'We will play a key role in football's future' - newly appointed regulator the new chairman
Sheffield Wednesday's ongoing struggles constitute a "serious issue" and the new football authority is looking to gain the ability to look into club affairs in comparable cases, the newly appointed chairman the regulator has announced.
During an extensive discussion, the regulator, who was appointed on Monday, expressed "sympathy" towards the club's followers.
The regulator engaged with four supporter groups associated with the South Yorkshire club recently.
The team have been experiencing difficulties in multiple areas in this season, with the club missing wage payments on five separate occasions, including in last month.
"Clearly Sheffield Wednesday has been a serious issue for football authorities and a substantial concern for English football," Kogan told.
"Wednesday stands as one of the historic institutions for football in England and recently we have met Sheffield Wednesday supporters' groups.
"We're now looking to get powers... which will allow us to have Wednesday and comparable cases brought to our attention if they need to be investigated and acted upon."
Monetary Issues and Proprietorship Status
Wednesday's embattled owner the Thai businessman indicated in the summer he would be open to selling the club at Hillsborough, but he has been unable to finalize an agreement with prospective buyers.
Failure to pay player wages on time in earlier this year caused limitations by the English Football League (EFL) in mid-year, preventing the club from carrying out any player acquisitions for the subsequent signing windows, although those limitations were removed in the end of the transfer window.
Official's Viewpoint
The chairman stated: "Our role exists to serve the fans of Sheffield Wednesday, teams facing challenges where supporters are loyal to a community organization that has represented their community in many cases.
"I have absolute sympathy for 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 fans themselves."
Questioned about whether the authority might compel an proprietor to divest a club if they are deemed unsuitable, the chairman responded: "If your question is 'would we intervene in the final instance?', the response would be once we gather the evidence and know what's going on, we will."
But Kogan stressed that compelling proprietors to divest clubs would be viewed as the ultimate measure and the regulator would prefer to collaborate with owners.
"The final option we would consider is commence engagement with an individual club, an specific proprietor, without having the opportunity to collaborate with that proprietor to address the challenges confronting the team and the proprietor's dealing with," the regulator explained.
"But the truth is, when you look back over the history of the game, over the last 20 or 30 years there have been particular chairmen, a small minority, but some who have been irresponsible in the way which they've been managing their clubs and ultimately refuse to accept accountability for the future."
Sheffield Wednesday supporters have been voicing opposition to the current proprietor in recent months
'If we get it wrong, extraordinary progress vanishes'
Kogan met with officials from numerous teams to explain the responsibilities of the oversight body this week and insisted it was a "proactive meeting" with a "substantial involvement" from the grassroots to elite level.
"It's a job that's actually really important, because if we get it wrong, if the football community fails, the significant advances achieved could disappear incredibly quickly," the chairman stated.
"This represents everyone's worst fear in the realm of domestic football is a huge success story - we must maintain momentum.
"Substantial financial resources flowing into the game and has come into football for the past two decades, because certainty is lacking it will continue to come into football, which is part of the rationale behind I think we have to adopt a precise perspective on potential dangers and naturally, of the next two or three years."
Elite Division Worries
Elite division representatives objected to the creation of a regulator because of apprehensions regarding adverse consequences on the Premier League's sporting equality, but Kogan said: "I completely endorse the success and growth as an economic entity of the top division.
"Being fully aware of the worry about compromising the top flight as an elite competition of England. But at the same time, if you engage with division representatives after today's meeting, they would have had a high level of reassurance -and, in fact, they have been advising us privately they have a high level of reassurance."
Ideological Links
Kogan is still facing a "thorough examination" by the public appointments commissioner after he disclosed making donations to the political party in recent years.
The 68-year-old donated money to government minister Lisa Nandy's leadership campaign, along with that of the current Prime Minister.
"I've been completely open about my previous political affiliation [with Labour], and that party membership ceased the day the parliamentary committee confirmed my selection," the chairman stated.
"I am no longer involved in any sort of politics."
