The China Mail - Man City scandal risks damage to Premier League's booming brand

City face severe sanctions after being found guilty of over 100 charges between 2009 and 2018, with an independent commission exposing "sham" contracts to artificially inflate the club's revenues and reduce costs by more than £900 million ($1.2 billion).

A hefty points deduction resulting in relegation, stripped titles and even expulsion from the English top flight have been mooted as potential sanctions.

But the damage may not be limited to City alone with an entire era of the Premier League now under a cloud.

A takeover in 2008 by Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed al-Nahyan, the vice-president and deputy prime minister of the United Arab Emirates, transformed City's fortunes, but also the face of the Premier League.

The club's first top-flight league title for 44 years was one of the most iconic moments in Premier League history when Sergio Aguero netted the winner against QPR in the 94th minute to deny Manchester United the title.

Some of City's rivals have been quick to revel in their downfall.

"Another Premier League medal to be added to the cabinet," posted former Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand, who was part of the United team that finished second to City in the 2011/12 season.

Yet there could be more lingering collective consequences for a league that has become accustomed to flexing its financial muscle to hoover up the best talent from around the globe.

Italy's Serie A once enjoyed that status in the 1990s.

Although it had lost some of its lustre by the time the Calciopoli scandal came about in 2006, Italian football has arguably never fully recovered in the two decades since.

That case surrounded club officials influencing which referees would officiate their games and led to Juventus being stripped of two titles and relegated to Serie B.

- Haaland exit inevitable?

The question is now whether fans will be turned away from the Premier League after feeling cheated over what they have witnessed over the past 18 years.

In total City have won eight titles in the last 15 seasons.

They rewrote the record books, becoming the first side to ever achieve 100 points and win the English top flight for four consecutive years.

All of those achievements are now labelled with an asterisk.

"If I was a player, I'd be 100 percent sticking those medals in the bin. Of course you would, it's cheating," said former Manchester United captain Roy Keane.

Despite the Premier League's spending power, English clubs have still struggled to keep the world's biggest superstars away from Real Madrid, Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain.

City's demise could also see the Premier League lose its marquee player in Erling Haaland.

"The Premier League is Britain's greatest soft power cultural asset," Simon Chadwick, professor of Afro-Eurasian sport, told AFP. "What happens when people start to question, 'what have I been watching all these years?'"

By contrast, the Premier League has argued the City case is proof of strong governance.

The league pursued and persisted with an investigation which began in 2018 despite City's best attempts to frustrate the process.

"This disciplinary case, and this decision, are the most significant in Premier League history," said the league's chief executive Richard Masters.

"It is a key responsibility of the Premier League to ensure that the rules, approved by the clubs themselves, are upheld to protect the integrity of the competition.

"It is paramount that the league remains competitive and fair for all clubs and for the fans. We take that role extremely seriously."

U.Chen--ThChM