The Premier League allegations against Manchester City are unprecedented.
The reigning champions are alleged to have clocked up more than 100 breaches of the competition rules during a 14-year-period in which they have won the competition six times - including four of the last five. They could yet make that five out of six before May ends, although the announcement of these charges will send a shockwave across the game as it once again puts City's finances under the spotlight.
City were temporarily expelled from the Champions League by UEFA for breaching their Financial Fair Play regulations back in 2019. However, the club always insisted that they would be vindicated by an independent judicial body and the Court of Arbitration for Sport ruled a year later that the club did not disguise equity funding as sponsorship contributions - but did fail to co-operate with UEFA authorities.
