Manchester City could face a punishment that is measured in points, money or even something more severe.
But the damage that lasts the longest may not have a number attached to it.
Manchester City has been found guilty on 114 of the 115 Premier League charges brought against the club, according to reports by The Athletic, with the eventual sanctions still to be determined and an appeal expected.
For Euan Jones, Digital PR specialist at Casinos.com, however, the biggest consequence could be something much harder to repair.
“Usually in football, the scoreline is the only number that matters to fans. After today, every title City won since 2009 carries an asterisk, whether the club likes it or not. The real cost was never going to be the sanction, it’s the trust of supporters, broadcasters and a decade of history that’s now in question. That kind of damage doesn’t get undone with a statement. It takes years to rebuild.”
That may ultimately become the most uncomfortable part of this entire saga for Manchester City.
What the Manchester City Verdict Actually Means
The scale of the case is difficult to overstate.
The Premier League charged Manchester City in February 2023 with 115 alleged breaches covering the period from 2009 to 2018, along with allegations that the club failed to cooperate with the investigation. The independent hearing began in September 2024 and concluded after 12 weeks in December that year.
The verdict has now changed the status of those allegations.
But it is important to separate that finding from the punishment. The sanctions have not yet been announced, and Manchester City is expected to appeal the decision.
That leaves a huge number of questions unanswered.
Could there be financial penalties? Points deductions? Restrictions? Changes to the club’s historical record?
The eventual sanction will determine the direct sporting consequences.
The legacy question is different.
Manchester City won three Premier League titles during the period covered by the charges, and the club went on to establish one of the most successful eras in English football history.
That doesn’t mean those titles have been erased.
They haven’t.
But the verdict gives critics a new reason to question what those achievements mean.
And that is precisely where the asterisk conversation begins.
The Man City Legacy May Be Harder to Repair
This is where Jones’ argument becomes particularly relevant.
A fine eventually gets paid.
A points deduction eventually runs its course.
Even a transfer restriction has an end date.
Reputation doesn’t work that way.
Manchester City’s modern history is built around an extraordinary run of success. The club won four consecutive Premier League titles from 2020-21 through 2023-24 and became the first English men’s team to win four straight league championships.
Those achievements are part of the club’s identity.
Now supporters, rival clubs, broadcasters and historians have another question to consider when looking back at that period.
How much of it should be viewed through the findings of the independent commission?
That question will not disappear simply because Manchester City completes its appeal.
And it certainly won’t disappear if the eventual punishment is relatively limited compared with what some critics have demanded.
That’s the uncomfortable part.
The club can fight the sanction.
It can challenge the findings through the available appeals process.
It can point to the fact that the legal process has taken years and that the case remains subject to further proceedings.
But the conversation around the achievements of the Guardiola era has already changed.
That’s the cost Jones is talking about.
Manchester City can eventually move beyond whatever punishment is imposed.
The harder task could be convincing everyone that the most successful period in the club’s history should be remembered exactly as it was before the verdict.
Because trophies live in record books.
But sporting legacies live in people’s memories.
And once that trust is damaged, there is no simple sanction that makes it disappear.
Manchester City Could Pay a Bigger Price Than Any Sanction