The English Football League is slated to revisit its insolvency rules after the recent takeover of Sheffield Wednesday, a move that has sparked frustration among several clubs. Their irritation stems from the fact that the Owls managed to avoid a 15‑point sanction even though they technically breached the league's agreed‑upon protocol when they emerged from administration. The previous proprietor of Wednesday, Thai businessman Dejphon Chansiri, is still owed a quarter of the £64 million he injected into the club in the form of loans – roughly £16 million. The new owner, David Storch, declined to settle that debt, arguing that Chansiri had left the club in a dire financial state.
Had Storch chosen to repay the full amount, it would have more than doubled the price he paid for the club. Nevertheless, Sky Sports News has obtained exclusive information that an offer remains on the table for Chansiri. The proposal, worth several million pounds, would be triggered only if Wednesday secure promotion back to the Championship at the first attempt. This arrangement mirrors the deal that Chansiri himself struck with his predecessor, Milan Mandaric, when he bought the club in 2015.
According to Sky Sports, Storch's offer is time‑sensitive and must be accepted quickly before it expires later this month. The credibility and availability of this offer played a pivotal role in the EFL board’s decision not to impose a points deduction.
The board concluded that the proposal demonstrated Storch’s genuine effort to resolve the financial dispute, thereby justifying leniency. On Saturday, as fans gathered at Hillsborough for the season‑ending match, the stadium’s big screen displayed a countdown that appeared to chip away at the 15‑point penalty, prompting repeated cheers from the Owls supporters. In reality, however, no formal penalty had ever been handed down by the EFL, so there was nothing to subtract.
The spectacle was more a celebration of the club’s survival than a removal of an actual sanction. The EFL’s official guidelines dictate that new owners must make a reasonable attempt to clear outstanding debts. Football creditors and HM Revenue & Customs are to be paid in full, while other creditors receive a settlement of 25p per pound owed. What persuaded the league to waive the points penalty in Wednesday’s case was Storch’s proactive negotiations with Chansiri and evidence that the former owner was unwilling to compromise.
Sky Sports reports that when Storch presented his offer, Chansiri contacted the administrators and demanded that the club be put back on the market to fetch a higher price. Such a move would have dramatically increased the risk of liquidation at a time when the club’s revenue streams were about to collapse with the season’s end. Without Storch’s intervention, Wednesday’s very existence was in serious jeopardy.
A number of other Championship clubs have voiced their displeasure that Wednesday escaped a points deduction for the upcoming League One season. These clubs have chosen to remain anonymous, but their concerns highlight a broader unease with the EFL’s insolvency policy.
The league is expected to convene a meeting with its member clubs before the next season begins to discuss possible revisions to the policy. The current framework was adopted by the clubs themselves during a 2023 debate that followed Derby County’s exit from administration ten months earlier, when David Clowes took over the club. In Derby’s case, former owner Mel Morris agreed to write off a substantial portion of the money he was owed after having invested more than £200 million of his own funds into the club before it entered administration. Some Championship clubs argue that Derby had to reach a settlement with its outgoing owner to avoid a points penalty, whereas Wednesday did not negotiate a similar agreement with Chansiri yet still avoided punishment.
The EFL board, however, was convinced that Storch had exhausted every possible avenue to negotiate with Chansiri and that penalising the club for the predecessor’s inflexibility would be unfair. Critics point out that the insolvency clause is the only area of the EFL’s regulations where the board retains discretionary power to decide on a points deduction. In contrast, other matters, such as breaches of the Profit and Sustainability Rules, are decided by the Club Financial Reporting Unit (CFRU), an independent body separate from the league’s administrators.
The debate over whether the EFL should retain this discretionary power continues, with many clubs calling for clearer, more consistent rules that remove subjectivity from the process. As the league prepares for the next season, the outcome of these discussions could reshape how financial distress is handled across English football, potentially affecting the future stability of clubs at all levels. In summary, the Sheffield Wednesday takeover has ignited a broader conversation about the fairness and transparency of the EFL’s insolvency policy. While the Owls celebrated their avoidance of a points deduction, other clubs remain skeptical and are urging the league to establish firmer guidelines that apply uniformly, ensuring that financial mismanagement is addressed consistently throughout the competition.