While many fans wonder what punishment or outcome Manchester City will face after an independent Premier League investigation found them guilty of 115 charges between 2009 and 2018, few have considered the wider impact on the club beyond the men's team.
The commission found the club had used "disguised funding schemes” that they described as “sham contracts” in which they artificially increased reported revenue by more than £900 million. They said they had higher commercial revenue from third-party sponsors to meet the UEFA and Premier League financial fair play spending limit; in fact, this money was not from commercial revenue; it was all but covertly supplied by the club's owners. This has a sporting impact, as they could spend more on players with this financial boost and still not be at a considerable loss.
Manchester City Women will not face any direct sporting sanction, such as a point deduction or relegation, because the Premier League brought the discrepancies and charges directly, as a separate legal and competitive entity. At the same time, the women's team operates within the WSL and FA. There is likely to be a lasting indirect impact unless it can be found that there were separate violations of FA or WSL rules.
It has been leaked that reports from the Premier League indicate that a three-part “doomsday” punishment is likely, including a points deduction to be applied this season that will mathematically guarantee relegation to the Championship. Another would be that the club has to stay in the Championship for at least a second season, and the next would be an unprecedentedly large fine alongside the sporting penalties.
If this goes ahead, the club could lose hundreds of millions of pounds in immediate revenue alongside the penalty. This would cover Champions League prize money, broadcasting shares and matchday revenue of roughly £100 million to £140 million per season and another £100 million on Premier League TV rights; that's without legal costs, commercial and sponsorship costs that could be incurred.
No, how would this impact the women's team? Well, if the men's team and the club incur a massive financial loss, the women's team would likely be the first to lose its financial backing, since it relies on the men's team's positive finances and is not financially independent. This could affect how much the women's team could spend on player transfers, player wages, staff, training facilities and other infrastructure projects. This would be an indirect financial consequence rather than a direct punishment for the women's side.
A more indirect issue would be club-wide commercial partnerships connected to both teams, which could terminate, be renegotiated, or revalue the wider club's brand, reducing what would be available for the women's team.
The women’s team could therefore lose some of its guaranteed commercial backing if sponsors decide to distance themselves from the Manchester City brand.
Theoretically, the financial impact could be enormous and transformative, and it could affect their ability to recruit and retain elite players, as world-class players would rather join a financially stable club with a clearer reputation, long-term investment, and the ability to pay a high wage.
While the women's team did not break any rules, the umbrella's reputation will be tainted. Community, inclusion, integrity, and club reputation are key to what women's football supporters look for.
The situation is particularly serious because the WSL has introduced stricter Financial Sustainability Regulations (FSR).
Under the rules described in the source, a WSL club’s player wage costs cannot exceed 80% of its total revenue. Revenue is divided into Relevant Revenue, such as matchday income and independent sponsorship, and Relevant Cash Funding, which includes financial support from the parent club.
Parent-club funding from CFG is capped at either £4 million or 25% of the women’s club’s organic revenue, whichever is higher. The source also states that breaches can result in a one-point deduction for every £100,000 of overspending, meaning significant overspending could significantly affect a club’s league position.
The source estimates that Manchester City Women operate with an 80% wage-to-revenue ratio, with approximately £8.49 million in wages against £10.62 million in turnover. This means the club could be particularly exposed if financial problems at the men's level reduce the amount of support available from CFG.
If the men’s team loses significant broadcasting or competition revenue because of future sanctions, CFG may need to restructure spending across its wider network.
The women's team could be a commercial “haven” because sponsors could maintain relationships with women's football while reducing their association with the men's side. The club owners also have a multi-club structure with other clubs worldwide that could potentially help raise funds to support the women's side's budget.
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