Sheffield Wednesday takeover situation 'unacceptable' as pressure grows after James Bord breakthrough | OneFootball

Clive Betts MP has called out the administrators at Sheffield Wednesday as supporters continue to be left in the dark about the club's situation.

Clive Betts, the MP for Sheffield South East, has called out the administrators at Sheffield Wednesday as the wait for 'clarity' continues at Hillsborough.

The Owls were placed into administration on October 24, with the EFL automatically applying a 12-point deduction onto the club, while a further six points were taken off the South Yorkshire outfit at the start of December in relation to the failure to pay players earlier in 2025, as well other non-payments to staff and HMRC.

Sheffield Wednesday have been left stranded at the bottom of the Championship on -7 points, with their closest rival, Oxford United, currently on 22 points.

While a quick resolution to the situation in S6 was never a guarantee, Mr Betts has issued a demand to the club's administrators to reassure supporters that work is being done to ensure that a takeover is completed.

Clive Betts MP issues statement to Sheffield Wednesday's administrators

On the pitch, Sheffield Wednesday's future looks all but guaranteed, with Henrik Pedersen extremely unlikely to save the club from relegation to League One. However, with a preferred bidder now selected, the situation off the field has moved forward.

However, Clive Betts has spoken out about the process to find the Owls a new owner, and when questioned about how he felt about the club's position, he said to BBC Radio Sheffield: "[It's] unacceptable. I sat on the football governance bill in Parliament, it's now an act and the essence of the change in legislation is to bring fans to the heart of all the processes and requirements about football clubs and how they're run.

"One of the specifics of the legislation, one of the clauses, when insolvency proceedings are taking place, reasonable steps to keep fans informed about the progress of proceedings is the responsibility of the club. The club has an administrator. The administrator should be keeping fans up to date, in my view, and they simply aren't doing it.

"There was quite a lot of discussion to begin with about the number of bids coming in. It was all very positive, and then suddenly we're down to three bidders, but we don't know who the preferred bidder is. That really isn't acceptable."

Mr Betts continued: "I wrote to the administrator before Christmas asking lots of questions about whom the preferred bidder was, was it an individual, was it a consortium? We'd heard the name James Bord mentioned, was it him? Was it his company? What are the funding arrangements being put in place?

"How is the governance going to work? What are they committed to in terms of engaging with the fans going forward? The answer I got back was 'the administrator's on annual leave, he'll get back to you.' And then they said, 'we are limited in what we can say by EFL rules'.

"I then went back to them saying, 'what have the EFL actually said to you? Is it in writing or is it a phone call? Can you tell me, and tell me who said it? I'm also going back to the EFL, of course, and saying this is what the administrator has told me. What are your rules that are preventing this? Is this true?'

"It isn't acceptable. The EFL, the administrator and the new regulator, for heaven's sake, get together and give the fans some clarity."

Sheffield Wednesday supporters need a resolution sooner rather than later

It has now been over 10 weeks since Sheffield Wednesday were placed into administration, and with the January transfer window now open, the club is vulnerable to losing key stars.

Pierce Charles is just one of those being targeted, with The Star reporting that Strasbourg have tabled a bid for the talented goalkeeper, while Harry Amass' loan from Manchester United has been cut short.

With Sheffield Wednesday under transfer restrictions by the EFL, bringing in new faces is an incredibly tough task and therefore finding a new owner to help start preparation for next season as soon as possible is vital to the Owl's success in the future.

Patience is waring thin in the stands, and without clarity from those at the top, supporters will continue to feel unsettled, and a resolution is needed now.