Against League 3 @againstleague3.bsky.social · 13/10/2026State of the Game report from the IFR now publicly available: sotg.footballregulator.org.uksotg.footballregulator.org.ukIFR | State of the Game | IFR State of the gameEnglish football is underpinned by contradictions. It is simultaneously the richest, best and most deeply competitive in the world but it’s also standing on the edge of a financial disaster. 040 0
Against League 3 @againstleague3.bsky.social · 06/10/2026"Steve, that fucking guy from Bluesky is here again." 150 0
Against League 3 @againstleague3.bsky.social · 06/10/2026Every time I have a player get injured in a season-ender, I personally blame you. I know that probably isn't the remit of a narrative designer, but I've decided it must be your fault anyway. 100 0
Reposted by Against League 3Martin Calladine @uglygame.bsky.social · 05/10/2026If City were relegated (bringing a drop of hundreds of millions in TV and prize money) and faced hundreds of millions in fines and legal costs *and* had to defend multiple lawsuits for many hundreds of millions more, then at some point, do they not become both insolvent and unsaleable? 7213 0
Against League 3 @againstleague3.bsky.social · 01/10/2026They've been to PSG and Napoli Feyenoord and Rome Now they're playing Spennymoor, Spennymoor at hommmeeee 0121 0
Against League 3 @againstleague3.bsky.social · 30/09/2026Yes this would all apply for the start of 27/28. 010 0
Against League 3 @againstleague3.bsky.social · 30/09/2026I like Neil. I don't do media at Southport anymore but always liked it when he turned up. Except the day I unplugged his box instead of my laptop. While he was live. Not the best day. 110 0
Against League 3 @againstleague3.bsky.social · 30/09/2026Woe fucking betide anyone who touches Neil Turner's ISDN line. 110 0
Against League 3 @againstleague3.bsky.social · 30/09/2026So an expelled City could only join the EFL after a change of control and a new executive team. Also, the PL clubs would in effect be voting to bar the owner and current management from English league football... 180 0
Against League 3 @againstleague3.bsky.social · 30/09/2026/ begins again Here's a fun one I didn't spot until after the thread, sorry about that! Bloody obvious too: Expulsion is itself a listed disqualifying event in the EFL's Owners' and Directors' Test 😊 170 0
Against League 3 @againstleague3.bsky.social · 30/09/2026This is my stance too. It would certainly be a payday but the National League TV deal is valid until 2031. Imagine the lawyers would peck at it. 110 0
Against League 3 @againstleague3.bsky.social · 30/09/2026I think a points deduction so large they get relegated by default would just be allowed to happen. The EFL has a list of disqualifying criteria for owners. Sporting sanctions from the commission would not (alone) qualify. 110 0
Against League 3 @againstleague3.bsky.social · 30/09/2026Bootham Crescent was the best one. "How do we get to that gantry to film?" "Ah, yes. First you crawl through this hole in the wall...." 110 0
Against League 3 @againstleague3.bsky.social · 30/09/2026I want to see City's 700-strong media crew figure out the press benches at Spennymoor. 120 0
Against League 3 @againstleague3.bsky.social · 30/09/2026"Why have we got Darlington away on Boxing Day?" 110 0
Against League 3 @againstleague3.bsky.social · 30/09/2026I confess I don't know if the IFR would possess this power if the club was not playing in a league within their remit. I will check. 000 0
Against League 3 @againstleague3.bsky.social · 30/09/2026Points deduction so large it causes relegation does not have to be dealt with in any other way. Yes they'd just go into the Championship. The above specifically looks at expulsion. (cheers!) 120 0
Against League 3 @againstleague3.bsky.social · 30/09/2026Had this out with a colleague this morning. My hypothesis is that both the EFL and the National League would stumble over their own mother to admit them, due to the payday, even if rules had to be changed. Their stance was too difficult with political context etc. Hard to tell 🤷♂️ 330 0
Against League 3 @againstleague3.bsky.social · 30/09/2026So League 2 if they get an IFR playing license, probably National League North if not. I think the moral of the story is "don't cheat". /endsstatic.klipy.comBenjammins: Coldplay Kiss Cam - Don't Cheat, Andy & KristinALT: Benjammins: Coldplay Kiss Cam - Don't Cheat, Andy & Kristin 361 0
Against League 3 @againstleague3.bsky.social · 30/09/2026There is no provision, that I can find, that shows the National League can accept new members by application. Member clubs are placed there by the FA. This is typically done simply by promotion and relegation but where that isn't the case, an FA committee decides placements. 140 0
Against League 3 @againstleague3.bsky.social · 30/09/2026If the IFR do block a playing license for Manchester City, the highest league then available to them is the National League North. The top division of the National League is within the remit of the IFR. National League North and South are not. 140 0
Against League 3 @againstleague3.bsky.social · 30/09/2026That would potentially open City to IFR consideration. The IFR will have the power to refuse licensing until the directors are gone. 240 0
Against League 3 @againstleague3.bsky.social · 30/09/2026The IFR does not typically deal with sporting sanctions. A breach of the Premier League's rules is not an IFR problem. But where it might fall under the remit of the IFR is if individual directions are named in a proven case of dishonesty or sporting fraud. 530 0
