Good morning. It’s a sporting scandal of colossal proportions, with the juiciest details still to come. Manchester City’s ascent from mediocre to majestic changed the landscape of British football. Now, that pace looks set to be matched by a sudden, plummeting fall.
The club has been found guilty of breaching football finance rules to the tune of hundreds of millions of pounds, with ramifications poised to spill far beyond Manchester (the club denies the allegations, and says it will appeal). Foreign state ownership makes this an international relations issue, not just a sporting one. The prime minister has been dragged into the sleaze-fest, and the stream of stories shows no sign of slowing. Meanwhile, the Mancunian club has the chutzpah to sit at the top of the Premier League, much to the repulsion of my Manchester United-supporting boyfriend.
