Unbelievable. Remarkable. Unfathomable.
These sum up the emotions that permeated through the minds of football fans all around the globe yesterday around 1:15 eastern time when news broke that would change the landscape of the game for years.
Manchester City, back-to-back champions of England, and world powerhouse, have been banned from the Champions League for 2 years and were fined 30 million Euros.
While we do not yet have all of the information on the exact particulars of the violations they’re accused of, we do know that they are being accused of being found to have breached the European governing body’s financial fair play (FFP) rules.
All of these accusations first occurred in 2018 by an French futbal page named Get French Football News:
“Breaking | Football Leaks headline: Manchester City’s owners allegedly injected €2.7bn into the club over the last 7 years through its shareholders & over-valued sponsorship contracts which infringe FFP regulations.”
Manchester City obviously have already appealed the decision to the Court of Arbitration of Sport (CAS) in Lausanne.
Regulations state that whatever the decision that CAS comes up with will be final and they are able to either confirm the ban, reduce it, or completely reverse it (which is not very likely).
While a date for the trial is not yet set, a decision is most likely expected by early July.
Also, for those curious about Manchester City’s upcoming Champions league match against Real Madrid; that event will still be occurring. The ban will not take effect until next year.
How will this impact the Premier League?
Well for starters, the team that finishes in 5th place (assuming City finishes in the top 4), will then make it to the Champions League, as opposed to just the top four.
Currently this team is Sheffield United which would prove to be quite the story. Also, while it is unlikely, there is still a possibility that there could be repercussions in the Premier League, such as hefty fines and a possible points reduction.
How will this impact the future of Manchester City?
Now this is going to be the problem for the Citizens. Manchester City has always been known as a team with unlimited funds, and they are often criticized for it. They somehow are always able to pay for the player they have their eyes on and are rarely outbid.
Now, with the fine, and the eyes of the governing body of football watching their every move, their spending sprees will likely be decreased drastically.
In addition, they will be without revenue from the Champions League for 2 Years. This is going to be a problem for City because their academy system is not very impressive, which is the reason they pay so much for players.
Also, they will have problems getting big name players to sign for them regardless of the money.
Think of it this way: If you are a star player in your prime, worth millions, and you can choose any club in the world, why would you choose a club in which you won’t be allowed to play on the biggest stage for 2 years?
It just wouldn’t make sense for big name players — such as Jadon Sancho, and even the already wild dream of landing Lionel Messi — to waste prime years in their career to go to a club and not allowed to participate in the big dance.
Also, rumors of manager Pep Guardiola possibly leaving the club this summer were already in full effect, and this snafu definitely will not help the Citizens convince him to stay.
In this massive story that has shaken up the game of football, there will certainly be more information released in the coming weeks that will help unpack exactly what the next steps forward will be.
Until that occurs, Manchester City will be banned from the Champions League for the next 2 years, a devastating blow to a wildy skillful side.
Photo: Daily Post
