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Manchester City

Full name	Manchester City Football Club
Nickname(s)	Citizens, Sky Blues, City
Short name	MCFC, Man City
Founded	1880; 139 years ago (1880) as St. Mark's (West Gorton) 16 April 1894; 124 years ago (1894-04-16) as Manchester City[1]
Ground	City of Manchester Stadium
Capacity	55,017 [2]
Owner	City Football Group[3] ADUG – 86.21% CITIC Group – 13.79%
Chairman	Khaldoon Al Mubarak
Manager	Pep Guardiola
League	Premier League
2017–18	Premier League, 1st of 20 (champions)
Website	Club website
Home colours Away colours Third colours
Current season

Manchester City Football Club, sometimes abbreviated to Man City, is a football club based in Manchester, England, that competes in the Premier League, the top flight of English football. The club has won five league titles, five FA Cups, five League Cups, five FA Community Shields, and one European Cup Winners' Cup.

Founded in 1880, the club entered the Football League in 1899, and won their first major honour with the FA Cup in 1904. They had a period of success in the late 1960s, winning the League, FA Cup and League Cup under the management of Joe Mercer and Malcolm Allison. After losing the 1981 FA Cup Final, the club went through a period of decline, culminating in relegation to the third tier of English football.

Having regained their Premier League status in the early 2000s, Manchester City was purchased in 2008 by Abu Dhabi United Group for £210 million, receiving considerable investment. The club subsequently won several trophies in the 2010s, and also became the only team to attain 100 points in a season.

Manchester City's revenue was the fifth highest of a football club in the world in the 2017–18 season at €527.7 million.^[4][5] In 2018, Forbes estimated the club was the fifth most valuable in the world at $2.47 billion.^[6]

History

St. Marks (Gorton) in 1884 – the reason for the cross pattée on the shirts is now unknown^[7]

City gained their first honours by winning the Second Division in 1899; with it came promotion to the highest level in English football, the First Division. They went on to claim their first major honour on 23 April 1904, beating Bolton Wanderers 1–0 at Crystal Palace to win the FA Cup; City narrowly missed out on a League and Cup double that season after finishing runners-up in the League but City became the first club in Manchester to win a major honour.^[8]
In the seasons following the FA Cup triumph, the club was dogged by allegations of financial irregularities, culminating in the suspension of seventeen players in 1906, including captain Billy Meredith, who subsequently moved across town to Manchester United.^[9] A fire at Hyde Road destroyed the main stand in 1920, and in 1923 the club moved to their new purpose-built stadium at Maine Road in Moss Side.^[10]

The Manchester City team which won the FA Cup in 1904

In the 1930s, Manchester City reached two consecutive FA Cup finals, losing to Everton in 1933, before claiming the Cup by beating Portsmouth in 1934.^[11] During the 1934 cup run, Manchester City broke the record for the highest home attendance of any club in English football history, as 84,569 fans packed Maine Road for a sixth round FA Cup tie against Stoke City in 1934 – a record which still stands to this day.^[12] The club won the First Division title for the first time in 1937, but were relegated the following season, despite scoring more goals than any other team in the division.^[13] Twenty years later, a City team inspired by a tactical system known as the Revie Plan reached consecutive FA Cup finals again, in 1955 and 1956; just as in the 1930s, they lost the first one, to Newcastle United, and won the second. The 1956 final, in which Manchester City beat Birmingham City 3–1, is one of the most famous finals of all-time, and is remembered for City goalkeeper Bert Trautmann continuing to play on after unknowingly breaking his neck.^[14]

After relegation to the Second Division in 1963, the future looked bleak with a record low home attendance of 8,015 against Swindon Town in January 1965.^[15] In the summer of 1965, the management team of Joe Mercer and Malcolm Allison was appointed. In the first season under Mercer, City won the Second Division title and made important signings in Mike Summerbee and Colin Bell.^[16] Two seasons later, in 1967–68, Manchester City claimed the League Championship for the second time, clinching the title on the final day of the season with a 4–3 win at Newcastle United and beating their close neighbours Manchester United into second place.^[17] Further trophies followed: City won the FA Cup in 1969, before achieving European success by winning the European Cup Winners' Cup in 1970, beating Górnik Zabrze 2–1 in Vienna.^[18] City also won the League Cup that season, becoming the second English team to win a European trophy and a domestic trophy in the same season.

The club continued to challenge for honours throughout the 1970s, finishing one point behind the league champions on two occasions and reaching the final of the 1974 League Cup.^[19] One of the matches from this period that is most fondly remembered by supporters of Manchester City is the final match of the 1973–74 season against arch-rivals Manchester United, who needed to win to have any hope of avoiding relegation. Former United player Denis Law scored with a backheel to give City a 1–0 win at Old Trafford and confirm the relegation of their rivals.^[20][21] The final trophy of the club's most successful period was won in 1976, when Newcastle United were beaten 2–1 in the League Cup final.

Chart of yearly table positions of City in the Football League.

