Sheffield Wednesday takeover update has got Owls fans talking - ‘it’s clear who is in control’ | OneFootball

Sheffield Wednesday’s takeover limbo has left fans reading between the lines

Sheffield Wednesday’s takeover process was meant to offer clarity after almost total collapse - but there's still some confusion and panic over what's next for the stricken Championship side.

Instead, it has become another reminder of how little leverage clubs retain once financial failure sets in.

As reports last week suggested that Mike Ashley has emerged as a frontrunner once again, the reaction among Owls supporters has been telling - less about excitement or fear, more about control, compromise and consequence.

For a fanbase already resigned to relegation with only one eye on on-pitch matters, the debate has shifted.

The question is no longer who buys Sheffield Wednesday, but on what terms - and what supporters are being asked to accept in return for long-term survival.

Mike Ashley’s Sheffield Wednesday takeover perseverance widens field for Owls bidders

According to reporting by The Sheffield Star’s Joe Crann, Ashley’s continued presence in the process may have had a paradoxical effect.

Rather than narrowing the field, it has reportedly encouraged other potential Owls bidders to reconsider their interest - but only if the asking price drops to a level closer to what Ashley is willing to pay.

Earlier reports suggested the takeover race had been reduced to three serious bidders: Ashley, a joint American bid involving John McEvoy and the Storch family, and a proposal led by James Bord.

Since then, Bord is understood to have dropped out, McEvoy has withdrawn and the Storch family are reportedly seeking new partners. Ashley, crucially, remains - but at a valuation believed to be below £30m.

That figure sits beneath the EFL’s insolvency threshold, meaning a sale at that level would almost certainly trigger a 15-point deduction at the start of next season.

The alternative - paying closer to £35m to satisfy creditors - would avoid further sporting sanctions but require significantly greater upfront investment.

Administrators have insisted that progress is being made, but among Wednesday supporters there is a growing belief that this is no longer an administrator-led process in any meaningful sense.

One fan captured the mood succinctly: “It’s clear who is in control of this process & it’s not the administrators.”

In a distressed sale, leverage shifts quickly. Time, losses and uncertainty favour bidders willing to wait - particularly those comfortable absorbing sporting penalties in exchange for lower acquisition costs.

Sheffield Wednesday fans react to latest takeover news - ownership battle divides supporters

What is striking is how openly Wednesday supporters are engaging with the latest reports of a trade-off.

Rather than rejecting the prospect of another points deduction outright, many have framed it as a calculated - if bleak - price worth paying.

“If starting next season on -15 means the club is going to have the funding it needs in the long run then so be it,” one fan wrote. “This isn’t about 1 season, it's about our future.”

That sentiment reflects a broader recalibration. Years of financial mismanagement under Dejphon Chansiri were repeatedly justified in the language of ambition - promotion pushes, spending to compete, short-term risk for long-term reward.

Administration has stripped that logic bare. Now, sustainability is seen as corrective.

Others have gone further, arguing that an additional season in League One could be tolerated - even welcomed - if it comes with the right ownership and football structure in place.

There is also unresolved anger about accountability. Several fans have questioned why creditors must be paid in full to avoid deductions, while the former owner whose decisions led to administration faces no comparable sanction.

“If only the new owner could strike a deal… to pay the creditors but not Chansiri,” one post read, capturing a sense of injustice that has lingered since October.

Not everyone views the process cynically. Some have defended the mechanics of the sale itself, suggesting that a cooling-off period and a realistic price may ultimately prevent another overleveraged ownership model.

“This is exactly how it should work,” one supporter wrote, “and might stop some tears from people on here.”

What unites these responses is realism. Relegation already feels inevitable - and perhaps now, another points deduction feels survivable. What supporters appear unwilling to accept is another owner selling ambition without foundations.

The takeover, whenever it is completed, will be judged on whether Wednesday finally escape the cycle of financial brinkmanship that has defined the last decade - even if doing so means starting again from further back than anyone hoped.