Former Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini has stated that an alleged double contract concerning his remuneration is not his problem, following a landmark regulatory ruling against the English champions. An independent arbitration panel recently upheld the vast majority of one hundred and fifteen financial breach charges filed by the Premier League. Among the complex slate of regulatory violations, fourteen separate charges focused on the club`s failure to disclose full and accurate details regarding player and managerial salaries between the 2009-10 and 2017-18 seasons. Mancini managed the side from December 2009 through May 2013, leading the club to the 2011 FA Cup and their first league championship in forty-four years in 2012.
The Italian manager distanced himself entirely from the financial fallout.
Speaking during a news briefing ahead of Italy`s Nations League fixture against Turkey, Mancini questioned the assertion that the club had been conclusively sentenced and dismissed the implications for his career. He stated that the subject was nothing new, having circulated across European sporting media for several years without altering his view. Mancini maintained that the club has not been definitively found guilty from his perspective, adding that any administrative discrepancies over secondary consultancy agreements remained an internal matter for the club rather than himself.
The controversy stems from confidential internal emails published by international news outlets.
German magazine Der Spiegel previously published investigative files suggesting that City executives arranged for a significant portion of Mancini`s compensation to be paid through a supplementary consultancy role with Abu Dhabi club Al Jazira. According to those leaked documents, the advisory payments exceeded his baseline coaching salary in England. While an independent panel determined that City had failed to meet statutory financial reporting standards on nearly every charge, formal penalties including fines, point penalties, or demotion have not yet been handed down.
Manchester City maintained that the confidential legal procedure remains ongoing.
The club stated that it has respected regulatory processes over eight years on the assumption that league executives would act as impartial and fair-minded regulators free from external pressure. Competing Premier League teams have already sought preliminary legal advice to pursue financial compensation claims over lost prize money and qualification spots. The legal battle began in February 2023 after a four-year inquiry, with formal private hearings running through late 2024.
