By Sohaib Shams
The Premier League's board, comprising five individuals, will play a pivotal role in recommending a punishment for Manchester City after an independent commission found the club guilty of breaching financial rules.
Board composition and responsibilities
The board is responsible for prosecuting breaches of Premier League rules and consists of the league's chair, chief executive, and three independent non-executive directors, with no club representatives included to ensure independence and neutrality.
Chair Alison Brittain
Alison Brittain, the league's first female chair, has kept a low profile since her appointment nearly four years ago. A former senior executive in hospitality and financial services, she also chairs the King's Trust Group. Brittain, a lifelong Manchester United fan who now supports Brentford, received unanimous backing from the 20 clubs in 2025 for a second three-year term. She has emphasized her role in maintaining competitive balance across the league.
Chief Executive Richard Masters
Richard Masters, chief executive since 2019, is a more familiar figure to football fans. Following the commission's core decision in September, Masters said it vindicated the Premier League's pursuit of the case and stressed the league's responsibility to uphold rules approved by clubs. He pledged to move swiftly through the remainder of the process to provide certainty. Masters, reportedly an Aston Villa fan, has told a parliamentary committee that the board applies rules consistently regardless of the club involved.
Independent non-executive directors
The board's three independent directors are Mai Fyfield, a former Sky executive who led its bidding for three Premier League TV cycles and sits on the BBC Commercial board; Dharmash Mistry, a technology venture capitalist and former BBC non-executive director who chairs the Premier League's audit and finance committee and represents the league on the FA board; and Matthew Ryder, a senior barrister, part-time judge, and former deputy mayor of London who chairs the league's legal advisory group and sits on the Scott Trust board that owns the Guardian newspaper.
Previous disciplinary cases
Past cases show independent commissions do not always agree with the board's recommended sanctions. In 2023, the league sought a 12-point deduction for Everton, but a commission imposed 10 points, later reduced to six on appeal. In 2024, the board recommended an eight-point deduction for Nottingham Forest, but the commission settled on four points. For Leicester City, the league argued for a 12-point deduction in the Championship, while the commission recommended six points imposed by the EFL. Earlier this year, the board reached a sanctions agreement with Chelsea resulting in a £10 million fine and a suspended transfer ban after the club admitted to £47 million in secret payments to unregistered agents.
Uncertainty over sanction timing and severity
It is not known when a sanction hearing will take place, nor what punishment the Premier League will seek for what it describes as the most significant disciplinary case in its history. Possible sanctions include a fine, points deduction, expulsion, or the stripping of past titles.
