A detail buried in the House of Lords Register of Interests has resurfaced as scrutiny of City’s long-running Premier League case continues.
Lead barrister Lord Pannick KC’s fees from the club are consistently logged as private income, rather than being attributed to the government of the United Arab Emirates.
Football finance analyst Stefan Borson, a former Man City financial advisor who has since become one of the club’s most persistent public critics, has pointed to those entries as evidence of Pannick’s underlying professional position: that no reasonable member of the public would consider City to be owned or controlled by the UAE.
That question sits close to the heart of the club’s defence throughout the 115 charges case.
Borson has also flagged a change in Pannick’s schedule. Between September 2024 and January 2025, while the main hearing was ongoing, he was rarely seen on other business.
Since then, Borson notes, Pannick has spent increasing time on House of Lords matters — which he reads as a sign the barrister is no longer as consumed by City’s case as before, though no ruling has been communicated either way.
A case still stuck in limbo
The case itself remains unresolved. The main hearing at London’s International Dispute Resolution Centre ran for 12 weeks, opening on 16 September 2024 and concluding on 6 December.
City’s own 2024-25 Annual Report confirmed the independent panel had retired to deliberate. More than a year and a half on, there is still no verdict.
Most legal observers had expected a decision before the new season; with pre-season already underway, that timeline looks increasingly unlikely to hold.
Man City deny all wrongdoing and have consistently said they hold evidence that will clear their name in full.
Until a ruling arrives, details as small as a barrister’s expense filings are likely to keep being picked over by those trying to read the club’s next move.
