Manchester City have confirmed that manager Pep Guardiola will leave the club after Sunday’s final match of the season.
Guardiola has led City to 17 major trophies in ten seasons, including six Premier League titles and a Champions League triumph.
The 55-year-old will play his final game against Aston Villa at the Etihad Stadium.
In recognition of Guardiola’s impact, City’s newly constructed north stand will be named after him and will be fully operational for the first time for his final game in command of the club.
On Monday, BBC Sport reported that City were preparing for Guardiola’s exit a year before his contract expired.
“Don’t ask me the reasons I’m leaving,” said Guardiola. “There is no reason, but deep inside, I know it’s my time.
“Nothing is eternal; if it were, I would be here. Eternal will be the feeling, the people, the memories, the love I have for my Manchester City.”
Former Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca, who worked under Guardiola at City, is the front-runner to succeed the 55-year-old.
Guardiola’s departure comes three days after Arsenal won the 2025-26 Premier League title.
City’s draw at Bournemouth on Tuesday gave the Gunners their first title since 2003-04.
Guardiola will leave City having won the FA Cup and the League Cup in his final season.
Guardiola signed his initial three-year contract with City in February 2016, taking over from Manuel Pellegrini at the start of the 2016-17 season.
Despite finishing that season without a trophy for the first time in his career, as well as going trophyless last season, his City side has dominated English football during his reign.
City is the only side to have reached 100 points in a top-flight season, which they did in 2017-18, when they also set a Premier League record with 106 goals scored.
In 2022-23, City became only the second English team in history, following Manchester United in 1998-99, to win the Premier League, FA Cup, and Champions League in the same season.
Guardiola’s City became the first side to win the English league title four seasons in a row when they won in 2023-24.
Overall, he won six Premier League titles, one Champions League, three FA Cups, five League Cups, and a FIFA Club World Cup.
In November 2024, the former Spain international signed a two-year contract extension that will run until the end of the 2026-27 season.
Guardiola had “a transformative effect” during his term, according to City, and despite his departure as manager, he will “continue his relationship with the City Football Group by taking up a role as a global ambassador.”
City has commissioned a statue to be erected outside the stand as part of its renaming after Guardiola.
“I said a long time ago that Manchester City should have the very best people at its disposal, both on and off the field,” said City owner Sheikh Mansour.
“For 10 years Pep has been the personification of that ambition.
“He has made an indelible imprint on the DNA of the club. One that is borne more from how he won than from the many trophies he lifted.”
Guardiola joined City following three seasons with Bayern Munich, where he won three consecutive Bundesliga titles and two German Cups.
He began his management career at Barcelona in 2008, building one of the best club teams ever, winning three consecutive La Liga titles, two Champions Leagues, and two Copa del Reys before taking a year off after the 2011-12 season.
Guardiola, a defensive midfielder, spent the majority of his playing career with Barcelona, where he won six La Liga titles, two Copa del Reys, and the 1991-92 European Cup.
He captained Spain to gold at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics and has since made 47 senior national team appearances. He retired from professional football in 2006.
