According to The Times, former Manchester City chairman Bernstein has criticized the delayed outcome of Manchester City's 115 charges case, stating that the club's £440 million summer spending undermines Premier League regulation and makes it a laughingstock.

Bernstein, who served as Manchester City chairman from 1998 to 2003 and FA chairman from 2011 to 2013, has criticized the ongoing delay in delivering a verdict and questioned how the Premier League has handled the case.

Since February 2023, Manchester City has faced 115 charges for alleged breaches of league financial rules. A 12-week hearing concluded in December 2024, but the independent commission has yet to deliver a verdict, with the case deemed extremely complex.

Manchester City vehemently denies all charges. The case could ultimately clear the club or lead to historic penalties.

Bernstein, 83, joins a growing chorus of critics frustrated by the case's delays. Previously, Premier League chief executive Richard Masters admitted that a verdict was "taking longer than anticipated."

Bernstein wrote in The Times: "To spend so much with the 115 charges hanging over them is extraordinary. It makes a mockery of the regulation of England's top tier, which is supposed to be the best-governed league in the world."

He continued: "Why the Premier League decided to pursue all 115 charges is a mystery to me. Common sense – a quality that is often in short supply these days – would have suggested streamlining the process, retaining only a handful of the most important and clear-cut cases, and treating them as test cases.

Justice delayed is justice denied. The longer this process drags on, the more complex its implications and challenges become."

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