'We will play a key role in football's future' - football oversight chief the new chairman
The Championship club's ongoing struggles constitute a "significant problem" and the new football authority is seeking powers to examine team situations in similar circumstances, the newly appointed chairman the official has declared.
In a wide-ranging interview, the regulator, who was named to the position this week, voiced concern towards supporters of the Owls.
The chairman convened with four fan organizations connected to the South Yorkshire club in recent days.
The team have been experiencing difficulties in multiple areas in this season, with the club missing wage payments on multiple instances, including in last month.
"Evidently Wednesday represents a major concern for the league and a substantial concern for English football," the regulator explained.
"Sheffield Wednesday is one of the iconic names for football in England and recently we have met supporters' organizations.
"We are seeking authority... which will allow us to have Wednesday and comparable cases brought to our attention if they require examination and addressed."
Economic Challenges and Proprietorship Status
Wednesday's embattled owner Dejphon Chansiri suggested earlier this year he would be willing to sell up at their home ground, but he has failed to complete a sale with interested parties.
Failure to pay player wages on time in March and May resulted in restrictions being imposed by the football authorities in summer, preventing the club from carrying out any player acquisitions for the subsequent signing windows, although that restriction was lifted in the end of the transfer window.
Authority's Position
The regulator explained: "The job [of the regulator] is there for the Owls followers, teams facing challenges where people are committed to a community organization that has represented their community in numerous instances.
"I completely understand the team's plight, as I do for every team that over recent decades have faced collapse, or been close to going to the wall, for causes separate from the followers."
When asked if the regulator could force an chairman to relinquish a club if they are deemed unsuitable, Kogan said: "When asking whether 'would we intervene in the final instance?', the response would be once we collect the information and understand the situation, we will."
But the regulator clarified that compelling proprietors to divest clubs would be viewed as the ultimate measure and the regulator would prefer to cooperate with proprietors.
"The final option we would consider is commence engagement with an specific team, an specific proprietor, without being able to work with that chairman to fix the issues that the club's facing and the owner's facing," the regulator explained.
"But the truth is, when you look back over the history of the sport, over the last 20 or 30 years there have been some owners, a small minority, but particular people who have shown negligence in the manner they have operated their organizations and finally don't wish to take responsibility for the coming years."
Wednesday followers have been demonstrating against owner Dejphon Chansiri during the current campaign
'Mistakes could erase significant advances'
Kogan met with representatives from 110 clubs to lay out the remit of the regulator on Wednesday and stated it constituted a "forward-thinking discussion" with a "substantial involvement" from the grassroots to elite level.
"The role holds considerable importance, because if we get it wrong, if the sport makes errors, 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 substantial accomplishment - we must maintain momentum.
"Substantial financial resources entering the sport and has come into football for the recent generations, because certainty is lacking it will continue to come into football, which is among the factors explaining I think we have to take a really clear view on challenges and obviously, 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 chairman responded: "I'm absolutely committed to the achievement and development as an commercial operation of the top division.
"Being fully aware of the concern of undermining the top flight as an elite competition of this country. But at the same time, if you engage with division representatives after this week's discussion, they would have had a significant degree of comfort -and, in fact, they have been advising us privately they have a high level of reassurance."
Ideological Links
The regulator remains subject to a "thorough examination" by the official appointments authority after he acknowledged providing funds to the opposition group in the past.
The 68-year-old contributed funds to Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport Lisa Nandy's leadership campaign, along with that of the current Prime Minister.
"I've been completely open about my past party membership [with Labour], and that ideological connection terminated the day the parliamentary committee confirmed my selection," the regulator explained.
"I currently have no participation in any sort of politics."
