Man City guilty of ‘sham’ sponsorship deals after decade of English soccer dominance

MANCHESTER, ENGLAND - SEPTEMBER 26: The British newspaper headlines after Manchester City found guilty of breaches of Premier League financial rules on September 26, 2026 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Visionhaus/Getty Images)Visionhaus | Getty Images Sport | Getty ImagesEnglish soccer club Manchester City has been found guilty of breaking financial rules, throwing the fate of one of the sport's most successful teams into jeopardy.An independent commission, charged to investigate 115 charges, found the soccer club arranged what it described as "sham" accounts with several commercial partners to hide an additional funding stream of around $1 billion.The club has repeatedly topped English's soccer's top division, the Premier League, since being acquired by the private investment vehicle of Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, UAE deputy prime minister and a member of the royal family in Abu Dhabi, in 2008.In its long-awaited ruling, the report said Manchester City arranged commercial deals that meant sponsors only had to "pay a portion of the relevant sponsorship fees", with the rest of the funds being put up by Abu Dhabi United Group Investment & Development Ltd, the entity th...