Guardiola publicly backs Manchester City after Premier League guilty finding
On Wednesday, September 30, 2026, Pep Guardiola publicly backed Manchester City after the Premier League found the club guilty of over 100 offences under its financial regulations. Posting on X (formerly Twitter), Guardiola wrote: "I want every single Man City fan to know I am here; more than ever. I am, always have been, always will, be behind my club, my owner, my chairman, Ferran, the players, staff, Enzo and you, our unique supporters. Let me be clear: we will get through this together. I love you all."
The Premier League issued its ruling after an investigation into the club’s finances, with CEO Richard Masters saying on Tuesday that City had "systematically broke Premier League rules for nearly a decade" and used "sham contracts" and "misstated accounts." The league traced the alleged breaches to the 2009-10 through 2017-18 seasons and said they produced a set of accounts that was £900 million off, or roughly $1.2 billion. The Premier League accused Manchester City of misrepresenting their finances to remain within league and UEFA expenditure limits.
Manchester City responded with a formal statement calling itself "both disappointed and surprised by the opinion of the Premier League Commission." The club said it would review the ruling before deciding its next procedural steps.
The Premier League noted that the period covered by the breaches included nine seasons during which Manchester City won three league titles. Pep Guardiola, who became City manager in 2016, was in charge for part of that timeframe.
Guardiola’s record at the club includes six Premier League titles overall, including four consecutive championships from 2021 to 2024, and he was manager when City won their first UEFA Champions League trophy in 2023. He stepped down as Manchester City manager in May after 10 years in the job.
Enzo Maresca succeeded Guardiola as manager, while Guardiola has remained with the organisation in a different capacity, described by the club as an important role functioning as a global ambassador for City Football Group.
Manchester City said it would "now pursue the appeal avenues open to it, on the basis that the opinion contains clear material errors of law, principle and fact, and is unsafe," setting a formal appeals process as the immediate next step following the Premier League commission's finding.