'Our role is integral to football's future' - independent football regulator the regulator's chair
The team's current difficulties are seen as a "serious issue" and the independent regulator is aiming to acquire authority to look into club affairs in such situations, the recently named head the official has announced.
During an extensive discussion, the regulator, who was named to the position this week, voiced concern towards the club's followers.
The regulator engaged with four fan organizations representing the South Yorkshire club in recent days.
The team have been facing challenges both on and off the pitch in this season, with the club delaying salary disbursements on five separate occasions, including in September.
"Evidently Wednesday represents a serious issue for football authorities and a substantial concern for English football," the chairman stated.
"Sheffield Wednesday is one of the great brands for the English game and recently we have met fan representatives.
"Our aim is to acquire the ability... which will enable us to take Wednesday and comparable cases referred to us if they warrant scrutiny and acted upon."
Economic Challenges and Proprietorship Status
The team's struggling chairman the Thai businessman indicated in the summer he would be willing to sell up at Hillsborough, but he has been unable to finalize an agreement with potential new owners.
Failure to pay player wages on time in March and May led to sanctions by the football authorities in mid-year, preventing the club from carrying out any player acquisitions for the following recruitment periods, although the ban was rescinded in late summer.
Authority's Position
The regulator explained: "Our role exists to serve the Owls followers, Bury or any football club where fans are dedicated to a regional establishment that has been part of their lives in multiple situations.
"I completely understand the team's plight, as I do for each organization that in modern times have encountered failure, or approached financial ruin, for reasons that have nothing to do with the fans themselves."
Inquired if the regulator could force an owner to sell a club if they are judged inappropriate, the chairman responded: "If your question is 'would we intervene in the final instance?', the reply is once we gather the evidence and know what's going on, we will."
But the regulator clarified that forcing owners to sell clubs would be considered the final option and the oversight body would choose to work with them.
"Our least desirable course of action is commence engagement with an individual club, an individual owner, without being able to work with that chairman to fix the issues that the club's facing and the owner's facing," the chairman stated.
"But the truth is, when you look back over the history of football, over the last 20 or 30 years there have been some owners, not many, but some who have been irresponsible in the manner they have operated their clubs and ultimately decline to assume obligation for the long-term prospects."
Wednesday followers have been protesting against owner Dejphon Chansiri in recent months
'Mistakes could erase significant advances'
The regulator engaged officials from numerous teams to detail the scope of the authority recently and maintained it represented a "proactive meeting" with a "significant participation" from the grassroots to elite level.
"It's a job that's actually really important, because should mistakes occur, if the world of football gets it wrong, the remarkable development accomplished might evaporate rapidly," Kogan said.
"And that's what nobody wants in the context of the English game is a huge success story - we need to continue the progress.
"Considerable investment coming into football and has been channeled for the past two decades, because certainty is lacking it will keep flowing into the sport, which is part of the rationale behind I think we have to maintain a focused outlook on challenges and obviously, of the next two or three years."
Premier League Concerns
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 completely endorse the success and growth as an financial organization of the elite league.
"Being fully aware of the worry about compromising the top flight as an elite competition of this country. But simultaneously, if you consult with top flight officials after today's meeting, they would have had a significant degree of comfort -and, indeed, they have been advising us privately they have a high level of reassurance."
Ideological Links
The chairman continues to confront a "comprehensive investigation" by the official appointments authority after he acknowledged providing funds to the Labour Party in recent years.
The official donated money to government minister the politician's campaign, along with that of the current Prime Minister.
"I have been entirely transparent regarding my past party membership [with Labour], and that party membership ceased the day the parliamentary committee confirmed my selection," the chairman stated.
"I currently have no participation in any sort of politics."
