'We will play a key role in football's future' - independent football regulator the new chairman
The team's current difficulties represent a a "major concern" and the football regulator is looking to gain the ability to investigate clubs in such situations, the recently named head the official has announced.
In a wide-ranging interview, Kogan, who was appointed on Monday, voiced concern towards Wednesday's fanbase.
The chairman convened with four supporters' associations representing the football team in recent days.
The football club have been struggling on and off the field in 2025, with the club missing wage payments on multiple instances, including in last month.
"Evidently Wednesday represents a major concern for the league and a major challenge for the sport," the regulator explained.
"The club represents one of the historic institutions for football in England and in recent days we have met Sheffield Wednesday supporters' groups.
"Our aim is to acquire the ability... which will allow us to have Sheffield Wednesday - and other clubs referred to us if they warrant scrutiny and dealt with."
Financial Struggles and Leadership Concerns
The club's controversial proprietor the Thai businessman indicated in the summer he would be open to selling the club at the stadium, but he has failed to complete a sale with prospective buyers.
Failure to pay player wages on time in March and May resulted in restrictions being imposed by the English Football League (EFL) in summer, preventing the club from carrying out any recruitment activities for the subsequent signing windows, although those limitations were removed in the end of the transfer window.
Regulator's Perspective
The regulator explained: "The job [of the regulator] is there for the Owls followers, teams facing challenges where fans are dedicated to a local institution that has been part of their lives in many cases.
"I fully appreciate Sheffield Wednesday, as I do for all the clubs that since 1992 have gone to the wall, or nearly ceased operations, for reasons that have nothing to do with the followers."
Questioned about whether the oversight body could require 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 gather the evidence and understand the situation, we will."
But the regulator clarified that forcing owners to sell clubs would be viewed as the ultimate measure and the oversight body would choose to collaborate with owners.
"The final option we would consider is start getting involved with an individual club, an individual owner, without being able to work with that chairman to fix the challenges confronting the team and the owner's facing," the regulator explained.
"However, realistically, when you look back over the history of football, over the last 20 or 30 years there have been certain proprietors, a small minority, but particular people who have shown negligence in the approach they have taken toward their organizations and finally refuse to accept accountability for the future."
Sheffield Wednesday supporters have been voicing opposition to the current proprietor during the current campaign
'If we get it wrong, extraordinary progress vanishes'
The chairman convened with officials from numerous teams to lay out the remit of the oversight body this week and maintained it represented a "progressive gathering" with a "significant participation" from the lower divisions to the top flight.
"It's a job that's actually really important, because if errors are made, if the world of football gets it wrong, the extraordinary progress that's been made might evaporate incredibly quickly," the chairman stated.
"Such an outcome is universally undesirable in the realm of domestic football is a substantial accomplishment - we've got to keep it going.
"There's an enormous amount of money flowing into the game and has come into football for the past two decades, because there's no guarantee it will persist in entering the game, which is part of the rationale behind I think we have to adopt a precise perspective on potential dangers and naturally, of the coming seasons."
Top Flight Apprehensions
Elite division representatives objected to the establishment of an oversight body because of concerns about detrimental effects on the elite division's competitive balance, but the regulator stated: "I fully support the prosperity and expansion as an commercial operation of the Premier League.
"Being fully aware of the concern of undermining the division as a high-quality offering of this country. But concurrently, if you talk to the Premier League after the recent gathering, they would have had a significant degree of comfort -and, actually, they have been advising us privately they have a significant confidence."
Partisan Associations
The chairman continues to confront a "full inquiry" by the official appointments authority after he acknowledged providing funds to the Labour Party in recent years.
The 68-year-old contributed funds to Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport the minister's leadership bid, along with that of the government leader.
"I have fully disclosed my previous political affiliation [with Labour], and that party membership ceased the day the parliamentary committee confirmed my selection," the regulator explained.
"I am presently disconnected from any type of partisan engagement."
