'Our role is integral to football's future' - newly appointed regulator the new chairman
Sheffield Wednesday's ongoing struggles constitute a "significant problem" and the football regulator is seeking powers to investigate clubs in similar circumstances, the newly appointed chairman the official has stated.
Through a comprehensive talk, the chairman, who was named to the position this week, voiced concern towards supporters of the Owls.
Kogan met with four supporter groups connected to the football team in recent days.
The football club have been experiencing difficulties in multiple areas in 2025, with the club delaying salary disbursements on five separate occasions, including in the autumn.
"Obviously the club has become a serious issue for football authorities and a substantial concern for English football," the regulator explained.
"Wednesday stands as one of the iconic names for the English game and this week we have met fan representatives.
"Our aim is to acquire the ability... which will enable us to take Wednesday and comparable cases submitted for our review if they need to be investigated and addressed."
Financial Struggles and Proprietorship Status
Wednesday's embattled owner the Thai businessman stated during the off-season he would be open to selling the club at their home ground, but he has been unable to finalize an agreement with interested parties.
Failure to pay player wages on time in spring months resulted in restrictions being imposed by the English Football League (EFL) in June, stopping Wednesday from completing any recruitment activities for the following recruitment periods, although those limitations were removed in August.
Authority's Position
The regulator explained: "Our role exists to serve the fans of Sheffield Wednesday, teams facing challenges where supporters are loyal to a regional establishment that has represented their community in many cases.
"I have absolute sympathy for the club's situation, as I do for all the clubs that since 1992 have gone to the wall, or approached financial ruin, for factors unrelated to the fans themselves."
When asked if the regulator could force an owner to sell a club if they are considered unfit, the chairman responded: "When asking whether 'would we intervene in the final instance?', the reply is once we gather the evidence and understand the situation, we will."
But Kogan stressed that forcing owners to sell clubs would be viewed as the ultimate measure and the authority would rather to work with them.
"The final option we would consider is begin intervening in an specific team, an individual owner, without being able to work with that chairman to fix the issues that the club's facing and the chairman's encountering," the regulator explained.
"In actuality, when you review the record of the game, over the last 20 or 30 years there have been some owners, few in number, but some who have been irresponsible in the way which they've been managing their teams and eventually don't wish to take responsibility for the future."
Owls fans have been voicing opposition to owner Dejphon Chansiri this season
'If we get it wrong, extraordinary progress vanishes'
The regulator engaged delegates from multiple organizations to explain the responsibilities of the oversight body this week and maintained it represented a "proactive meeting" with a "significant participation" from the National League to the Premier League.
"The role holds considerable importance, because if we get it wrong, if the sport makes errors, the remarkable development accomplished might evaporate rapidly," Kogan said.
"And that's what nobody wants in the realm of domestic football is a major achievement - we must maintain momentum.
"Substantial financial resources 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 take a really clear view on risk and of course, of the next two or three years."
Premier League Concerns
Top flight officials resisted the creation of a regulator because of apprehensions regarding adverse consequences on the top-flight's competitiveness, but the regulator stated: "I fully support the prosperity and expansion as an economic entity of the top division.
"As someone who appreciates the apprehension regarding damaging the Premier League as a premium product of England. But simultaneously, if you engage with division representatives after this week's discussion, they would have had a substantial amount of confidence -and, indeed, they have been informing us confidentially they have a high level of reassurance."
Partisan Associations
The chairman continues to confront a "full inquiry" by the Commissioner for Public Appointments after he disclosed making donations to the opposition group in recent years.
The 68-year-old provided financial support for Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport Lisa Nandy's leadership campaign, along with that of the current Prime Minister.
"I have fully disclosed my past party membership [with Labour], and that ideological connection terminated the day the select committee approved my appointment," the chairman stated.
"I currently have no participation in any sort of politics."