A long period of decline followed the success of the 1960s and 1970s. Malcolm Allison rejoined the club to become manager for the second time in 1979, but squandered large sums of money on unsuccessful signings, such as Steve Daley.^[22] A succession of managers then followed – seven in the 1980s alone. Under John Bond, City reached the 1981 FA Cup final but lost in a replay to Tottenham Hotspur. The club were twice relegated from the top flight in the 1980s (in 1983 and 1987), but returned to the top flight again in 1989 and finished fifth in 1991 and 1992 under the management of Peter Reid.^[23] However, this was only a temporary respite, and following Reid's departure Manchester City's fortunes continued to fade. City were co-founders of the Premier League upon its creation in 1992, but after finishing ninth in its first season they endured three seasons of struggle before being relegated in 1996. After two seasons in Division One, City fell to the lowest point in their history, becoming the second ever European trophy winners to be relegated to their country's third league tier, after 1. FC Magdeburg of Germany.

After relegation, the club underwent off-the-field upheaval, with new chairman David Bernstein introducing greater fiscal discipline.^[24] Under manager Joe Royle, City were promoted at the first attempt, achieved in dramatic fashion in a play-off against Gillingham. A second successive promotion saw City return to the top division, but this proved to have been a step too far for the recovering club, and in 2001 City were relegated once more. Kevin Keegan replaced Royle as manager in the close season, and achieved an immediate return to the top division as the club won the 2001–02 Division One championship, breaking club records for the number of points gained and goals scored in a season in the process.^[25] The 2002–03 season was the last at Maine Road, and included a 3–1 derby victory over rivals Manchester United, ending a run of 13 years without a derby win.^[26] City also qualified for European competition for the first time in 25 years. In the 2003 close season, the club moved to the new City of Manchester Stadium. The first four seasons at the stadium all resulted in mid-table finishes. Former England manager Sven-Göran Eriksson became the club's first manager from overseas when appointed in 2007.^[27] After a bright start, performances faded in the second half of the season, and Eriksson was sacked in June 2008.^[28] Eriksson was replaced by Mark Hughes two days later on 4 June 2008.^[29]

By 2008, the club was in a financially precarious position. Thaksin Shinawatra had taken control of the club a year before, but his political travails saw his assets frozen.^[30] Then, in August 2008, the club was purchased by the Abu Dhabi United Group. The takeover was immediately followed by a flurry of bids for high-profile players; the club broke the British transfer record by signing Brazilian international Robinho from Real Madrid for £32.5 million.^[31] Performances were not a huge improvement on the previous season despite the influx of money however, with the team finishing tenth, although they did well to reach the quarter-finals of the UEFA Cup. During the summer of 2009, the club took transfer spending to an unprecedented level, with an outlay of over £100 million on players Gareth Barry, Roque Santa Cruz, Kolo Touré, Emmanuel Adebayor, Carlos Tevez and Joleon Lescott.^[32] In December 2009, Mark Hughes – who had been hired shortly before the change in ownership but was originally retained by the new board – was replaced as manager by Roberto Mancini.^[33] City finished the season in fifth position in the Premier League, narrowly missing out on a place in the Champions League, and competed in the UEFA Europa League in season 2010–11.

Manchester City supporters invade the pitch following their 2011–12 Premier League title win.

Continued investment in players followed in successive seasons, and results began to match the upturn in player quality. City reached the 2011 FA Cup Final, their first major final in over 30 years, after defeating derby rivals Manchester United in the semi-final,^[34] the first time they had knocked their rival out of a cup competition since 1975. They defeated Stoke City 1–0 in the final, securing their fifth FA Cup, the club's first major trophy since winning the 1976 League Cup. In the same week, the club qualified for the UEFA Champions League for the first time since 1968 with a 1–0 Premier League win over Tottenham Hotspur.^[35] On the last day of the 2010–11 season, City passed Arsenal for third place in the Premier League, thereby securing qualification directly into the Champions League group stage.

Manchester City moved into their new complex at the Etihad Campus adjacent to the City of Manchester Stadium in 2014.

Strong performances continued to follow in the 2011–12 season, with the club beginning the following season in commanding form, including beating Tottenham 5–1 at White Hart Lane and humbling Manchester United by a 6–1 scoreline in United's own stadium. Although the strong form waned halfway through the season, and City at one point fell eight points behind their arch rivals with only six games left to play, a slump by United allowed the blue side of Manchester to draw back level with two games to go, setting up a thrilling finale to the season with both teams going into the last day equal on points. Despite City only needing a home win against a team in the relegation zone, they fell a goal behind by the end of normal time, leading some of United's players to finish their game celebrating in the belief that they had won the league. Two goals in injury time – including one scored almost five minutes after normal time had elapsed – resulted in an almost-literal last-minute title victory, City's first in 44 years, and became only the fifth team to win the Premier League since its creation in 1992. In the aftermath that followed, the event was described by media sources from the UK and around the world as the greatest moment in Premier League history.^[36][37] The game was also notable for former player Joey Barton's sending off, where he committed three separate red card-able incidents on three different players in the space of only a couple of seconds, resulting in a 12-match ban.^[38]

The following season City failed to capitalise on the gains made in the first two full seasons of Mancini's reign. While City rarely seemed likely to drop below second in the table, they posed little title challenge all season. In the Champions League, the club was eliminated at the group stage for a second successive season, while a second FA Cup final in three seasons ended in a 1–0 defeat to relegated Wigan Athletic.^[39] Mancini was dismissed two days later, ostensibly as he had failed to reach his targets for the season,^[40] but BBC Sports Editor David Bond reported he had been sacked for his poor communication and relationships with players and executives.^[41] In his place was appointed the Chilean Manuel Pellegrini.^[42] In Pellegrini's first season, City won the League Cup^[43] and regained the Premier League title on the last day of the season.^[44]

Manchester City won the 2017–18 Premier League title. The club had the highest point total in Premier League history and broke numerous Club and English league records in that season. Pep Guardiola, former manager of Barcelona and Bayern Munich, is the current manager, who has been in charge since the dismissal of Pellegrini in 2016.^[45]

L1 = Level 1 of the football league system; L2 = Level 2 of the football league system; L3 = Level 3 of the football league system.