Against League 3 @againstleague3.bsky.social · 30/09/2026This is where the independent regulator might come in. In League 2 City would still be required to pass the club licensing requirements set to be introduced by the IFR. Applications start this coming November. And there is a possibility City might not pass this. 130 0
Against League 3 @againstleague3.bsky.social · 30/09/2026EFL Regulation 11.6.2: "the Board may on such terms and conditions as it may think fit, admit any Association Football club as a member(s) to League 2 to restore the number of Clubs in the League to 72". So unless the rules are changed, League 2 then, not the Championship. 231 0
Against League 3 @againstleague3.bsky.social · 30/09/2026Upon expelling a member mid season, the Premier League rules say 1 less club will be relegated. Leaving 71 in the EFL and a place available. If a member is expelled out of season, the highest-placed relegated club "MAY" be invited back. Rules C.15 and C.16. 130 0
Against League 3 @againstleague3.bsky.social · 30/09/2026Where do City go if that happens? Well, there's a lot of poor commentary on this already. They can apply for membership of the EFL, or they can be placed somewhere in non-league by the FA. The EFL is the obvious placement, but it's not guaranteed. 130 0
Against League 3 @againstleague3.bsky.social · 30/09/2026There has to be a vote of member clubs, as defined by Premier League rules. "the League may expel a Club from membership upon a special Resolution to that effect being passed by a majority of not less than three-quarters of such members" 15 clubs would have to vote to kick them out.static.klipy.comRalph Wiggum's 'I'm Voted' MemeALT: Ralph Wiggum's 'I'm Voted' Meme 240 0
Against League 3 @againstleague3.bsky.social · 30/09/2026What happens if that process is triggered? Well, it gets real messy, real quickly. 130 0
Against League 3 @againstleague3.bsky.social · 30/09/2026Officially it has the power to: "recommend that the League expels the Respondent from membership in accordance with the provisions of Rule B.6" (W.64.4.4). 130 0
Against League 3 @againstleague3.bsky.social · 30/09/2026So can City get relegated? Well, the commission overseeing this disciplinary process can issue unlimited sporting sanctions (point deductions, fines, etc) but it can only *recommend* that City be expelled. 230 0
Against League 3 @againstleague3.bsky.social · 30/09/2026Until yesterday, I'd thought that the prospect of City being expelled from the Premier League was quite unlikely. I expected that any sanctions, post appeal, would look like a reluctantly issued slap on the wrist. Now, I'm not so sure..static.klipy.comHold On To Your Butts - Jurassic ParkALT: Hold On To Your Butts - Jurassic Park 161 0
Against League 3 @againstleague3.bsky.social · 30/09/2026Can City get expelled from the Premier League? What competition would they go into? What role does the independent regulator play? Who knows? Well I do, because I checked. Come, join me on a guided tour through the chaos...static.klipy.comUsagyuuun's Fiery SmileALT: Usagyuuun's Fiery Smile 63122 0
Against League 3 @againstleague3.bsky.social · 29/09/2026Don't worry, it's not as if we've allowed City Group to own (or operate) 9 other football clubs worldwide. I'm sure they only cheated at City and all of those other 9 clubs are absolutely untainted and operated totally fairly. 32613 0
Against League 3 @againstleague3.bsky.social · 29/09/2026Exclusive: I have been sent a copy of City's "irrefutable evidence" by an anonymous source. 061 0
Reposted by Against League 3Martin Calladine @uglygame.bsky.social · 29/09/2026"The purpose of these schemes was found to have been to artificially inflate the club’s revenues, and reduce its costs, by more than £900 million." That is an absolutely massive sporting fraud. www.premierleague.com/en/news/4727...premierleague.comPremier League Statement: Manchester City FCAn independent Commission has found Manchester City FC guilty of all charges related to serious breaches of the Premier League’s financial rules over a nine-season period, and the majority of charges in relation to its failure to co-operate with the League’s investigation. 622188 0
Against League 3 @againstleague3.bsky.social · 26/09/2026I know you're all very busy with Man City destroying the very fabric of football but I just wanted to say the Formula 1 being on a Saturday can get in the bin. As you were. 110 0
Against League 3 @againstleague3.bsky.social · 26/09/2026Ah, I've woken up on the wrong side of the bed. On one hand, City's pending demise is hilarious and I'll enjoy every punishment and every news article. On the other hand it's actually gutting. Morning all 😀 0100 0
Against League 3 @againstleague3.bsky.social · 26/09/2026Imagine a Premier League fan who spent the last 15 years supporting there club. Maybe you are one. Every match you watched, every ticket you bought. What was the fucking point? 370 0
Against League 3 @againstleague3.bsky.social · 26/09/2026And when the very justified schadenfreude subsides, you should actually be royally pissed off. City's owners have taken a pastime and a culture that we all care about and ruined it. What was the actual point of football these past few years? 182 0
Against League 3 @againstleague3.bsky.social · 26/09/2026That's football now. We were happy to let elite football move from a sport to "competitive bank balance watching" and the result is we'll watch the past 15 years re-decided in a courtroom. 192 0
Against League 3 @againstleague3.bsky.social · 26/09/2026The sporting punishment City eventually receive after appeal will almost certainly be much lighter than they really deserve. The real punishment will just be lawsuit after lawsuit. 290 0
