The sanctity of arguably the most dominant run in Premier League history is now formally up for judgment. 

Manchester City, four-time defending champion of England’s top flight of men’s pro soccer and winner of six of the last seven titles, began Monday to formally face charges for 115 alleged breaches of Premier League financial regulations between 2009 and 2018, including providing misleading information about its finances. Nearly three dozen of the 115 charges relate to claims of the club failing to cooperate with league officials between 2018 and 2023. The accusations have been brewing for several years, and led to the team being formally charged early last year by an independent commission of the Premier League.

Proceedings started Monday in London before a three-person independent panel in what has been dubbed in the British press as “the sports trial of the century.” Potential penalties range from fines and standings points deductions to relegation from the Premier League. But any finding of guilt would greatly sour the historic run of success by Manchester City, including the unprecedented championship four-peat.

Team Response

Manchester City, the flagship club of ownership entity City Football Group Ltd., has steadfastly denied the charges. The independent hearing is expected to last about two months, and it is hoped the matter, including any appeals, will be resolved before the conclusion of the current Premier League season in the spring. 

“An independent panel will decide, and I am looking forward to the decision. I’m happy it’s starting,” said Manchester City coach Pep Guardiola. “I know there will be more rumors, new specialists about the sentences. We’re going to see. … Everybody is innocent until guilt is proven, so we’ll see. Justice is there in modern democracy. It’s not more complicated than that. We believe we have not done anything wrong.”

As this issue unfolds, the club remains its usual self on the field, winning each of its first four games this season and leading the current Premier League standings.

Financial fair play (FFP) regulations, a fixture of European pro soccer since the global financial crisis of 2008–2009, are designed in part to prevent clubs from spending more than they earn. However, the full efficacy of those rules remains a matter of some debate as many of those European leagues are still dominated in the standings by a small handful of powerful clubs. 

Even before the Celtics won the 2024 championship, there were questions about the roster’s long-term sustainability due to a ballooning payroll.

But in June, when team governor Wyc Grousbeck hoisted the Larry O’Brien Championship Trophy, the team’s payroll seemed like an afterthought. Boston dominated the league en route to a record 18th NBA title, and it was in part due to its willingness to cough up the money to build a dominant roster.

A month later, Grousbeck put the defending champion up for sale, citing “estate and family planning considerations.” However, according to the New York Post, management of the team’s payroll triggered a rift between Wyc Grousbeck and his father, Irving, who reportedly owns 20% of the Celtics, which led to the decision to sell the team.

The Post reported that last season, despite the championship, the Celtics barely broke even. In the coming years, they are expected to lose millions as the supermax contracts of stars Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum as well as the extensions of Derrick White and Jrue Holiday kick in.

In 2025–2026, Boston is expected to pay a record $500 million for its payroll, with more than half of the charges coming from tax penalties. The team will also be above the NBA’s second apron, which comes with draft pick penalties and heavy restrictions on roster movement.

Wyc Grousbeck, who is the team’s governor despite owning just a 3% share (per the Post), reiterated that the sale is for the family’s estate.

“The Grousbeck family is selling the team for estate and family planning considerations. To say the sale is in any way related to losses is completely incorrect,” Wyc Grousbeck told the Post.

Falling Price Tag

If and when the Grousbecks sell the team, they will walk away with a hefty profit. The team is valued by Forbes at $4.7 billion, while the Grousbecks and their investment group purchased the team for $360 million in 2002.

The Celtics are reportedly seeking a buyer who would pay $6 billion, which the NBA would welcome as it would drive up the market price for the entry fees of its eventual expansion franchises. According to the Post, it’s unlikely the Celtics will hit that figure, in part because that team does not own its home arena, TD Garden. 

Arena ownership allows for a team’s value to increase—which is why the Warriors and Knicks, who both own their home arenas, are the most valuable franchises in the league. They also receive revenue from events in those arenas that would have helped with added expenses in other areas, such as paying salaries.

Potential Buyers

The Post reported in August that Red Sox owner Fenway Sports Group is interested in its city’s basketball counterpart. Bain Capital senior advisor Stephen Pagliuca, who already reportedly owns about 20% of the team, is also in the mix.

The Ringer’s Bill Simmons suggested last month that Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, who made a bid for the NFL’s Commanders last year, was also interested in the Celtics, but days later, a report from The Information shot down that claim.

The Grousbecks are hoping to conduct a step transaction, in which they would relinquish their majority stake first and Wyc Grousbeck would continue acting as the team’s governor, before completing the rest of the sale in 2028.

Red Bull Racing has lost its lead in the Formula One constructors’ championship standings for the first time since May 2022, setting up a high-stakes—and expensive—battle for supremacy in the sport as the season concludes this fall.

McLaren overtook Red Bull after Oscar Piastri’s win at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix on Sunday. It was the seventh straight race victory by someone other than Red Bull’s Max Verstappen, who won seven of the first 10 races this season. Verstappen is the highest-paid driver in F1, with a $55 million annual salary, and still holds a 59-point lead in the drivers’ championship standings over McLaren’s Lando Norris (race wins are worth 25 points).

A New Era

The biggest cloud over Red Bull right now is the pending departure of renowned car designer Adrian Newey. 

The man most responsible for seven drivers’ championships and six constructors’ titles during his 18-year stint with Red Bull officially announced his move to Aston Martin last week, agreeing to a contract that British media reports is worth nearly $200 million over five years.

However, Newey is still under contract with Red Bull, which has irked team principal Christian Horner. “They chose to celebrate it perhaps potentially slightly prematurely,” Horner said of Aston Martin and Newey’s announcement. While team principals are typically the public faces of F1 teams, Horner makes only $8 million to $10 million annually as the sport’s highest-paid boss.

Closing Speed

There are seven races left in what is now the most competitive F1 season in recent memory. “We’re just going to throw everything at it,” Horner said of Red Bull’s fight to defend its titles. Ferrari is only 29 points behind Red Bull, and Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) and Piastri are within striking distance of Verstappen and Norris.

After this weekend’s race in Singapore, F1 will pick back up at the U.S. Grand Prix on Oct. 20, followed by races in Mexico, Brazil, and the second edition of the Las Vegas Grand Prix. As ESPN looks to sustain its U.S. viewership gains this season, the two American events should have more juice than ever before.