Club badge and colours

Manchester City's stadium and shirt have been sponsored by Etihad Airways since 2009.

Manchester City's home colours are sky blue and white. Traditional away kit colours have been either maroon or (from the 1960s) red and black; however, in recent years several different colours have been used. The origins of the club's home colours are unclear, but there is evidence that the club has worn blue since 1892 or earlier. A booklet entitled Famous Football Clubs – Manchester City published in the 1940s indicates that West Gorton (St. Marks) originally played in scarlet and black, and reports dating from 1884 describe the team wearing black jerseys bearing a white cross, showing the club's origins as a church side.^[46] The red and black away colours used infrequently yet recurrently come from former assistant manager Malcolm Allison, who believed that adopting the colours of A.C. Milan would inspire City to glory.^[47] Allison's theory worked, with City winning the 1969 FA Cup Final, 1970 League Cup Final and the 1970 European Cup Winners' Cup Final in red and black stripes as opposed to the club's home kit of sky blue.

City have previously worn three other badges on their shirts, prior to their current badge which was implemented in 2016. The first, introduced in 1970, was based on designs which had been used on official club documentation since the mid-1960s. It consisted of a circular badge which used the same shield as the current badge, inside a circle bearing the name of the club. In 1972, this was replaced by a variation which replaced the lower half of the shield with the red rose of Lancashire. On occasions when Manchester City plays in a major cup final, the usual badge has not been used; instead shirts bearing a badge of the arms of the City of Manchester are used, as a symbol of pride in representing the city of Manchester at a major event. This practice originates from a time when the players' shirts did not normally bear a badge of any kind, but has continued throughout the history of the club.^[48] For the 2011 FA Cup Final, City used the usual badge with a special legend, but the Manchester coat of arms was included as a small monochrome logo in the numbers on the back of players' shirts.^[49]

A new club badge was adopted in 1997, as a result of the previous badge being ineligible for registration as a trademark. This badge was based on the arms of the city of Manchester, and consisted of a shield in front of a golden eagle. The eagle is an old heraldic symbol of the city of Manchester; a golden eagle was added to the city's badge in 1958 (but has since been removed), representing the growing aviation industry. The shield features a ship on its upper half representing the Manchester Ship Canal, and three diagonal stripes in the lower half symbolise the city's three rivers – the Irwell, the Irk and the Medlock. The bottom of the badge bears the motto "Superbia in Proelio", which translates as "Pride in Battle" in Latin. Above the eagle and shield are three stars, which are purely decorative.

On 15 October 2015, following years of criticism from the fans over the design of the 1997 badge,^[50] the club announced they intended to carry out a fan consultation on whether to disregard the club badge and institute a new design.^[50] After the consultation, the club announced in late November 2015 the current club badge would be replaced in due course by a new version which would be designed in the style of the older, circular variants.^[51] A design purporting to be the new badge was unintentionally leaked two days early prior to the official unveiling on 26 December 2015 by the IPO when the design was trademarked on 22 December.^[52] The new design was officially unveiled at the club's home match on 26 December against Sunderland.^[53]

Kit suppliers and shirt sponsors

Players

Current squad

Manchester City players before a UEFA Champions League match in 2017. (Top row, left to right: Ederson, Walker, De Bruyne, Fernandinho, Stones, Otamendi. Bottom row, left to right: Agüero, Sane, David Silva, Delph, Jesus)

As of 8 January 2019^[54]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player 1 GK Claudio Bravo 2 DF Kyle Walker 3 DF Danilo 4 DF Vincent Kompany (captain) 5 DF John Stones 7 MF Raheem Sterling 8 MF İlkay Gündoğan 10 FW Sergio Agüero 14 DF Aymeric Laporte 15 DF Eliaquim Mangala 17 MF Kevin De Bruyne 18 MF Fabian Delph 19 MF Leroy Sané 20 MF Bernardo Silva

No. Position Player 21 MF David Silva 22 DF Benjamin Mendy 25 MF Fernandinho 26 MF Riyad Mahrez 30 DF Nicolás Otamendi 31 GK Ederson 32 GK Daniel Grimshaw 33 FW Gabriel Jesus 34 DF Philippe Sandler 35 MF Oleksandr Zinchenko 47 MF Phil Foden 49 GK Arijanet Muric 74 FW Luke Bolton

Out on loan

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player 24 DF Tosin Adarabioyo (at West Bromwich Albion until 30 June 2019)[55] 27 MF Patrick Roberts (at Girona until 30 June 2019)[55] 43 FW Lukas Nmecha (at Preston North End until 30 June 2019)[56]

