The Premier League’s long-awaited hearing into the 115 alleged allegations against Manchester City begins on Monday, Sky Sports News understands.

City were accused of breaching Financial Fair Play rules over a nine-year period beginning in 2009 and continuing until 2018.

During this period, Man City – the team denies all allegations against the club – won the Premier League three times.

What accusations are being made against Manchester City?

According to the Premier League, Man City broke the rules for nine seasons by allegedly failing to provide accurate financial information.

Among the allegations against City is that they failed to fully disclose the remuneration paid to one of their managers over a four-year period. It is suspected that there was a secret contract so that one of the managers earned much more than was officially declared.

The Premier League also alleges that City failed to comply with UEFA’s Financial Fair Play rules over a five-year period. It also claims that City failed to fully cooperate with the Premier League’s investigation.

What could happen to City?

Under Premier League rules, a penalty could be a points deduction or even the threat of expulsion from the Premier League – although this would be an extreme punishment.

When will a decision be made?

A decision by the independent commission is unlikely to be published before spring.

However, the dates may be postponed as this is a legal process that cannot be influenced by the Premier League or City.

The formal hearing before the independent commission is expected to last up to two months, with both the Premier League and City having to submit detailed legal submissions and explain their position.

The independent commission will then examine all the evidence before making its decision. Due to the number of charges and the amount of information to be examined, this process is expected to take several months.

Therefore, it could be March or later before the Commission’s decision is published. As soon as it has reached a conclusion, it will be published.

Even if the Commission decides that City is guilty of some or all of the charges against it, the club would likely appeal that decision, which would further delay the imposition of any sanctions or points deductions.

What did City say?

When the charges were first announced in February 2023, City said they were “surprised” by the Premier League’s allegations.

City not only expressed its astonishment at the allegations, but also claimed to have been “fully engaged” with the Premier League’s investigation and to have supported it with “large amounts of detailed material”.

“Manchester City FC is surprised by the announcement of these alleged breaches of Premier League rules, particularly given the extensive engagement and large amount of detailed material provided to the EPL,” it said in a statement at the time.

“The club welcomes the review of this matter by an independent commission to impartially consider the extensive irrefutable evidence available in support of its position.

“We therefore hope that this matter will be resolved once and for all.”

What about Pep?

Pep Guardiola said at the time the charges were announced that he was “completely convinced” of City’s innocence and told the Premier League it had “already been convicted”.

Guardiola recently said that he was happy that the hearing would begin soon and hoped for a quick conclusion.

“I’m glad it’s starting soon and hope it’s over soon for the good of all of us,” he said in a press conference before the game against Ipswich on August 24.

“Especially for the club, but also for all the other Premier League clubs and for all the people who do not wait for the punishment.

“I wish from the bottom of my heart that there will be a trial, an independent body – and I say it again, an independent body – and that what happened will be known as soon as possible and we will accept it as we always have.”

Asked if he was concerned that the situation could affect the performance of City’s players, Guardiola said: “No, we have been talking about it for three or four years.”

How did we get to this point?

Already in 2019, German outlet The mirror published an investigation based on the work of Portuguese computer hacker Rui Pinto, who hacked into the email accounts of various football clubs and agents.

This story sparked UEFA’s investigation into City, which in turn led to this Premier League investigation.

If City were found guilty, how would an appeal proceed?

The independent panel will consist of three members selected by Murray Rosen KC, Chairman of the Premier League Legal Panel.

The three-member panel may consist of all 15 members of the panel of judges as well as non-members.

Once a ruling has been made, the Premier League and City can appeal – but it cannot be referred to CAS.

Instead, Rosen would appoint an appeals panel with new members. Currently, the Premier League’s appeals panel consists of six members.

An appeal would further delay the imposition of any sanctions or point deductions, but all sides hope that the matter will be finally concluded in the next calendar year.

What consequences could this have for other Premier League clubs?

Football finance expert Kieran Maguire:

“When you talk to lawyers, they say it would be difficult for another club to claim they have lost a title or, perhaps more importantly, access to the Champions League and all the rewards that come with it.

“There was talk not long ago that Burnley and Leeds might make claims against Everton in relation to their financial situation, but this was never fleshed out.

“Everyone will be following this with great interest and once the independent commission makes a ruling, things will move forward.”