Sheff Wed on the brink as players and staff go unpaid again in deepening crisis

Daily Mirror

01-07-2025

One of England's oldest football clubs is facing the most uncertain of futures with some players able to hand in their notice following a second successive month of failed payment
Sheffield Wednesday are teetering on the edge of oblivion after players and staff at Hillsborough were not paid their June salaries on time. It represents a second month in a row, and the third in the last four, that the club has suffered payment issues.
Back in March, players and some backroom staff did not receive their wages on pay day, albeit they were settled in the nick of time to avoid a registration embargo. Owls owner Dejphon Chansiri warned the situation could arise again, and despite satisfying his April obligations, it has.
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Players again went unpaid in May, with the issues affecting the wider workforce. While some stars were paid at a later date, there are still others whose May money is outstanding, with the June pay date having now passed as well.
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Wednesday players and staff are paid on the final day of every month, but The Mirror understands only the club's Under-21s received their salaries. Staff from all departments have been affected, with email correspondence thanking them for their 'patience and understanding' and hoping the situation would be resolved in the coming days.
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Staff and players have been reassured that they will receive monies owed in full, but with no timescale. Any players that have gone unpaid for both May and June are now in a position to submit their notice. Wednesday would then be given 15 days to satisfy their payment obligations to retain control of their assets.
The club has now been served a registration embargo by the EFL, and are restricted from paying either transfer or loan fees for the next three windows.
Wednesday are unable to sign new players on more than £7,000-a-week while ever there are payment obligations to fulfil. Even then, they would still need to pay HMRC after the club also defaulted on tax payments, before they can bring in any new blood.
The current situation marks the culmination of a decade of chaos under Thai tuna magnate Chansiri, who now surely knows he is in the end game as Hillsborough chief.
He has garnered a reputation as being notoriously difficult to deal with in both transfer and other business negotiations during his tumultuous reign at S6, making any prospective takeover problematic to facilitiate.
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Chansiri has knocked back two offers from a Florida-based consortium made up of business people and professional athletes. The group includes Adam Shaw, a lifelong Wednesday fan from the Steel City who has made his money Stateside.
In a rambling, 800+ word statement last week, Chansiri criticised the professionalism of the group and alluded to them not having the funds required in his opinion to further the club leaving a deal seemingly dead in the water.
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There are interests from other quarters in purchasing the Owls, including from John Textor, the recently departed part-owner of Crystal Palace, and glances from the Middle East.
But Chansiri is asking for what most deem to be an unrealistic price for the acquisition. And while ever the current issues remain, prospective buyers would be wise to bide their time as the value of the club plummets further, with administration a realistic possibility.
Players did return for pre-season last week, but with work on the training ground still ongoing, they are restricted to what they can do indoors. There are also suggestions of issues with the North Stand at Hillsborough, with work required on the structure to guarantee its long-term safety.
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A particular bone of contention with fans is the future of skipper Barry Bannan who, as of July 1, is now officially a free agent. Having signed in the summer of 2015, Bannan has made 447 appearances for the Owls and has written his name into club folklore becoming one of its most synonymous players in over 150 years of history.
Bannan agreed a deal in principle to stay at Hillsborough before the most recent debacle and has undertaken coaching badges which could even see him stay beyond the end of his playing days.
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It is unclear as to whether the current £7,000-a-week restriction would apply to him given he was under contract with the club last season. The same also applies to defender Akin Famewo and utility man Callum Paterson, who have both been offered new deals.
Bannan did report for training last week and is understood to be keen on staying at Wednesday in spite of the chaos. But if the situation is removed from his hands and Wednesday fans are not afforded the opportunity to give him a proper send-off, it will be a particularly difficult pill to swallow.
While there has been no indication of when the current financial malaise will be settled, Wednesday are due some payments which could ease matters. Academy star Caelan-Kole Cadamarteri, son of ex-Everton favourite Danny and brother of current Owls striker Bailey, is going to Manchester City for a fee of £1.5milllion, seven figures of which are understood to be up-front.
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The club will also receive TV money and solidarity payments from the EFL in the coming weeks, although exact dates are unclear. These funds could keep the lights on and ensure Wednesday start the season, but the can would ultimately be kicked down the road.
On the pitch, the Owls enjoyed a season of progress last term under highly-rated German boss Danny Rohl. Having kept them in the second tier from a seemingly impossible position in 2023-24, Rohl led the club to a top-half finish.
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But he has courted himself to clubs in England and Germany over the summer and has not reported back for pre-season having told senior players at Wednesday he will be leaving the club.
Rohl still has a year remaining on his contract but is understood to be in negotiations with the Hillsborough hierarchy over a severance package. Leicester are the latest club to linked with his services and an official approach could hasten his exit, and deliver some much needed funds.
All of Rohl's backroom staff are out of contract as of July 1. Danish assistant Henrik Pedersen has been linked with the manager's role and is understood to be keen on the job having moved his family and settled in the Steel City.
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But the current wage debacle could put paid to that, with new Brentford boss Keith Andrews interested in adding Pedersen to his backroom staff in West London.
Wednesday are the fifth-oldest club in the top four tiers of English football, four-time league champions, three-time FA Cup winners and won the League Cup as recently as the 1990s.
But this grand old institution is on the brink of complete collapse.