In 2023, Manchester City secured their fourth consecutive Premier League title, setting a new record. However, the celebrations were overshadowed by the threat of further leaks from the Football Leaks scandal by Portuguese hacker Rui Pinto.
Pinto gained access to thousands of emails and documents in 2018 and has since provided French and German authorities with more information related to alleged rule-breaking by Manchester City. He claims that the documents he handed over have “criminal relevancy” and are part of the Premier League investigation into the club.
Despite being convicted of nine crimes in 2023, Pinto has been in witness protection since 2020. Speaking at the OffShore-Alert Marbella Conference via video link, he stated that he had given authorities five hard drives with millions of documents, including more information on Manchester City.
The previous leaks by Pinto led to City receiving a two-year European ban from UEFA in 2020 for breaching Financial Fair Play (FFP) rules. However, the ban was overturned by the Court of Arbitration for Sport. City has now launched legal action against the Premier League in response to the 115 charges related to alleged breaches of the league’s Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR).
City is accused of concealing payments through third parties by disguising them as sponsorship revenue. The club maintains its innocence and is preparing for a hearing later this year to address the accusations. Despite these challenges, Manchester City remains committed to upholding fair play and maintaining its position as one of Europe’s top football clubs.
