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The Owls are looking towards a Championship sporting director for their new era

Sheffield Wednesday are set to see David Storch's takeover of the club finalised in due course, and a sporting director is being eyed up from the Championship for their rebuild, Football League World can exclusively reveal.

The Owls have suffered for the entirety of the 2025-26 second tier season, and unless they defeat West Brom on Saturday at Hillsborough, they will finish on minus points due to the damage caused by former owner Dejphon Chansiri.

There's set to be a party atmosphere in S6 though this weekend, with David Storch and family member Michael, as well as their business partner Tom Costin, set to be in attendance for the final match of the campaign.

Storch has a big task on his hands to take Wednesday back into the Championship quickly, especially as a 15-point deduction for the 2026-27 League One season is looming due to Chansiri not being willing to agree a deal to reduce the price of his debts, but he's looking to put a plan in place to not only strengthen the behind the scenes structure at the club under his expected ownership, but the American is also looking to modernise the day-to-day running.

Portsmouth chief on Sheffield Wednesday, David Storch radar

It has become apparent that Storch and co would like a sporting director role to be introduced at Sheffield Wednesday, with ex-Arsenal scout and technical director James Ellis initially eyed up for the job, as Football League World revealed in April.

But with Ellis now looking like he is headed for Bristol City, FLW understands that Sheffield Wednesday's new incoming ownership group have placed Portsmouth's Richard Hughes in the frame for the role.

The 37-year-old has been at Pompey since September 2022, having spent the previous four years at Forest Green Rovers as their head of scouting and then sporting director, and he has helped - alongside manager John Mousinho - to take the south coast outfit back to the Championship from League One.

Hughes also has scouting and analyst experience with Everton, Wigan Athletic, Burnley, Tamworth, Macclesfield Town and Stoke City, and having grown up in Staffordshire, there's the potential that he may be keen on moving back closer to his roots if Wednesday do indeed come calling.

One of the masterminds behind bringing the likes of Terry Devlin, Callum Lang, Josh Murphy and Regan Poole, among others, to Fratton Park, Hughes will reach his four-year anniversary at Portsmouth later this year, but if Sheffield Wednesday get their way, he could be heading north before that, albeit it would mean dropping a division in the EFL pyramid.