Manchester City face banishment from 'all competitions' if found guilty of 115 charges
Manchester City's lengthy battle with the Premier League has now begun court proceedings
Manchester City's long-running dispute with the Premier League over the alleged 115 charges is sure to dominate both the front and back pages for the remainder of the 2024/25 season as fans of all clubs eagerly await an outcome.
Kickstarted by leaked emails in the German press, the six-year battle between the club and the league has been going publicly back and fourth in the press up until the start of court proceedings in recent weeks.
Early suggestions indicate that Pep Guardiola's side could face exclusion from the Premier League should they lose their case, however, fresh reports now indicate that they may also lose their spot in other competitions as well.
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Manchester City facing widespread ban
If found guilty and punished with Premier League exclusion, Manchester City's fortunes could take yet another turn for the worse by finding themselves ousted from a number of other competitions as well, according to a report from the Telegraph.
As stated in the FA Cup rulebook, “Where a club has been admitted to participate in the competition but is then removed from the league in which it competes (or its league fixtures are suspended), the Professional Game Board [PGB] may remove the club from the competition.”
The report claims that this could likely spark a domino affect across other competitions as well, including the UEFA Champions League, Carabao Cup and Club World Cup.
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As ever, Guardiola remained upbeat about the allegations, telling reporters: "It starts soon and hopefully finishes soon.
"An independent panel will decide. I'm looking forward to the decision. I'm happy it starts on Monday and I know there will be more rumours about the sentences that come up and we're going to see."
Manchester City maintain their stance of complete innocence, while an unbeaten start to the season has done wonders in the Blue half of Manchester's quest for a fifth consecutive Premier League title.
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James Ridge is a freelance journalist based in the UK. He recently spent time with The United Stand as an online news editor and has covered the beautiful game from England’s eighth tier all the way to the Premier League.