Manchester City fined over pitch invasion to celebrate Premier League title win
By Jamie Gardner, PA Chief Sports Reporter
Manchester City have been fined £260,000 and given a warning over the pitch invasion which followed their Premier League title win in May.
Fans came onto the pitch after City fought back from 2-0 down against Aston Villa to win 3-2 and clinch the top-flight crown on Sunday, May 22.
City admitted a Football Association charge that they “failed to ensure spectators… conducted themselves in an orderly fashion and refrained from using threatening and violent behaviour while encroaching onto the pitch after the final whistle”.
— FA Spokesperson (@FAspokesperson) October 7, 2022
The sanctions were imposed by an independent regulatory commission during a hearing.
A City fan was given a four-year football banning order in June for entering the field and taunting Villa goalkeeper Robin Olsen after Ilkay Gundogan had scored the Blues’ decisive third goal, which kept them ahead of Liverpool in the race for the title.
Inquiries are ongoing into a reported assault on Olsen that occurred during the mass pitch invasion after the final whistle, with City issuing an apology to Olsen over that incident on the day of the match and pledging to issue an indefinite ban to the individual responsible.
The end of last season was marred by pitch invasions at Premier League and EFL fixtures.
Last month Everton were fined £300,000 as fans came onto the pitch at the end of their match against Crystal Palace where the Toffees secured their Premier League status.
Sheffield United forward Billy Sharp was headbutted by a pitch-invading supporter during his side’s play-off semi-final defeat at Nottingham Forest’s City Ground.
Data released by the Home Office last month showed there were 441 pitch encroachments at matches in England and Wales last season, an increase of 127 per cent compared to 2018-19, the last complete season unaffected by Covid-19 restrictions.