No. Position Player 62 MF Brandon Barker (at Preston North End until 30 June 2019)[57] 75 MF Aleix García (at Girona until 30 June 2019) 76 MF Manu García (at Toulouse until 30 June 2019)[55]

Other players with first-team appearances

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player 50 DF Eric García [58] 72 MF Tom Dele-Bashiru [56] 77 DF Cameron Humphreys-Grant [57]

No. Position Player 81 MF Claudio Gomes [59] 82 MF Adrián Bernabé

Retired numbers

Since 2003, Manchester City have not issued the squad number 23. It was retired in memory of Marc-Vivien Foé, who was on loan to the club from Lyon at the time of his death on the field of play while playing for Cameroon in the 2003 FIFA Confederations Cup.^[60]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Position Player 23 MF Marc-Vivien Foé (2002–03) – posthumous honour)

Player of the Year

Year Winner 1985–86 Kenny Clements 1986–87 Neil McNab 1987–88 Steve Redmond 1988–89 Neil McNab 1989–90 Colin Hendry 1990–91 Niall Quinn 1991–92 Tony Coton 1992–93 Garry Flitcroft 1993–94 Tony Coton 1994–95 Uwe Rösler

Year Winner 1995–96 Georgi Kinkladze 1996–97 Georgi Kinkladze 1997–98 Michael Brown 1998–99 Gerard Wiekens 1999–2000 Shaun Goater 2000–01 Danny Tiatto 2001–02 Ali Benarbia 2002–03 Sylvain Distin 2003–04 Shaun Wright-Phillips 2004–05 Richard Dunne

Year Winner 2005–06 Richard Dunne 2006–07 Richard Dunne 2007–08 Richard Dunne 2008–09 Stephen Ireland 2009–10 Carlos Tevez 2010–11 Vincent Kompany 2011–12 Sergio Agüero 2012–13 Pablo Zabaleta 2013–14 Yaya Touré 2014–15 Sergio Agüero

Year Winner 2015–16 Kevin De Bruyne 2016–17 David Silva 2017–18 Kevin De Bruyne

Source:^{[61][62][63][64][65]}

Halls of Fame

Manchester City Hall of Fame

The following former Manchester City players and managers are inductees in the Manchester City F.C. Hall of Fame, and are listed according to the year of their induction:

Inductees in MCFC Hall of Fame
Year of induction	Player	Position	Role at MCFC	Years in role at MCFC	Notes
	Manchester City players who were the inaugural inductees in January 2004
2004[66]	Billy Meredith	FW (outside right)	player	1894–1906, 1921–1924	also see NFM Hall of Fame
	Tommy Johnson	FW (centre forward) & (inside left)	player	1919–1930
	Eric Brook	FW (outside left)	player	1928–1939
	Frank Swift	GK	player	1933–1949	also see NFM Hall of Fame
	Peter Doherty	FW (inside left)	player	1936–1945	also see NFM Hall of Fame
	Roy Clarke	FW (outside left)	player	1947–1958	Lifetime achievement award
	Bert Trautmann, OBE	GK	player	1949–1964	also see NFM Hall of Fame
	Roy Paul	MF (half back)	player	1950–1957
	Mike Summerbee	FW / MF (outside right)	player	1965–1975
	Tony Book	DF (right back)	player manager	1966–1974 1973, 1974–1979, 1980, 1989, 1993
	Colin Bell, MBE	MF	player	1966–1979	also see NFM Hall of Fame
	Francis Lee	FW	player chairman	1967–1974 1994–1998	also see NFM Hall of Fame
	Joe Corrigan	GK	player	1967–1983
	Paul Lake	FW / MF / DF	player	1987–1996
	Niall Quinn, (Honorary) MBE	FW	player	1990–1996	also see NFM Hall of Fame
	Manchester City players and teams inducted since 2004
2005[67]	Sam Cowan	DF (centre half)	player manager	1924–1935 1946–1947
	Ken Barnes	MF (wing half)	player	1950–1961	Lifetime achievement award
	Alan Oakes	MF	player	1958–1976
	Joe Mercer, OBE	MF (left half)	manager	1965–1971	Outstanding achievement award also see NFM Hall of Fame
	Malcolm Allison	DF (centre half)	assistant mgr. manager	1965–1971 1971–1973, 1979–1980	Outstanding achievement award also see NFM Hall of Fame
2006[68]	Ernie Toseland	FW (outside right)	player	1928–1938
	Johnny Hart	FW (inside forward)	player manager	1947–1960 1973	Lifetime achievement award
	Manchester City 1956 0000FA Cup-winning team	not applicable			en masse induction
	Mike Doyle	DF / MF	player	1965–1978
	Shaun Goater	FW	player	1998–2003	Cult hero award
2008[69]	Fred Tilson	FW (centre forward)	player	1928–1939
	Neil Young	FW (outside left) & (inside left)	player	1961–1972
	Alex Williams, MBE	GK	player	1980–1986	Lifetime achievement award
2009[70]	Uwe Rösler	FW	player	1994–1998

National Football Museum Hall of Fame

The following former Manchester City players and managers are inductees in the English Football Hall of Fame (a.k.a. the National Football Museum Hall of Fame) and are listed according to the year of their induction within the various categories:

