'Our role is integral to football's future' - football oversight chief the regulator's chair
The team's ongoing struggles represent a a "major concern" and the independent regulator is seeking powers to look into club affairs in similar circumstances, its new chair David Kogan has declared.
Through a comprehensive talk, the regulator, who was appointed on Monday, expressed "sympathy" towards supporters of the Owls.
Kogan met with four supporters' associations representing the Championship side recently.
The team have been struggling on and off the field in the current year, with the club missing wage payments on five separate occasions, including in last month.
"Evidently Wednesday represents a serious issue for football authorities and a major challenge for the sport," Kogan told.
"Wednesday stands as one of the historic institutions for football in England and this week we have met Sheffield Wednesday supporters' groups.
"We're now looking to get powers... which will allow us to have Sheffield Wednesday - and other clubs brought to our attention if they need to be investigated and dealt with."
Financial Struggles and Leadership Concerns
The team's struggling chairman Dejphon Chansiri suggested earlier this year he would be willing to sell up at the stadium, but he has failed to complete a sale with prospective buyers.
Failure to pay player wages on time in spring months resulted in restrictions being imposed by the football authorities in mid-year, preventing the club from carrying out any recruitment activities for the next three transfer windows, although those limitations were removed in August.
Official's Viewpoint
The chairman stated: "Our role exists to serve the supporters of Wednesday, Bury or any football club where fans are dedicated to a regional establishment that has existed throughout their lifetimes in multiple situations.
"I have absolute sympathy for the club's situation, as I do for each organization that over recent decades have faced collapse, or nearly ceased operations, for causes separate from the supporters."
Questioned about whether the authority might compel an owner to sell a club if they are deemed unsuitable, Kogan said: "If your question is 'would we intervene in the final instance?', the response would be once we collect the information and know what's going on, we will."
But Kogan stressed that forcing owners to sell clubs would be treated as a "last resort" and the regulator would prefer to work with them.
"The last thing what we want to do is commence engagement with an specific team, an individual owner, without being able to work with that owner to try and resolve the problems affecting the organization and the owner's facing," the chairman stated.
"However, realistically, when you examine the past of the sport, over the last 20 or 30 years there have been certain proprietors, few in number, but particular people who have shown negligence in the approach they have taken toward their teams and eventually don't wish to take responsibility for the future."
Owls fans have been protesting against owner Dejphon Chansiri during the current campaign
'Errors may undo substantial development'
The chairman convened with officials from numerous teams to detail the scope of the regulator on Wednesday and maintained it represented a "progressive gathering" with a "substantial involvement" from the grassroots to elite level.
"The role holds considerable importance, because should mistakes occur, if the sport makes errors, the significant advances achieved could disappear rapidly," the regulator warned.
"This represents everyone's worst fear in the realm of domestic football is a major achievement - we've got to keep it going.
"Considerable investment entering the sport and has been invested for the past two decades, because there are no assurances it will continue to come into football, which is part of the rationale behind I think we have to maintain a focused outlook on risk and of course, of the coming seasons."
Elite Division Worries
The Premier League opposed the creation of a regulator because of fears of a negative impact on the elite division's competitive balance, but Kogan said: "I fully support the prosperity and expansion as an economic entity of the Premier League.
"As someone who appreciates the worry about compromising the Premier League as a premium product of England. But concurrently, if you consult with top flight officials after the recent gathering, they would have had a significant degree of comfort -and, actually, they have been telling us in private they have a significant confidence."
Ideological Links
The chairman continues to confront a "thorough examination" by the Commissioner for Public Appointments after he revealed he contributed money to the Labour Party in 2020.
The 68-year-old donated money to Culture Secretary the minister's leadership bid, along with that of the now Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer.
"I've been completely open about my previous political affiliation [with Labour], and that political affiliation came to an end the day the official body endorsed my nomination," the regulator explained.
"I am presently disconnected from any sort of politics."
