Manchester City Fined for Delayed Kickoffs

On Thursday, Premier League authorities said that Manchester City had been fined £1.08 million (US$1.45 million) for delaying kickoffs and restarts nine times last season.

The sanction is the same as last year, when City paid the league 2 million pounds ($2.56 million) for breaking the same regulations against delaying games. The longest wait was two minutes and twenty-four seconds, which happened before the second half of the Manchester derby at Old Trafford in December.

The club agreed to the rule violations and said they were sorry. They also said they had reminded their players and staff of their duties to follow the rules.

The league stated in a statement, “Rules about kick-offs and re-starts help make sure that the competition is run at the highest possible professional level and gives fans and participating clubs peace of mind.”

“It also makes sure that every Premier League game is shown on time.”

The Premier League claimed that fines were given out for City’s home games against Southampton, Tottenham Hotspur, Nottingham Forest, Manchester United, West Ham United, and Newcastle United, as well as their away games against Crystal Palace, Aston Villa, and Ipswich Town.

Last season, City came in third in the Premier League with 71 points, behind Arsenal (74 points) and Liverpool (84 points). City is currently playing in the Club World Cup, where they won their first match against Wydad AC. They also lost a shocking FA Cup final to Crystal Palace.