'We will play a key role in football's future' - football oversight chief the regulator's chair
Sheffield Wednesday's current difficulties constitute a "major concern" and the football regulator is seeking powers to look into club affairs in such situations, its new chair the official has declared.
During an extensive discussion, the chairman, who was named to the position this week, expressed "sympathy" towards the club's followers.
The chairman convened with four supporter groups associated with the Championship side in recent days.
The team have been struggling on and off the field in 2025, with the club missing wage payments on multiple instances, including in the autumn.
"Clearly Sheffield Wednesday has been a significant problem for EFL and a significant problem for football," the regulator explained.
"Wednesday stands as one of the historic institutions for English football and this week we have met fan representatives.
"We're now looking to get powers... which will enable us to take Wednesday and comparable cases referred to us if they require examination and dealt with."
Economic Challenges and Leadership Concerns
The team's struggling chairman Dejphon Chansiri indicated in the summer he would be prepared to relinquish control at their home ground, but he has not been able to secure a deal with interested parties.
Failure to pay player wages on time in spring months caused limitations by the league officials in mid-year, preventing the club from carrying out any transfers or loans for the subsequent signing windows, although the ban was rescinded in late summer.
Official's Viewpoint
Kogan said: "Our role exists to serve the supporters of Wednesday, Bury or any football club where supporters are loyal to a community organization that has been part of their lives in many cases.
"I completely understand the team's plight, as I do for each organization that since 1992 have gone to the wall, or nearly ceased operations, for factors unrelated to the followers."
Questioned about whether the oversight body could require an chairman to relinquish a club if they are judged inappropriate, Kogan said: "When asking whether 'would we intervene in the final instance?', the reply is once we assemble the facts and understand the situation, we will."
But the chairman emphasized that forcing owners to sell clubs would be viewed as the ultimate measure and the oversight body would choose to cooperate with proprietors.
"The last thing what we want to do is start getting involved with an particular organization, an individual owner, 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 look back over the history of football, over the last 20 or 30 years there have been some owners, a small minority, but some who have been irresponsible in the manner they have operated their teams and eventually don't wish to take responsibility for the long-term prospects."
Wednesday followers have been voicing opposition to the team's chairman during the current campaign
'Mistakes could erase significant advances'
The chairman convened with representatives from 110 clubs to lay out the remit of the regulator on Wednesday and maintained it represented a "forward-thinking discussion" with a "significant participation" from the grassroots to elite level.
"This position carries substantial significance, because should mistakes occur, if the football community fails, the significant advances achieved might evaporate rapidly," the chairman stated.
"This represents everyone's worst fear in the context of the English game is a huge success story - we've got to keep it going.
"There's an enormous amount of money flowing into the game and has been channeled for the recent generations, because there are no assurances it will persist in entering the game, which is one of the reasons why I think we have to maintain a focused outlook on potential dangers and naturally, of the next two or three years."
Premier League Concerns
Elite division representatives objected to the establishment of an oversight body because of apprehensions regarding adverse consequences on the top-flight's competitiveness, but Kogan said: "I fully support the achievement and development as an economic entity of the elite league.
"As someone who appreciates the apprehension regarding damaging the division as a high-quality offering of this country. But at the same time, if you consult with top flight officials after the recent gathering, they would have had a significant degree of comfort -and, indeed, they have been telling us in private they have a high level of reassurance."
Partisan Associations
Kogan is still facing a "comprehensive investigation" by the official appointments authority after he disclosed making donations to the political party in recent years.
The 68-year-old donated money to Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport the minister's leadership bid, along with that of the current Prime Minister.
"I've been completely open about my previous political affiliation [with Labour], and that ideological connection terminated the day the official body endorsed my nomination," the regulator explained.
"I am presently disconnected from any type of partisan engagement."
