Three Years of Legal Challenges: Manchester City and the Unfolding Financial Investigation

Three years have passed since the Premier League announced charges against Manchester City for an alleged 115 breaches of its financial regulations. This figure was later found to be even higher. These charges emerged from an extensive four-year investigation into the club’s financial dealings, covering nearly a decade from 2009 to 2018. To commemorate this milestone, Paddy Power staged a provocative event by delivering a giant anniversary cake shaped like the number 115 to the club’s headquarters.

This publicity stunt serves as a sharp reminder of the ongoing legal cloud hovering over Manchester City. Despite the club’s on-field success, the unresolved nature of the allegations surrounding their financial conduct remains a significant topic of discussion in the sport. The cake delivery was meant to underscore the lack of resolution in the case, ensuring the anniversary did not pass unnoticed by the public.

The choice of a birthday cake is a pointed reference to the club’s history, particularly an incident from 2014 involving former midfielder Yaya Toure. His agent famously claimed that Toure was unhappy with the club’s failure to properly celebrate his birthday. By presenting the 115-themed cake, Paddy Power humorously noted they wanted to avoid a repeat of the Toure incident while the club’s future remains uncertain.

A spokesperson for the brand remarked, “Earlier this week, Pep told rival clubs he’s waiting – and so are we. While Manchester City might rank seventh in the net spend league table, they remain unrivaled in accumulating charges. We didn’t want to miss the anniversary, so we made sure to mark the occasion in style with a special cake.”

Rival clubs are increasingly frustrated by the slow progress of the case. An independent commission hearing began in September 2024, nearly 20 months after the initial charges were brought forth. That hearing concluded over a year ago, and no verdict has yet been announced. The complexity of the charges, which include failure to provide accurate financial information and non-cooperation with investigators, has led to unprecedented delays in the legal proceedings.

Supporters of rival Premier League clubs have vocally criticized the timeline, claiming that the prolonged process grants Manchester City an “unfair advantage.” Meanwhile, the club has consistently denied any wrongdoing, asserting that they have a “comprehensive body of irrefutable evidence” to support their case. As the 2025-26 season unfolds, the absence of a conclusive outcome from the Premier League has left many questioning whether a resolution will ever materialize.

This is not the first time the club’s legal challenges have been leveraged for marketing purposes. In August 2025, Paddy Power collaborated with Coleen Rooney to resurrect her ‘Wagatha Christie’ persona for a campaign investigating the “mystery” of the absent verdict. In a viral video, Rooney led a satirical ‘Investigation Department’ that examined the prolonged financial fair play trial before delivering a fan-centric verdict.

During this campaign, the firm executed its largest-ever ‘Justice Refund’, disbursing a seven-figure sum to over 100,000 bettors who had wagered on teams finishing second to Manchester City since 2011, covering eight seasons and three different runners-up.