Sheffield Wednesday enter administration and deducted 12 points as club hits ‘rock bottom’

Sheffield Wednesday have entered administration, with the EFL confirming the club has automatically been deducted 12 points.

The Owls, whose financial difficulties have been well documented in recent months, issued a statement on Friday afternoon announcing the appointment of administrators.

The EFL followed with a statement of its own, which confirmed the 12-point sanction for entering administration but pointed out the process “presents Sheffield Wednesday with the opportunity to move matters towards a successful sale and secure a future under new ownership”.

Administration brings an end to the much-maligned reign of controversial owner Dephjon Chansiri at Hillsborough, who has overseen a period of turmoil in which the club has been hit with multiple charges by the EFL for failing to pay player and staff wages on time.

The deduction leaves the Championship’s bottom side on minus six points, 13 points adrift at the foot of the table, ahead of Saturday’s match against Oxford at Hillsborough.

Owls captain Barry Bannan said he was “gutted” to learn that the club had entered administration but has full belief that the club can rebuild.

“Sometimes you have to reach rock bottom to come back again,” he said. “And if there was ever a club that could do it, it’s this club, because the fan base we’ve got is amazing.”

Wednesday have appointed insolvency firm Begbies Traynor as administrators, something which follows “significant efforts to agree a sale to a credible future custodian in recent weeks, which unfortunately could not be concluded, and amid rising pressure from creditors”.

The administrators take control of the club’s operations from Chansiri, fan opposition of whom had led to a significant drop in matchday revenue.

Supporters had boycotted the club in a bid to force the Thai businessman out, not least during midweek’s Championship clash against Middlesbrough, which saw the home end barely filled.

Attendances have dropped from an average of more than 26,000 last season to just over 17,000 currently, and joint administrator Kris Wigfield has issued a plea for fans to return to their seats to help pick the club back up.

“Supporters are the backbone of any football club,” Mr Wigfield said. “The money they spend at the gate and in the ground is vital. I’ve been a season ticket holder since 1984 and know first-hand the passion of this fanbase.

“Now, more than ever, we need fans back in the ground – buying tickets, merchandise, pies and pints. Every penny spent will go directly to supporting the day-to-day running of this club, not to the former owner or professional costs. This will help stabilise the club and support the loyal players and staff while we secure a suitable buyer.”

Fans have held protests calling on Chansiri to sell throughout the season, while the government’s culture secretary Lisa Nandy also repeatedly pleaded for him to divest.

Wednesday have been placed under various embargoes amid tax debts and after failing to pay players and staff on time on five separate occasions this year, including in September.

Images on social media showed seats spelling out Chansiri’s name in the North Stand at Hillsborough being ripped out, while there were also reports of queues already forming outside the stadium of fans looking to buy tickets for Saturday’s match.

The Sheffield Wednesday Supporters’ Trust described entering administration as “one of the most bittersweet days in our club’s proud 158-year history”. The Trust said it expected “strong interest” from buyers but pledged that even if that did not materialise, there was no threat of liquidation because it had developed a “credible, fan-led takeover proposal”.

The EFL said it would now work with the administrators to “end the ongoing uncertainty faced by Sheffield Wednesday staff, management, players, supporters and all those associated with the club and their local community”.

Additional reporting from PA

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