Inductees in NFM Hall of Fame
Year of induction	Player	Position	Role at MCFC	Years in role at MCFC
	Players with Manchester City backgrounds inducted to date
2002	Peter Doherty	FW (inside left)	player	1936–1945
	Denis Law	FW	player	1960–1961, 1973–1974
	Kevin Keegan, OBE	FW / MF	manager	2001–2005
2003	Peter Schmeichel, MBE	GK	player	2002–2003
	Alan Ball, MBE	MF	manager	1995–1996
2005	Bert Trautmann, OBE	GK	player	1949–1964
	Colin Bell, MBE	MF	player	1966–1979
2007	Billy Meredith	FW (outside right)	player	1894–1906, 1921–1924
	Mark Hughes	FW	manager	2008–2009
2009	Frank Swift	GK	player	1933–1949
2010	Francis Lee	FW	player	1967–1974
2013	Mike Summerbee	FW	player	1965–1975
2014	Trevor Francis	FW	player	1981–1982
	Patrick Viera	MF	player and coach	2010–2015
2015	Stuart Pearce	DF	player and manager	2001-2002, 2005-2007
2016	David Seaman	GK	player	2003-2004
	Managers with Manchester City backgrounds inducted to date
2002	Sir Matt Busby, CBE, KCSG	FW (inside right) / MF (right half)	player	1928–1936
2004	Don Revie, OBE	FW (centre forward)	player	1951–1956
2005	Howard Kendall	MF	manager	1989–1990
2009	Joe Mercer, OBE	MF (left half)	manager	1965–1971
	Malcolm Allison	DF (centre half)	assistant mgr. manager	1965–1971 1971–1973, 1979–1980
	Manchester City "Football Foundation Community Champions" inducted to date
2007	Niall Quinn, (Honorary) MBE	FW	player	1990–1996
	Manchester City "Honourary Special Award" inducted to date
2015	Sun Jihai	DF	player	2002–2008
	Manchester City teams inducted to date
2009	Manchester City 1967–70	not applicable

Scottish Football Museum Hall of Fame

The following former Manchester City players and managers are inductees in the Scottish Football Hall of Fame (a.k.a. the Scottish Football Museum Hall of Fame) and are listed according to the year of their induction within the various categories:

Inductees in SFM Hall of Fame
Year of induction	Player	Position	Role at MCFC	Years in role at MCFC
	Players with Manchester City backgrounds inducted to date
2004	Denis Law	FW	player	1960–1961, 1973–1974
	Billy McNeill, MBE	DF	manager	1983–1986
2010	Bobby Johnstone	FW (inside right)	player	1955–1959
	Managers with Manchester City backgrounds inducted to date
2004	Matt Busby, CBE, KCSG	FW (inside right) / MF (right half)	player	1928–1936

Welsh Sports Hall of Fame

The following former Manchester City players are inductees in the Welsh Sports Hall of Fame and are listed according to the year of their induction:

Inductees in SFM Hall of Fame
Year of induction	Player	Position	Role at MCFC	Years in role at MCFC
	Players with Manchester City backgrounds inducted to date
1990	Billy Meredith	DF	player	1894–1906
1999	Horace Blew	DF	player	1906

Non-playing staff

Chairman Khaldoon Al Mubarak

Corporate hierarchy

Position	Name
Chairman	Khaldoon Al Mubarak
Director	Ruigang Li
Chief Executive Officer	Ferran Soriano
Global Technical Director of the City Football Group	Rodolfo Borrell
non-executive director	Mohamed Al Mazrouei
non-executive director	Simon Pearce
non-executive director	John Macbeath
non-executive director	Marty Edelman
non-executive director	Alberto Galassi
managing director of the City Football Academy	Brian Marwood

Management hierarchy

Current City manager Pep Guardiola

Position	Name
Director of Football	Txiki Begiristain
Head Coach	Pep Guardiola
Assistant Coach	Brian Kidd
Assistant Coach	Mikel Arteta
Assistant Coach	Rodolfo Borrell
Goalkeeping coach	Xabier Mancisidor
Fitness coach	Jose Cabello
Fitness coach	Lorenzo Buenaventura
Video analyst	Carles Planchart
First team	Manuel Estiarte
Head of Academy	Jason Wilcox
Head of coaching U13 to U23	Simon Davies
Under-21 EDS manager	Paul Harsley
Under-21 GK coach	Andy Mulliner
Under-18 Academy Team Manager	Gareth Taylor
Under-18 Academy Assistant Manager	John Mullin
Under-18 GK coach	Richard Wright
Chief scout	Carlo Cancellieri
Scout	Jan Říčka
Scout	Youness Bengelloun
Scout	Sebastian Arnesen
Scout	Dean Ramsdale

Notable managers

Manchester City managers to have won major honours. Table correct as of 20 January 2019^[71][72]

