'Our role is integral to football's future' - football oversight chief the new chairman
The team's current difficulties constitute a "significant problem" and the independent regulator is aiming to acquire authority to investigate clubs in such situations, the recently named head the official has announced.
In a wide-ranging interview, the regulator, who was recently selected, expressed "sympathy" towards Wednesday's fanbase.
The chairman convened with four supporters' associations connected to the South Yorkshire club recently.
The team have been experiencing difficulties in multiple areas in 2025, with the club missing wage payments on several different times, including in September.
"Obviously the club has become a significant problem for EFL and a substantial concern for English football," Kogan told.
"Wednesday stands as one of the historic institutions for football in England and this week we have met fan representatives.
"Our aim is to acquire the ability... which will allow us to have Sheffield Wednesday - and other clubs submitted for our review if they warrant scrutiny and addressed."
Economic Challenges and Leadership Concerns
The team's struggling chairman the current owner stated during the off-season he would be willing to sell up at Hillsborough, but he has not been able to secure a deal with prospective buyers.
Failure to pay player wages on time in spring months caused limitations by the football authorities in mid-year, preventing the club from carrying out any player acquisitions for the following recruitment periods, although those limitations were removed in the end of the transfer window.
Official's Viewpoint
The chairman stated: "The position was created for the supporters of Wednesday, teams facing challenges where fans are dedicated to a local institution that has been part of their lives in numerous instances.
"I completely understand Sheffield Wednesday, as I do for each organization that in modern times have encountered failure, or approached financial ruin, for factors unrelated to the followers."
When asked if the regulator could force an chairman to relinquish a club if they are considered unfit, Kogan said: "If your question is 'would we intervene in the final instance?', the answer is once we collect the information and comprehend the circumstances, we will."
But the chairman emphasized that forcing owners to sell clubs would be viewed as the ultimate measure and the regulator would prefer to cooperate with proprietors.
"Our least desirable course of action is commence engagement with an specific team, an particular chairman, without being able to work with that owner to try and resolve the issues that the club's facing and the proprietor's dealing with," the chairman stated.
"In actuality, when you examine the past of football, over the past few decades there have been particular chairmen, not many, but particular people who have shown negligence in the approach they have taken toward their organizations and finally decline to assume obligation for the long-term prospects."
Owls fans have been voicing opposition to the team's chairman this season
'Mistakes could erase significant advances'
The regulator engaged representatives from 110 clubs to lay out the remit of the regulator on Wednesday and maintained it represented a "forward-thinking discussion" with a "high level of engagement" from the grassroots to elite level.
"The role holds considerable importance, because should mistakes occur, if the sport makes errors, the remarkable development accomplished could disappear incredibly quickly," the chairman stated.
"This represents everyone's worst fear in the terms of English football is a major achievement - we need to continue the progress.
"There's an enormous amount of money flowing into the game and has come into football for the last 20 or 25 years, because there's no guarantee it will persist in entering the game, which is among the factors explaining I think we have to maintain a focused outlook on potential dangers and naturally, of the coming seasons."
Elite Division Worries
Elite division representatives objected to the formation of an authority because of fears of a negative impact 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 Premier League.
"As someone who appreciates the worry about compromising the division as a high-quality offering of the nation. But at the same time, if you talk to the Premier League after today's meeting, they would have had a significant degree of comfort -and, in fact, they have been informing us confidentially they have a considerable comfort."
Partisan Associations
The regulator remains subject to a "thorough examination" by the official appointments authority after he acknowledged providing funds to the opposition group in recent years.
The 68-year-old provided financial support for 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 political affiliation came to an end the day the select committee approved my appointment," the regulator explained.
"I currently have no participation in any form of political activity."
