# Ultra-rich face accountability

> Billionaires face first real consequences after NBA and football clubs get caught cheating.
- Title: Ultra-rich face accountability · the Guardian | Shortify
- Summary: Billionaires face first real consequences after NBA and football clubs get caught cheating. Manchester City and Los Angeles Clippers were punished for…
- Keywords: manchester city, los angeles clippers, nba, premier league, steve ballmer, abu dhabi, u.a.e., sports, Ultra-rich, face, accountability, the Guardian
- Source: the Guardian — https://theguardian.com/football/2026/oct/01/manchester-city-la-clippers-ultra-rich-accountability
- Published: 2026-10-01T16:01:53+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: manchester city, los angeles clippers, nba, premier league, steve ballmer, abu dhabi, u.a.e., sports
## Billionaires face accountability
The ultra-rich face accountability after Manchester City and Los Angeles Clippers were caught cheating on financial regulations.
## Clippers fined $30m for salary cap breach
The Los Angeles Clippers were fined $30m and docked five first-round picks after owner Steve Ballmer paid Kawhi Leonard $28m off the books.
## Ballmer suspended for one year
Steve Ballmer, the ninth richest man in the world, was suspended from the Clippers for a year after the NBA investigation.
## Manchester City faces 100+ charges
Manchester City has been found guilty of more than 100 charges of cheating the Premier League’s financial regulations from 2009 to 2018.
## Clippers initially denied findings
The Clippers issued a statement rejecting the NBA’s findings as a biased investigation seeking to justify a predetermined narrative.
## Manchester City still denies guilt
Manchester City insists on their innocence while taking an aggressively defiant posture against the Premier League’s findings.
## UAE ownership at risk
The Abu Dhabi ownership of Manchester City will emerge bruised after years of appeals and lawsuits, tarnishing their soft power PR play.
## Key takeaway

Manchester City and Los Angeles Clippers were punished for financial misconduct, showing billionaires can be held accountable.