What had already been hinted at in recent months came to pass on Friday. The traditional English club Sheffield Wednesday filed for bankruptcy and will receive a double-digit point deduction.
Sheffield Wednesday is one of England’s most historic clubs. However, the club has not made any positive headlines for some time, at least off the field – quite the contrary. Since its takeover by Thai owner Dejphon Chansiri in 2014, the club has suffered heavy losses. Among other things, the EFL (English Football League) imposed a 12-point deduction on the Owls in 2020 due to excessive spending on transfers and salaries. In the following years, the situation continued to escalate because Chansiri refused to continue investing money after criticism from fans. The situation became particularly precarious in recent months. In five of the last seven months, Wednesday did not pay salaries on time. This led to a protest by the players, who boycotted the friendly match against Burnley FC, and a transfer ban. The club is not allowed to sign any new players until winter 2026/27. In addition, Sheffield was also unable to pay its former coach Danny Röhl, who took over Glasgow Rangers a few days ago.
Employees and players have been informed
Accordingly, it was only a matter of time before Wednesday would file for bankruptcy. That day came on Friday. “The EFL can confirm that it has now been officially informed that Dejphon Chansiri, the director of Sheffield Wednesday Football Club, has taken the necessary steps to appoint an insolvency administrator for both the club and the company that owns Hillsborough,” the league wrote in a statement.
According to English media reports, the Owls thus preempted an application for dissolution of the club by the English tax authority His Majesty’s Revenue & Customs. Employees and players have already been informed of the application.
The bottom team in the Championship will receive a 12-point penalty as a result, increasing the gap to the first non-relegation spot to a whopping 15 points. They could reduce the deficit as early as tomorrow, Saturday, when Oxford United, a team just above the line, visits Hillsborough Stadium.