What happens to Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester United IF Man City are stripped of Premier League titles?

History would be rewritten if Man City’s trophies during a nine-year period were taken away

Manchester City have been found guilty of all the charges brought against them by the Premier League over serious breaches of its financial regulations, prompting a wider discussion around a potential punishment.

The verdict, first reported by The Athletic on September 25, was delivered by Premier League through an independent commission on Tuesday (September 29) following an investigation and legal process spanning several years.

The FFP breaches are related to a period between the 2009-10 and 2017-18 seasons, when Man City won three Premier League titles, one FA Cup, three League Cups and one Community Shield.

Man City have the right to appeal the independent commission’s findings and have until October 2 to exercise that right.

City insist they will fight the charges “on the basis that the opinion contains clear material errors, of law, principle and fact, and is unsafe”.

Manchester City have been found guilty of circumventing Premier League’s rules by disguising funding from their owner as sponsorship

PA

The Premier League have also said that now the charges have been proved, the issue of sanction will be addressed separately in a further hearing with the independent commission.

A wide range of punishments are said to be on the table from substantial fines to points deductions or even possibly expulsion from the Premier League or the retrospective stripping of titles.

The scenario of Man City being retrospectively stripped of the trophies won during the aforementioned period is the potential punishment that has certainly caught the attention of many Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester United supporters on social media.

But what would each club win if they were handed the retrospective titles should Man City be stripped of their eight trophies? Standard Sport takes a look...

Arsenal

Despite the appeals of many Arsenal fans as soon as reports emerged, they would not be awarded a single retrospective Premier League title. This is because the seasons in which they finished runners-up to Man City has not been under investigation.

The Gunners would, however, get a League Cup after being demolished 3-0 by City in the 2017-18 final at Wembley.

Liverpool

Jurgen Klopp’s comments about having a parade in his garden to celebrate a retrospective Liverpool Premier League title resurfaced on Friday, though the season in question is 2013-14 when Brendan Rodgers was in charge of the Reds.

The German, however, would be able to celebrate a League Cup after losing 2015-16 final on penalties to a Man City side then managed by Manuel Pellegrini.

Manchester United

Perhaps the biggest beneficiaries. Man United were twice runners-up to Man City in the Premier League during the 2009-10 and 2017-18 seasons, meaning two more league titles would be on their way to Old Trafford.

Former United defender Rio Ferdinand has been vocal about this on X, formerly Twitter, even pushing a case for Jose Mourinho, who has always spoken highly of that second-placed finish in 2017-18.