Partners tend to judge a controversy by whether it is still in the news. City’s rules case says that is the wrong test. By mid-October fans were mostly talking about football again. The mood took another fortnight to recover, and through a 5–1 win it stayed below normal. The real all-clear is a normal day after a win, and City have not had one yet.
In late September an independent commission found City had broken Premier League financial rules. City dispute the findings and have appealed. This piece is about the audience, not the verdict.
The case took over in a day
Before the case, about 2 in 100 posts about City were about it. In the days around the findings it was 84 in 100. Once the news stopped, the share fell quickly, but it has not gone back to where it was.
Share of posts about Manchester City that were about the financial case, %
For a partner: the share fell fast once the news stopped, but it is still several times its old level. The case is in the background now, not gone.
Source: MIRATA · social posts and City fan forum, fused · 11 Sep–3 Nov 2026 · rival fans included
Talk came back before the feeling did
By Anfield on 11 October, most of the conversation was football again, and City won 3–0. The day after still read 24.9 on Fan Pulse, against about 36 after a typical Premier League win. Sky’s coverage kept the case close: Peter Drury called it “the most peculiar day in Premier League history”, and Gary Neville and Jamie Carragher warned of a “stain” on the league.
A 5–1 win over AEK Athens still read below normal. The first match that felt normal for its result was a defeat, at Aston Villa on 24 October. A normal defeat is a low bar, so the next win is the test that matters.
Fan Pulse on the day after each match. Grey: the middle half of other Premier League clubs after the same result
For a sponsor: time activations to the mood, not the headlines. A win becomes a safe moment again only when the day after it reads normal. City have not had that win yet.
Source: MIRATA Fan Pulse · social posts and fan forums, fused · day after each match · PSG (14 Oct), Brighton (28 Oct, cup) left out: too little data that day
The sponsor’s window was short
Blame spread to everyone near the story, then narrowed. The owners’ share rose with each step of the case and peaked at the appeal. At Anfield, as it fell, City’s away fans held a flag reading “In Khaldoon We Trust. We’ve Won It All”. The shirt sponsor, Etihad, was drawn in for five days, when the findings named commercial contracts and the airline answered publicly, and was all but out of it by the next match.
Share of critical posts aimed at each party, %. A post can blame more than one
For a sponsor: being named is not the same as being blamed. Track who the criticism is aimed at. Here the airline’s share peaked at the appeal and was gone by the next match.
Source: MIRATA · social posts and fan forums, fused · 26 Sep–3 Nov 2026
Every moment in full
| Moment | Critical | Club | Owners | League | Etihad |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chairman’s letter26–28 Sep | 82% | 60% | 20% | 8% | 1% |
| Findings29–30 Sep | 79% | 59% | 28% | 15% | 13% |
| Appeal1–3 Oct | 85% | 49% | 42% | 14% | 19% |
| Anfield win11–12 Oct | 71% | 47% | 11% | 14% | 0% |
| After Anfield13–16 Oct | 32% | 36% | 9% | 13% | 0% |
| Ipswich win17–23 Oct | 26% | 18% | 13% | 22% | 0% |
| Villa defeat24–30 Oct | 41% | 45% | 6% | 3% | 1% |
| Brighton defeat31 Oct–3 Nov | 39% | 46% | 3% | 6% | 2% |
“Critical” is the share of posts that criticise someone. Each share is accurate to within about 9 to 12 points either way.
What we would tell a club’s partners
- Judge it by the mood after a win, not by the headlines.Talk comes back weeks before feeling does. The first normal day after a win is the signal that a club’s good moments are working for its partners again.
- Watch who is blamed, not how often you are named.A sponsor’s exposure came and went in days. A mention count would have missed both the start and the end of it.
The next tests are City’s next win and the appeal decision, due to the parties by 23 January 2027 under the standard rules. Follow how this evolves on the Pulse app.
The partner briefing
For club and sponsor teams. We send it to people who ask for it.
- What the case did to the shirt sponsor’s name, week by week: how often it meant the airline rather than the stadium, and how warm or cold that talk was.
- The questions we would put to the club and to the sponsor, and which of their own figures would answer them.
- The moves we would consider before the appeal decision.
Methods and sources
How we measure. We collect public posts and comments about City from social channels and fan forums within set time windows, and fuse the channels so that no single platform sets a number. Every window is measured the same way, our readings are checked against labelled samples, and days with too little data are left out rather than filled in.
Fan Pulse reflects the balance of positive and negative opinionated posts and comments. Neutral posts are left out. The normal range is the middle half of other Premier League clubs on the day after a match with the same result this season. Topic shares show how much of the conversation was about the case, football or something else. Blame shares show who critical posts were aimed at.
Rival fans are included. This is not a survey of City supporters. Match results come from a stats API. Use the form above to ask for the full method and the scores behind each chart.
The Commission’s findings were published on 29 September 2026; standard appeal rules set the decision date.