The first bids for Sheffield Wednesday may arrive as early as the end of this week, with at least 10 “very serious” potential owners having now registered their interest.
The club’s administrators Begbies Traynor, who assumed control after former owner Dejphon Chansiri put the club into administration 10 days ago, have asked interested parties to supply proof of funding of £50m and sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) before being granted access to the data that reveals the state of the stricken Championship club’s finances.
An initial 30 to 40 serious enquiries are expected to be whittled down to at least 10 who have been able to either provide proof of funding or are of such high net worth that they do not need to go through that process.
What’s the latest?
Administrators, who say they are “delighted” with the level of interest in the club, are hoping to conclude a deal in time for the January transfer window and are now braced for the first official bids.
The positive bulletin on Wednesday’s future comes with the club re-energised after the exit of Chansiri.
Having called off a boycott that saw less than 3,000 home fans attend a recent league fixture against Middlesbrough, it is expected that Wednesday’s home game against Norwich City will be close to a sell-out at Hillsborough.
“It’s strange to come into a business as administrators and be popular but it probably helps us the relationship that fans had with the former owner,” Kris Wigfield, the joint administrator of the club, told The i Paper.
“At the moment we’re popular but obviously if we don’t find a buyer quickly, football fans are quite fickle so we’re very conscious of the fact we need to sell it as soon as we can to a good buyer.”
Who’s in the running?
Bidders have been required to sign a NDA that forbids them from setting out their plans for the Championship club until an agreement has been reached on the purchase of the club but The i Paper understands that former Newcastle United owner Mike Ashley is one of those who has shown an interest.
It is not clear whether he is a front-runner at this stage or if he intends to table a bid and there are other wealthy contenders with access to the sort of finances that can transform Wednesday’s fortunes.
“So far we’re absolutely delighted with the interest we’ve had,” Wigfield says.
“We’re pleased with the list of contenders that we have got. Time will tell in the next week or so whether that interest results in offers but I’m sure it will.
“We have probably had at least 30 or 40 enquiries that we think are serious. We will have at least double figures that will have proof of funding or we don’t have to ask for proof of funding because it’s just obvious from who they are that they’ve got that money.”
Should fans be worried?
While the club were hit with a 15 point deduction that leaves them staring at relegation to League One, the future – ironically – appears much brighter for the Owls.
The new owner will inherit around £14m of debt, with £8m of that owed to Chansiri.
But EFL rules only require payment of 25 pence of every pound owed to creditors to be repaid upon completion of the transaction.
And there are no worries about keeping the business running while the sales process plays out.
“We need the fans to keep buying tickets and merchandise like they have been but we have got a plan,” Mr Wigfield, a Wednesday season ticket holder, said.
“There’s no real danger of the club not being able to trade for a number of months. If it comes down to it we’ve got a large EFL payment due in January of about £2.5m. If necessary we can effectively borrow against that payment.
“That will give us the cash flow to trade through if we need to. We’re also fortunate, in a way, the wage bill had been run down so far. If we’d got a normal Championship wage bill it may have been the black hole would have been greater than the one we’ve got.”
They have been helped by donations from the Sheffield Wednesday Supporters Trust, who have given the club £60,000 out of membership fees and unsold protest scarves, and are currently organising a loan facility through wealthy supporters which will give administrators a “safety net” if the sale drags on.
Trust board member Rob Brookes says supporters feel like “released hostages” after Chansiri’s departure.
“It’s brought everybody together, everyone is energised, staff are brimming with ideas to bring in money and reorganise things,” he said.
“They became a sullen workforce but now people are working overtime without pay, all hours, all hands on deck.”
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