Name	From	To	Games	Wins	Draws	Loss	Win %	Honours
Tom Maley	1902	1906	7002150000000000000♠150	7001890000000000000♠89	7001220000000000000♠22	7001390000000000000♠39	07001593300000000000♠59.33	1904 FA Cup
Wilf Wild	1932	1946	7002352000000000000♠352	7002158000000000000♠158	7001710000000000000♠71	7002123000000000000♠123	07001448900000000000♠44.89	1934 FA Cup 1936–37 First Division
Les McDowall	1950	1963	7002592000000000000♠592	7002220000000000000♠220	7002127000000000000♠127	7002245000000000000♠245	07001371609999999999♠37.16	1956 FA Cup
Joe Mercer	1965	1971	7002340000000000000♠340	7002149000000000000♠149	7001940000000000000♠94	7001970000000000000♠97	07001438200000000000♠43.82	1967–68 First Division 1969 FA Cup 1970 European Cup Winners' Cup 1970 League Cup
Tony Book	1973	1980	7002269000000000000♠269	7002114000000000000♠114	7001750000000000000♠75	7001800000000000000♠80	07001423800000000000♠42.38	1976 League Cup
Roberto Mancini	2009	2013	7002191000000000000♠191	7002113000000000000♠113	7001380000000000000♠38	7001400000000000000♠40	07001591600000000000♠59.16	2011 FA Cup 2011–12 Premier League
Manuel Pellegrini	2013	2016	7002167000000000000♠167	7002100000000000000♠100	7001280000000000000♠28	7001390000000000000♠39	07001598800000000000♠59.88	2014 League Cup 2013–14 Premier League 2016 League Cup
Pep Guardiola	2016	Incumbent	7002148000000000000♠148	7002104000000000000♠104	7001230000000000000♠23	7001210000000000000♠21	07001702700000000000♠70.27	2018 League Cup 2017–18 Premier League

Supporters

Since moving to the City of Manchester Stadium, Manchester City's average attendances have been in the top six in England,^[73] usually in excess of 40,000. Even in the late 1990s, when the club were relegated twice in three seasons and playing in the third tier of English football (then Division Two, now Football League One), home attendances were in the region of 30,000, compared to an average for the division of fewer than 8,000.^[74] Research carried out by Manchester City in 2005 estimates a fanbase of 886,000 in the United Kingdom and a total in excess of 2 million worldwide, although since the purchase of the club by Sheikh Mansour and the club's recent trophies, that figure has ballooned to many times that size.^[75]

Manchester City's officially recognised supporters club is the Manchester City F.C. Supporters Club (1949), formed from a merger of two existing organisations in 2010: the Official Supporters Club (OSC) and the Centenary Supporters Association (CSA).^[76] There have been several fanzines published by supporters; the longest running is King of the Kippax and it is the only one still published.^[77] The City fans' song of choice is a rendition of "Blue Moon", which despite its melancholic theme is belted out with gusto as though it were a heroic anthem. City supporters tend to believe that unpredictability is an inherent trait of their team, and label unexpected results "typical City".^[78][79] Events that fans regard as "typical City" include City's being the only reigning English champions ever to be relegated (in 1938), the only team to score and concede over 100 goals in the same season (1957–58),^[80] or the more recent example that City were the only team to beat Chelsea in the 2004–05 Premier League, yet in the same season City were knocked out of the FA Cup by Oldham Athletic, a team two divisions lower.

Manchester City's biggest rivalry is with neighbours Manchester United, against whom they contest the Manchester derby. Before the Second World War, when travel to away games was rare, many Mancunian football fans regularly watched both teams even if considering themselves "supporters" of only one. This practice continued into the early 1960s but as travel became easier, and the cost of entry to matches rose, watching both teams became unusual and the rivalry intensified. A common stereotype is that City fans come from Manchester proper, while United fans come from elsewhere. A 2002 report by a researcher at Manchester Metropolitan University found that while it was true that a higher proportion of City season ticket holders came from Manchester postcode areas (40% compared to United's 29%), there were more United season ticket holders, the lower percentage being due to United's higher overall number of season ticket holders (27,667 compared to City's 16,481). The report noted that since the compiling of data in 2001, the number of both City and United season ticket holders had risen; expansion of United's ground and City's move to the City of Manchester Stadium have caused season ticket sales to increase further.^[81]
Man City also has a rivalry with that of Everton F.C.^[82]

In the late 1980s, City fans started a craze of bringing inflatable objects to matches, primarily oversized bananas. One disputed explanation for the craze is that in a match against West Bromwich Albion chants from fans calling for the introduction of Imre Varadi as a substitute mutated into "Imre Banana". Terraces packed with inflatable-waving supporters became a frequent sight in the 1988–89 season as the craze spread to other clubs (inflatable fish were seen at Grimsby Town), with the phenomenon reaching a peak at City's match at Stoke City on 26 December 1988, a match declared by fanzines as a fancy dress party.^[83] In 2010, City supporters adopted an exuberant dance, dubbed The Poznań, from fans of Polish club Lech Poznań.^[84]

Ownership and finances

The holding company of Manchester City F.C., Manchester City Limited, is a private limited company, with approximately 54 million shares in issue. The club has been in private hands since 2007, when the major shareholders agreed to sell their holdings to UK Sports Investments Limited (UKSIL), a company controlled by former Thailand prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra. UKSIL then made a formal offer to buy the shares held by several thousand small shareholders.

