Ferran Soriano sent Manchester City staff a video message on Tuesday evening. It ran to nearly four minutes. In it, the chief executive promised the club will overturn the guilty verdict handed down by the Premier League’s independent commission. The Ferran Soriano Manchester City charges case has dominated headlines since Friday, when the panel’s findings on all 115 charges were leaked, days before Soriano finally addressed his own workforce.
Ferran Soriano Reassures Manchester City Staff After Panel Ruling
Soriano had said nothing publicly since the verdict leaked on Friday. He did not comment when asked about it at a sports conference in Copenhagen. That silence ended on Tuesday evening, when he recorded a message for everyone at the club.
He opened with a direct explanation of what staff were about to hear. “I want to share some information related to the ongoing disciplinary process between Manchester City and the Premier League. A document has been made public with an opinion of the Premier League commission that is negative to our interests. I want to explain exactly what this is, the next steps and how we are going to continue to defend the club, and finally be vindicated in this process,” he said.
Soriano Details Official Appeal Strategy and Rejects Panel Findings
A three man panel found City guilty on every one of the 115 financial charges it examined. Soriano rejected that outcome. He told staff the whole case rests on one claim, and he says that claim is untrue. “This has gone for so long that it is important to remind ourselves that the whole Premier League case against us is based on a single false accusation, that the owners’ personal money was somehow and secretly put into the club via some sponsors from Abu Dhabi. This is just not true,” he said.
He then pointed to the evidence the club had already submitted. “Irrefutable evidence has been provided to the Premier League commission that shows that it could not happen and that it did not happen. This includes bank statements, money transfers, witnesses and everything necessary to categorically demonstrate that the money did not come from the owner. Every other false charge that has been thrown at us, and aggressively marketed and promoted, comes from the simple, central, and completely false accusation,” he said.
Soriano then turned on the commission itself. He said its conclusion had ignored the evidence City had put forward. “Surprisingly for us, and for our lawyers, after nearly two years the Premier League Commission has introduced an opinion that supports the Premier League’s conspiracy theory. To do so, the opinion had to ignore the extensive evidence provided by the club in order to reach a conclusion that is clearly wrong,” he said.
He also pointed to City’s record of overturning rulings that went against the club. “Our lawyers will now file an appeal that sets out the opinion contains clear material errors of law, principle and fact and it is unsafe. Remember we have been here before. In 2020 we were also wrongly ruled against for many of the same issues. We appealed to an independent body in CAS and we won,” he said.
Impact on Etihad Operations and Squad Protocol
Soriano told staff to carry on working as normal. That includes the club’s summer transfer activity details, which continued through the window despite the case hanging over the club. The false accusation at the heart of the charges also touches on how City’s ownership has funded the club since Sheikh Mansour’s takeover, a subject covered in our Sheikh Mansour’s takeover history context piece.
“I know this can be a bit of a distraction but please remain focused on our business and take care of our extended City family as we always do. Please follow the normal protocols in referring to fan, partner and media enquiries. Very soon we will look back at this and recognise it is another time in our history when we dealt with adversity and overcame it together,” Soriano told staff.
Timeline for City Legal Challenge and Appeal Process
The Ferran Soriano Manchester City charges appeal now moves into a formal process. Lawyers will challenge the commission’s opinion on grounds of legal, factual and procedural error. Soriano set out what comes next for the club’s legal team.
Soriano told staff the club “will now be relentless in our work.” He said lawyers “will focus on the independent appeal process and also all other legal avenues available to us in order to win the case.” City “will take all necessary action to protect the club and seek compensation from any party that tries to damage it now, and in the future,” he added.
The full text of Soriano’s message to staff was reported by the Manchester Evening News report, four days after the verdict first leaked. City’s own timeline echoes the 2020 case, when a guilty finding was later overturned on appeal to CAS.
