'We will play a key role in football's future' - football oversight chief the regulator's chair
Sheffield Wednesday's persistent issues constitute a "significant problem" and the independent regulator is aiming to acquire authority to investigate clubs in such situations, the newly appointed chairman David Kogan has announced.
In a wide-ranging interview, the regulator, who was named to the position this week, voiced concern towards supporters of the Owls.
Kogan met with four fan organizations representing the Championship side this week.
The team have been facing challenges both on and off the pitch in the current year, with the club delaying salary disbursements on several different times, including in the autumn.
"Clearly Sheffield Wednesday has been a significant problem for EFL and a significant problem for football," the chairman stated.
"The club represents one of the iconic names for the English game and in recent days we have met fan representatives.
"We are seeking authority... which will enable us to take the club and similar situations brought to our attention if they require examination and acted upon."
Monetary Issues and Ownership Situation
The club's controversial proprietor the Thai businessman indicated in the summer he would be open to selling the club at the stadium, but he has failed to complete a sale with interested parties.
Failure to pay player wages on time in spring months led to sanctions by the English Football League (EFL) in summer, stopping Wednesday from completing any recruitment activities for the subsequent signing windows, although the ban was rescinded in the end of the transfer window.
Authority's Position
The chairman stated: "Our role exists to serve the Owls followers, teams facing challenges where fans are dedicated to a local institution that has been part of their lives in numerous instances.
"I fully appreciate the club's situation, as I do for each organization that in modern times have encountered failure, or been close to going to the wall, for reasons that have nothing to do with the supporters."
Inquired if the regulator could force an owner to sell a club if they are considered unfit, Kogan said: "Should the inquiry concern 'would we intervene in the final instance?', the answer is once we gather the evidence and know what's going on, we will."
But Kogan stressed that forcing owners to sell clubs would be viewed as the ultimate measure and the regulator would prefer to collaborate with owners.
"Our least desirable course of action is commence engagement with an specific team, an individual owner, without being in a position to cooperate with that owner to try and resolve the problems affecting the organization and the owner's facing," the chairman stated.
"In actuality, when you look back over the history of football, over the recent generations there have been some owners, not many, but particular people who have shown negligence in the manner they have operated their organizations and finally decline to assume obligation for the long-term prospects."
Owls fans have been demonstrating against the team's chairman in recent months
'If we get it wrong, extraordinary progress vanishes'
The chairman convened with representatives from 110 clubs to detail the scope of the authority recently and maintained it represented a "forward-thinking discussion" with a "substantial involvement" from the grassroots to elite level.
"The role holds considerable importance, because should mistakes occur, if the football community fails, the extraordinary progress that's been made might evaporate incredibly quickly," Kogan said.
"This represents everyone's worst fear in the terms of English football is a huge success story - we must maintain momentum.
"There's an enormous amount of money flowing into the game and has come into football for the past two decades, because there are no assurances it will persist in entering the game, which is among the factors explaining I think we have to adopt a precise perspective on potential dangers and naturally, of the coming seasons."
Elite Division Worries
The Premier League opposed the formation of an authority because of fears of a negative impact on the elite division's competitive balance, but the chairman responded: "I fully support the success and growth as an financial organization of the Premier League.
"Being fully aware of the worry about compromising the top flight as an elite competition of the nation. But concurrently, if you consult with top flight officials after this week's discussion, they would have had a high level of reassurance -and, indeed, they have been telling us in private they have a significant confidence."
Partisan Associations
The regulator remains subject to a "full inquiry" by the Commissioner for Public Appointments after he acknowledged providing funds to the Labour Party in the past.
The 68-year-old donated money to Culture Secretary the minister's leadership bid, along with that of the current Prime Minister.
"I have fully disclosed my past party membership [with Labour], and that party membership ceased the day the select committee approved my appointment," the chairman stated.
"I am no longer involved in any type of partisan engagement."
