Kieran Maguire Reveals Chances of HMRC Investigating Man City

· GiveMeSport

Financial expert Kieran Maguire reveals the likelihood of HMRC investigating Man City for fraud amid talk of jail time.

The fallout is expected to be monumental after Manchester City were found guilty of all charges related to serious breaches of the Premier League’s financial rules.

Between 2009 and 2018, an independent Commission found that the club had arranged ‘sham’ contracts to inflate the club’s revenues and reduce its costs artificially . City then concealed the truth – which showed they were significantly in breach of both the Premier League’s and UEFA’s spending limits – and failed to co-operate with the investigation.

As such, many expect the book to be thrown at Man City, who have until 2 October to appeal. Most of the talk is naturally about sporting sanctions, but there are also questions to be asked about legal consequences.

It looks like Ferguson may have been proven right after all.

Appearing as a guest on BBC 5 Live Sport , football finance expert Kieran Maguire spoke about the likelihood of HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) getting involved in the case. Although many may look at Man City's financial rule-breaking as potential fraud – which can lead to jail time in instances of serious criminal offences – Maguire didn't seem to think this was going to happen.

> "Do you think there's any chance that HMRC will be interested in investigating any fraud or illegality from City?" He was asked. Maguire then replied:

> "I think it's unlikely. And the reason why I say that is that, in theory, there could have been an underpayment of PAYE and National Insurance as far as some of these parallel contracts are concerned.

> "But at the same time, had Manchester City not been cheating the system, they wouldn't have been in a position to pay the actual high wages that they were able to pay – which were ultimately on the basis of the sponsorship money, which was coming from the owner instead of the sponsors themselves

> "So I think HMRC will consider it, but there's not a lot for them to go on. There's certainly no corporation tax to recover, because football clubs lose money, and Manchester City would have lost more money had it not been for the activities that it's undertaken."

Man City are said to have lied about over £900m between 2009 and 2018 , using that money to help inflate the club’s revenues and reduce costs. That level of financial doping allowed them to build elite squads with huge wages and transfer fees and win three Premier League titles.

Those titles – lifted in 2011/12, 2013/14 and 2017/18 – could now be stripped and potentially even handed to rivals Manchester United (twice) and Liverpool. Adding to the sanctions, it looks as though a huge points deduction or even expulsion from the Premier League could be on the cards.

In terms of the club's finances, City may also have to pay a huge fine and many teams across England will likely look for compensation, suing over lost income they could have made were it not for the Etihad outfit's cheating. From Wigan Athletic to Arsenal, teams across the country could have a legitimate claim .

However, perhaps a small silver lining for the club's under-pressure executives, Maguire does not feel as though HMRC will investigate the case. As such, the prospect of jail time seems unlikely, as the ongoing case involves sports-regulatory and financial rule breaches rather than criminal charges.

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