Prior to the Thaksin takeover, the club was listed on the specialist independent equity market PLUS (formerly OFEX),^[85] where it had been listed since 1995. On 6 July 2007, having acquired 75% of the shares, Thaksin de-listed the club and re-registered it as a private company.^[86] By August UKSIL had acquired over 90% of the shares, and exercised its rights under the Companies Act to "squeeze out" the remaining shareholders, and acquire the entire shareholding. Thaksin Shinawatra became chairman of the club and two of Thaksin's children, Pintongta and Oak Chinnawat also became directors. Former chairman John Wardle stayed on the board for a year, but resigned in July 2008 following Nike executive Garry Cook's appointment as executive chairman in May.^[87] The club made a pre-tax loss of £11m in the year ending 31 May 2007, the final year for which accounts were published as a public company.^[88]

Thaksin's purchase prompted a period of transfer spending at the club,^[89] spending in around £30 million,^[90] whereas over the previous few seasons net spending had been among the lowest in the division. A year later, this investment was itself dwarfed by larger sums. On 1 September 2008, Abu Dhabi-based Abu Dhabi United Group Investment and Development Limited completed a takeover of Manchester City. The deal, worth a reported £200 million, was announced on the morning of 1 September. It sparked various transfer "deadline-day" rumours and bids such as the club's attempt to gazump Manchester United's protracted bid to sign Dimitar Berbatov from Tottenham Hotspur for a fee in excess of £30 million.^[91][92]
Minutes before the transfer window closed, the club signed Robinho from Real Madrid for a British record transfer fee of £32.5 million.^[93]
The wealth of the new owners meant that in the summer of 2009, the club was able to finance the purchase of several experienced international players prior to the new season, spending more than any other club in the Premier League.^[94]

City Football Group

Created in the 2013–14 season to manage the global footballing interests of Abu Dhabi United Group, the City Football Group (CFG) is an umbrella corporation owning stakes in a network of global clubs for the purposes of resource sharing, academy networking and marketing. Through the City Football Group, City owns stakes in a number of clubs:

• 
  Melbourne City FC (2014–present)^[95]
  

On 23 January 2014 it was announced that Manchester City had partnered with the Australian rugby league franchise Melbourne Storm, purchasing a majority stake in A-League team Melbourne City FC. On 5 August 2015, CFG bought out the Storm and so acquired full ownership of the team.^[96]

• 
  Yokohama F. Marinos (2014–present)^[97]
  

On 20 May 2014 it was announced that Manchester City had partnered with the Japanese Automotive company Nissan to become a minority shareholder in Yokohama based J-League side, Yokohama F. Marinos.

• 
  New York City FC (2015–present)^[98]
  

On 21 May 2013 it was announced that Manchester City had partnered with the American baseball franchise the New York Yankees to introduce the 20th Major League Soccer expansion team, New York City FC as its majority shareholder. The club began play in the 2015 Major League Soccer season.

• 
  Club Atlético Torque (2017–present)^[99]
  

On 5 April 2017, CFG confirmed the purchase of Uruguayan second division team Club Atlético Torque.

• 
  Girona FC (2017–present)^[100]
  

On 23 August 2017 it was announced that the City Football Group had acquired 44.3% of La Liga side Girona FC. Another 44.3% was held by the Girona Football Group, led by Pere Guardiola, brother of Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola.

Stadium

City of Manchester Stadium – the home of Manchester City since 2003

The City of Manchester Stadium in east Manchester, known as the Etihad Stadium since 2011 for sponsorship reasons, is on a 200-year lease from Manchester City Council. It has been City's home since the end of the 2002–03 season, when the club moved from Maine Road.^[101] Before moving to the stadium, Manchester City spent in excess of £30 million to convert it to football use. The pitch was lowered, adding another tier of seating around it, and a new North Stand built.^[102] The inaugural match at the new stadium was a 2–1 win over Barcelona in a friendly match.^[103] A 7,000-seat third tier on the South Stand was completed in time for the start of the 2015–16 football season. Current capacity stands at 55,097. A North Stand third tier has planning approval and work on it is expected to begin by 2017, increasing capacity to around 61,000.^[104]

After playing home matches at five stadiums between 1880 and 1887, the club settled at Hyde Road Football Stadium, its home for 36 years.^[105] A fire destroyed the Main Stand in 1920, and the club moved to the 84,000 capacity Maine Road three years later. Maine Road, nicknamed the "Wembley of the North" by its designers, hosted the largest-ever crowd at an English club ground when 84,569 attended an FA Cup tie against Stoke City on 3 March 1934.^[106] Though Maine Road was redeveloped several times over its 80-year lifespan, by 1995 its capacity was restricted to 32,000, prompting the search for a new ground which culminated in the move to the City of Manchester Stadium in 2003.

Honours

Domestic

Leagues

Manuel Pellegrini with the Premier League trophy after the victorious 2013–14 season

• 
  First Division/Premier League^[107]
  • 
    Winners (5): 1936–37, 1967–68, 2011–12, 2013–14, 2017–18
    
  
  


• 
  Second Division/First Division^[107]
  • 
    Winners (7): 1898–99, 1902–03, 1909–10, 1927–28, 1946–47, 1965–66, 2001–02
    
  
  


• 
  Second Division Play-off^[107]
  • 
    Winners (1): 1998–99
    
  
  

Cups

• 
  FA Cup
  
  • 
    Winners (5): 1903–04, 1933–34, 1955–56, 1968–69, 2010–11
    
  
  


• 
  Football League Cup/EFL Cup
  
  • 
    Winners (5): 1969–70, 1975–76, 2013–14, 2015–16, 2017–18
    
  
  


• 
  FA Community Shield
  
  • 
    Winners (5): 1937, 1968, 1972, 2012, 2018
    
  
  

