said the decision contained “clear material errors, of law, principle and fact, and is unsafe.”
City chief executive Ferran Soriano told staff on a video that the commission had gone along with the Premier League’s “conspiracy theory.”
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