Manchester City employed a series of measures to bypass Premier League spending rules, according to the damning judgement against the 10-time English champions.
Senior staff at the Abu Dhabi-owned club, one of world football's current powerhouses, then refused to cooperate with investigators for years.
AFP looks at the main points of the Premier League judgement and the sanctions that the club could face.
– The judgement said that City funnelled in more than 900 million pounds ($1.2 billion) over nine seasons from "sham" sponsorship deals to get around rules governing how much Premier League clubs can spend.
– City paid their then-manager Roberto Mancini through a secret agreement with Al Jazira, City's sister club in Abu Dhabi. Mancini, who is now Italy's national coach, received those payments on top of his salary from City. The sum of nearly 9 million pounds in total was not declared to the Premier League.
– The judgement rules that the controlling Abu Dhabi United Group (ADUG) paid "significant sums to a player that were not recorded in (his) contract with the club", which "concealed the true extent of the club's liabilities for remuneration". ADUG covered the extra payments to the tune of 7.4 million pounds. The system was operated "with the knowledge and approval" of individuals connected to the club.
– City were accused of persistently refusing to cooperate with Premier League investigators. The judgement said that the club "made concerted efforts to stop and frustrate the PL investigation".
WHAT PUNISHMENTS COULD THE CLUB FACE?
Speculation is rife and nothing has yet been announced, but such a substantial investigation suggests that the punishment will match the severity of the judgement.
Several theories have been aired in the media:
– City could face a points deduction so large that they will effectively be relegated from the Premier League this season, plunging the division into chaos
– A points deduction could also be spread over several seasons to hinder the club's ability to bounce back to the Premier League
– They could be stripped of the three Premier League titles they won during the period in question
– City will almost certainly face a substantial fine
– A series of clubs could take legal action against City for loss of earnings during the period they contravened the rules
– The Abu Dhabi owners could walk away from the club – a possibility hinted at by British Prime Minister Andy Burnham, who said on Wednesday that he did not want to "lose" them. Burnham is a former mayor of Greater Manchester