Manchester City is prepared to challenge the Premier League for months if the club is found guilty of alleged financial breaches in a case that could become one of the biggest scandals in English soccer.
Reports on Friday said an independent panel had upheld almost all of the more than 100 financial charges brought against City.
The club did not confirm the reported decision, saying its case with the Premier League was still "ongoing."
However, City would appeal any guilty verdict, and the process could take several months, according to a person familiar with the matter who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because of confidentiality requirements.
The Athletic first reported that City had been found guilty of all but one of more than 100 charges brought by the Premier League. The league accused the club in February 2023 of providing misleading financial information over a nine-year period from 2009 to 2018.
The report said the punishment has not yet been decided and that all options remain open. The BBC also reported the development.
In a statement, City said: "The Premier League process remains ongoing, with significant elements to be completed, and subject to strict confidentiality."
The club said its position remained unchanged from its previous statements and that it had consistently denied the charges.
"City has diligently respected due process for eight years," the club said, adding that it expected the Premier League board and executive to act as an "independent, impartial and fair-minded regulator, free from partisan influence."
If found guilty, City could face a major points deduction, with expulsion from the Premier League among the most severe possible punishments.
The Premier League declined to comment when contacted by The Associated Press on Friday.
City has repeatedly denied wrongdoing since allegedly hacked emails and documents were published by German magazine Der Spiegel from 2018. The documents allegedly suggested that the club had tried to hide the source of revenue from deals linked to Abu Dhabi.
Abu Dhabi's ruling family bought City in 2008 and oversaw hundreds of millions of dollars in spending on some of the world's leading players over the following two decades.
City has been one of the most successful teams in English soccer over the past 15 years, winning eight Premier League titles since 2012 and the Champions League in 2023.
During the period covered by the charges, from 2009 to 2018, City won the Premier League three times in 2012, 2014 and 2018.
The latest reports come after Pep Guardiola stepped down as City's manager at the end of last season following a highly successful period for the club.
Guardiola had consistently maintained that City was innocent.
"What people accuse us of, we do not agree with what they say," he said in 2023.
Spain midfielder Rodri, who played for City from 2019 before joining Barcelona this offseason, also said he believed the club had done nothing wrong.
"They always expressed the confidence that they never did something wrong, and we believe in that," Rodri said of City's ownership.
"Until the moment they are proved wrong, we believe in the club. I've been there, I know how they work, and how they co-operate."
Speaking at Wembley Stadium on Friday, a day before Spain was scheduled to play England in the Nations League, Rodri said City's recent titles could not be taken away.
"It is something that is not paid by money, it is paid with effort, with partnership and with being shoulder to shoulder every day," he said.
"We had a lot of success over the years, and here in Wembley, so I can tell you everything was deserved and I'm glad I could live one of the best eras of English football."
Former Manchester United and England player Rio Ferdinand, meanwhile, suggested on X that City's titles should be removed and awarded to the runners-up in the respective seasons.
"Another Premier League medal to be added to the cabinet," Ferdinand posted, referring to City's 2012 title ahead of United.
The Premier League has financial fair play rules aimed at ensuring clubs largely spend within the limits of their legitimate revenues and that sponsorship deals reflect market value.
City had previously faced allegations from UEFA, European soccer's governing body, of overstating sponsorship revenue to comply with its Financial Fair Play regulations.
In 2020, UEFA ruled that City had committed "serious breaches" of FFP rules between 2012 and 2016. However, the Court of Arbitration for Sport later overturned a two-year European competition ban after finding that some allegations were not established or related to matters that were too old to be investigated.
The Premier League charges followed a four-year investigation. City was accused of more than 100 breaches, including providing misleading financial information and failing to cooperate with the investigation.