European

• 
  European Cup Winners' Cup
  
  • 
    Winners (1): 1969–70
    
  
  

Doubles

• 
  1969–70: League Cup and European Cup Winners' Cup


• 
  2013–14: League and League Cup


• 
  2017–18: League and EFL Cup

Club records

• 
  Record League victory – 11–3 v. Lincoln City (23 March 1895, most goals scored) 10–0 v. Darwen (18 February 1899, widest margin of victory)^[108]
  


• 
  Record FA Cup victory – 12–0 v. Liverpool Stanley (4 October 1890)^[109]
  


• 
  Record European victory – 6–0 v Shakhtar Donesk, UEFA Champions League Group Stage, 7 November 2018


• 
  Record League defeat – 0–8 v. Burton Wanderers (26 December 1894), 0–8 v. Wolverhampton Wanderers (23 December 1933), 1–9 v. Everton (3 September 1906), 2–10 v. Small Heath (17 March 1893)^[108]
  


• 
  Record FA Cup defeat – 0–6 v. Preston North End (30 January 1897), 2–8 v. Bradford Park Avenue (30 January 1946)^[109]
  


• 
  Record European defeat – 0–4 v Barcelona, UEFA Champions League Group Stage, 19 October 2016


• 
  Highest home attendance – 84,569 v. Stoke City (3 March 1934)^[110] (remains the record home attendance in English football)


• 
  Most League appearances – 561 + 3 sub, Alan Oakes 1958–76^[111]
  


• 
  Most appearances overall – 676 + 4 sub, Alan Oakes 1958–76^[111]
  


• 
  Most goals scored overall – 213, Sergio Agüero 2011–^[112]
  


• 
  Most goals scored in a season – 38, Tommy Johnson 1928–29^[113]
  


• 
  Record transfer fee paid – £60 million to Leicester City for Riyad Mahrez, July 2018^[114]
  


• 
  Record transfer fee received – £25 million from Leicester City for Kelechi Iheanacho, August 2017^[115]
  

See also

Book: Manchester City F.C.

• List of Manchester City F.C. managers


• List of Manchester City F.C. players


• List of Manchester City F.C. records and statistics


• List of Manchester City F.C. seasons


• Manchester derby


• Manchester City Women's F.C.

Bibliography

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  Buckley, Andy; Burgess, Richard (2000). Blue Moon Rising: The Fall and Rise of Manchester City. Bury: Milo. ISBN 0-9530847-4-4..mw-parser-output cite.citation{font-style:inherit}.mw-parser-output .citation q{quotes:"""""""'""'"}.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-free a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/65/Lock-green.svg/9px-Lock-green.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-limited a,.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-registration a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d6/Lock-gray-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-gray-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .citation .cs1-lock-subscription a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/aa/Lock-red-alt-2.svg/9px-Lock-red-alt-2.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration{color:#555}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription span,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration span{border-bottom:1px dotted;cursor:help}.mw-parser-output .cs1-ws-icon a{background:url("//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/4c/Wikisource-logo.svg/12px-Wikisource-logo.svg.png")no-repeat;background-position:right .1em center}.mw-parser-output code.cs1-code{color:inherit;background:inherit;border:inherit;padding:inherit}.mw-parser-output .cs1-hidden-error{display:none;font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-visible-error{font-size:100%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-maint{display:none;color:#33aa33;margin-left:0.3em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-subscription,.mw-parser-output .cs1-registration,.mw-parser-output .cs1-format{font-size:95%}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-left,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-left{padding-left:0.2em}.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-right,.mw-parser-output .cs1-kern-wl-right{padding-right:0.2em}
  


• 
  Gardner, Peter (1970). The Manchester City Football Book No. 2. London: Stanley Paul. ISBN 0-09-103280-6.
  


• 
  Inglis, Simon (1987). The Football Grounds of Great Britain (2nd ed.). London: Collins Willow. ISBN 0-00-218249-1.
  


• 
  James, Gary (2002). Manchester: The Greatest City. Polar Publishing. ISBN 1-899538-09-7.
  


• 
  James, Gary (2005). The Official Manchester City Hall of Fame. Hamlyn. ISBN 0-600-61282-1.
  


• 
  James, Gary (2006). Manchester City – The Complete Record. Derby: Breedon. ISBN 1-85983-512-0.
  


• 
  James, Gary (2008). Manchester – A Football History. Halifax: James Ward. ISBN 978-0-9558127-0-5.
  


• 
  Penney, Ian (2008). Manchester City: The Mercer-Allison Years. Derby: Breedon. ISBN 978-1-85983-608-8.
  


• 
  Rowlands, Alan (2005). Trautmann: The Biography. Derby: Breedon. ISBN 1-85983-491-4.
  


• 
  Tossell, David (2008). Big Mal: The High Life and Hard Times of Malcolm Allison, Football Legend. Edinburgh: Mainstream. ISBN 978-1-84596-478-8.
  


• 
  Wallace, David (2007). Century City – Manchester City Football Club 1957/58. Leigh: King of the Kippax. ISBN 978-0-9557056-0-1.
  


• 
  Ward, Andrew (1984). The Manchester City Story. Derby: Breedon. ISBN 0-907969-05-4.
  

References

External links

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• 
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• 
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