Highlights
- Steven Gerrard says Manchester City "have to be stripped" after being found guilty of 114 of 115 Premier League charges, but that players should not give medals back
- Only three league titles (2012, 2014 and 2018) fall inside the 2009-2018 period the charges cover
- Jamie Carragher wants City's titles taken off their list, Roy Keane says he would bin his medals, and Vincent Kompany says he is "really proud" of his City years
- A BBC Sport analysis estimates rival clubs may have lost around £800m, with Norwich named at £43.8m
What Gerrard said
Gary Neville spotted one banner at Anfield on Sunday that stuck with him: "A generation of supporters have been cheated." City won 3-0 anyway, in a game that turned on Ryan Gravenberch's dismissal and was their first since the verdict.
Steven Gerrard, who captained the Liverpool side that finished two points behind City in 2014, went further on The Overlap. The club, he said, "have to be stripped." He was careful about the players, though. "I wouldn't want individual players to give stuff back, that wouldn't be right," he said. His target is the club and its owners. An example must be set, he argued, and everyone connected with City should think about the memories they may have "stolen" from everyone else.
Liverpool Legends' midfielder Steven Gerrard controls the ball during the Legends football match between Liverpool Legends and Dortmund Legends at Anfield in Liverpool, north-west England on March 28, 2026. Getty Images
What he doesn't want is a medal. He has "come to terms" with never winning the Premier League and says he has no interest in being handed one now. His call isn't unconditional either: ESPN reports he wants sanctions if the guilty finding survives City's appeal. He also pointed to Juventus, who lost titles over Calciopoli, a precedent we looked at when asking what the verdict means for Haaland.
What could actually be stripped
The commission found breaches between 2009-10 and 2017-18, which narrows things. In that window City won three league titles, the 2011 FA Cup and three League Cups, according to the BBC's count.
| Season | League title | Runners-up | Margin |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2011-12 | City | Manchester United | Level on points, decided on goal difference |
| 2013-14 | City | Liverpool | Two points |
| 2017-18 | City | Manchester United | 19 points |
Even if titles went, nobody has said who would get them. Carragher thinks City's titles should come off their list but isn't keen on handing them out afterwards, and Sports Mole warned that crowning Liverpool and United could set off a messy chain reaction. Journalist Martin Lipton has pointed out that stripping 2012 would mean Sergio Aguero's last-minute goal "didn't happen."
The voices
| Who | Link to the case | Position |
|---|---|---|
| Steven Gerrard | Liverpool captain, 2013-14 runners-up | Club should be stripped, players keep medals |
| Jamie Carragher | Liverpool, Sky Sports pundit | Titles should come off City's list, feels for the players, whose careers risk an "asterisk" |
| Roy Keane | Pundit | Would put his medals "in the bin" |
| Gary Neville | Pundit | Says a "stain" hangs over the league until it is resolved |
| Micah Richards | Former City defender | "Devastated and confused"; says there are "no winners" |
| Vincent Kompany | Ex-City captain, Bayern Munich manager | "Really proud" of his City years |
| Roberto Mancini | 2012 title-winning City manager | Says City are "not guilty" |
Carragher aimed his anger at City's owners rather than their players. After the Anfield game he said the feeling towards the club "will only grow the more they win," and called for a swift resolution. Neville said City's supporters do not yet recognise "the stain, the stigma and the damage" ahead.
The BBC's price tag
A BBC Sport analysis tried to put numbers on what the rivals lost. It says City banked £1.17bn in prize money and broadcast income across the period, while other clubs may have lost £799.5m: £188.2m in Premier League place money, £349.7m in relegation costs, £217.8m in missed Champions League prize money and £43.8m tied to domestic cups.
| Club | Estimated loss |
|---|---|
| Tottenham | £119.9m |
| Hull City | £99m (two relegations) |
| Liverpool | £48.5m |
| Norwich City | £43.8m |
| Wigan Athletic | £39.6m |
| Burnley | £31.1m |
| Manchester United | £18.3m |
The BBC is clear that these are not compensation claims and do not prove any club would have qualified for Europe or avoided relegation. Some outlets have reported a total of £844m, but the BBC's own breakdown adds up to £799.5m.
What City say, and what happens next
City say they are innocent, that the commission's opinion "contains clear material errors, of law, principle and fact," and that they will be "relentless." Chief executive Ferran Soriano told staff the outcome was the result of a "Premier League conspiracy theory." The club have lodged an appeal.
Richard Masters, Chief Executive Officer of the Premier League speaks during a Premier League Hall of Fame event on May 03, 2023 in London, England. Getty Images
The Premier League's chief executive, Richard Masters, said the decision shows City "systematically broke Premier League Rules for nearly a decade," and that the league wants to move swiftly on sanctions. Fines, points deductions and expulsion are all possible, and no decision has been made.
For now City are three points clear at the top. Neville's image for the mood around them was a dark cloud full of rain, with nobody able to say when it bursts.
