LaLiga president Javier Tebas has renewed his call for strict and equal financial rules across football following reports surrounding Manchester City’s long-running legal battle with the Premier League.
The comments came after reports emerged that Manchester City had been found guilty of the vast majority of the financial charges brought against them by the Premier League. The case remains ongoing, with sanctions yet to be determined and the club expected to appeal.
ESPN reported that a source had indicated City were expected to be found guilty on most of the charges, while The Athletic reported that an independent panel had found the club guilty of all but one of the 115 charges.
Manchester City did not directly confirm the reported verdict but maintained that the Premier League process remains ongoing.
“The Premier League process remains ongoing, with significant elements to be completed, and subject to strict confidentiality,” the club said in a statement.
The Premier League has also declined to comment on what it described as a private and confidential process.
Tebas, who has previously been vocal about financial regulation in European football, used the latest development to revisit comments he made at the Soccerex event in Manchester in 2017.
At the time, the LaLiga chief had criticised what he described as “financial doping” in European football and argued that clubs should operate under consistent financial rules.
He has now doubled down on that position.
“Economic sustainability is not bureaucracy. Financial control is not a whim,” he said.
“And arguing that clubs should compete fundamentally with the resources they are able to generate doesn’t mean being against any specific club either. It’s about defending a model.
“A model in which sporting success doesn’t depend on who has the most powerful financial backing behind them, but on who manages best, generates more resources, builds better teams, and respects the same rules as everyone else.
“Defending this position has cost me a lot of criticism and not a few headaches. But I still think exactly the same as I did in Manchester in 2017.
“There are principles worth defending, even if they come at a cost. And this one, for me, is one of them.
“Now, almost nine years after those words at Soccerex, an independent Premier League commission has deemed 114 of the 115 financial breaches charged against Manchester City proven, according to the published reports.
“There’s still a way to go. The sanction remains to be known, and the process isn’t over. But what’s happened once again shows why economic control, transparency, and equal rules for all are essential to protect the integrity and sustainability of football.”
“We will keep defending those principles. Just like in 2017.”
The dispute surrounding City has already stretched across several years, with the Premier League charges dating back to an investigation into alleged financial breaches between 2009 and 2018.
City have consistently denied wrongdoing and have maintained confidence in their legal position.
The case follows an earlier UEFA dispute. In 2020, the Court of Arbitration for Sport overturned Manchester City’s two-year ban from European competitions after the club had been sanctioned over alleged breaches of UEFA’s Financial Fair Play regulations.
Tebas subsequently described that CAS decision as a “deeply misguided decision”, arguing that it had damaged confidence in European football’s financial control system.
The latest development therefore brings his long-standing concerns back into focus, although the Premier League case is not yet complete.
For Manchester City, the next major steps will centre on the formal outcome, the sanctions, if any, and the club’s potential appeal. For the wider football landscape, the case continues to fuel debate over financial regulation, competitive balance and how consistently rules should be applied across Europe’s major leagues.
Toosin is a dedicated sports writer with a strong background in crafting engaging and insightful content. With experience at Goal, he has developed a sharp editorial sense and a refined storytelling approach that brings depth and perspective to sports journalism. His passion for the game goes beyond the headlines, as he captures both the excitement of the sport and the compelling human narratives behind each event. Toosin’s work resonates with a broad and diverse audience, making global sports stories accessible, relatable, and impactful.
