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The Championship club's persistent issues constitute a "serious issue" and the football regulator is aiming to acquire authority to investigate clubs in similar circumstances, the newly appointed chairman the official has stated.

In a wide-ranging interview, the regulator, who was named to the position this week, expressed "sympathy" towards Wednesday's fanbase.

The chairman convened with four fan organizations representing the South Yorkshire club recently.

The Championship side have been experiencing difficulties in multiple areas in 2025, with the club missing wage payments on multiple instances, including in last month.

"Obviously the club has become a significant problem for EFL and a major challenge for the sport," the chairman stated.

"The club represents one of the great brands for football in England and in recent days we have met supporters' organizations.

"We are seeking authority... which will permit us to bring Sheffield Wednesday - and other clubs referred to us if they warrant scrutiny and dealt with."

Financial Struggles and Leadership Concerns

The club's controversial proprietor the current owner stated during the off-season he would be open to selling the club at Hillsborough, but he has failed to complete a sale with prospective buyers.

Missed wage deadlines on time in earlier this year caused limitations by the English Football League (EFL) in summer, stopping Wednesday from completing any recruitment activities for the next three transfer windows, although that restriction was lifted in the end of the transfer window.

Official's Viewpoint

The chairman stated: "Our role exists to serve the supporters of Wednesday, other clubs in similar situations where fans are dedicated to a community organization that has been part of their lives in multiple situations.

"I have absolute sympathy for the club's situation, as I do for every team that in modern times have encountered failure, or been close to going to the wall, for factors unrelated to the fans themselves."

When asked if the oversight body could require an proprietor to divest a club if they are deemed unsuitable, Kogan said: "When asking whether 'would we intervene in the final instance?', the response would be once we gather the evidence and understand the situation, we will."

But the regulator clarified that compelling proprietors to divest clubs would be treated as a "last resort" and the authority would rather to collaborate with owners.

"The last thing what we want to do is commence engagement with an individual club, an particular chairman, without having the opportunity to collaborate with that proprietor to address the issues that the club's facing and the chairman's encountering," the chairman stated.

"In actuality, when you examine the past of the sport, over the last 20 or 30 years there have been some owners, a small minority, but particular people who have shown negligence in the approach they have taken toward their organizations and finally decline to assume obligation for the coming years."

'Mistakes could erase significant advances'

Kogan met with representatives from 110 clubs to explain the responsibilities of the authority recently and maintained it represented a "proactive meeting" with a "substantial involvement" from the National League to the Premier League.

"It's a job that's actually really important, because should mistakes occur, if the sport makes errors, the extraordinary progress that's been made could disappear rapidly," Kogan said.

"This represents everyone's worst fear in the realm of domestic football is a substantial accomplishment - we need to continue the progress.

"There's an enormous amount of money entering the sport and has been invested for the last 20 or 25 years, because certainty is lacking it will continue to come into football, which is among the factors explaining I think we have to take a really clear view on risk and of course, of the immediate future."

Top Flight Apprehensions

The Premier League opposed the formation of an authority because of apprehensions regarding adverse consequences on the top-flight's competitiveness, but Kogan said: "I fully support the prosperity and expansion as an economic entity of the top division.

"I of all people understand the apprehension regarding damaging the division as a high-quality offering of the nation. But concurrently, if you engage with division representatives after the recent gathering, they would have had a significant degree of comfort -and, in fact, they have been advising us privately they have a considerable comfort."

Partisan Associations

Kogan is still facing a "comprehensive investigation" by the public appointments commissioner after he acknowledged providing funds to the opposition group in 2020.

The official donated money to Culture Secretary the minister's leadership bid, along with that of the now Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer.

"I have fully disclosed my past party membership [with Labour], and that political affiliation came to an end the day the select committee approved my appointment," the chairman stated.

"I am no longer involved in any sort of politics."