Triple Sheffield Wednesday takeover news is exciting - Dejphon Chansiri upgrade is looming | OneFootball

Owls supporters should be excited by who could potentially take over at Hillsborough

After months of uncertainty, Sheffield Wednesday supporters are unsurprisingly embracing the fact their club looks set for a brighter future following recent developments at Hillsborough.

Whilst a club being placed into administration only adds to the doubt and worry of long-suffering supporters, those in the blue and white half of the Steel City are celebrating the fact it has effectively ended Dejphon Chansiri's 10-year spell as Owls chairman - one which ended in extremely bleak fashion.

After taking over from the late Milan Mandaric in 2015, Chansiri oversaw two seasons' worth of promotion bids back to the Premier League under Carlos Carvalhal. Since then, though, Wednesday's plight has been extremely drastic for a multitude of reasons.

However, all associated with the club, be it through a playing, non-playing staff or supporting capacity, have expressed their feelings after a trio of Begbies Traynor administrators - including lifelong Wednesdayite, Kris Wigfield - took temporary control of the club ahead of last Saturday's 2-1 defeat to Oxford United in S6.

Despite suffering yet another loss, Henrik Pedersen and his players saw at first-hand, the potential the South Yorkshire side has due to the size of its fanbase, which just days before, had taken part in a mass boycott of Hillsborough for the televised 1-0 defeat against high-flying Middlesbrough.

However, with Chansiri now firmly out of the picture, supporters can now start to dream of a bright future for their club, and that begins by looking at the resume of three high-profile bidders who are looking to take control when they are legally allowed to do so.

John McEvoy, Mike Ashley and John Textor ownership links should excite Sheffield Wednesday supporters

It had previously been reported that Chansiri wanted £100m to relinquish control before fears of a winding-up petition arose prior to the club being placed into administration on October 24th.

The Telegraph have reported that the current administrators are demanding £50m and are hopeful of passing the baton over to a new owner by the end of 2025, with the trio of John Textor, Mike Ashley and John McEvoy presenting themselves as three of the most high-profile parties interested in taking control.

It was recently stated that the EFL do not normally allow sales to occur until at least 21 days after the club were placed into administration, which means the earliest potential date a takeover could be sanctioned at Hillsborough is November 14th.

Textor had previously revealed his 'talks' with Chansiri amid claims that a sale could have ended up costing just £70m, with the former Crystal Palace and Lyon stakeholder looking to take full control of a club just months after he was at the front and centre of a controversial UEFA ruling which led to the FA Cup winners being demoted to the UEFA Europa Conference League due to 'multi-club ownership' regulations.

Despite said controversies, Textor can demonstrate success through his time as Botafogo chairman, with the Brazilian outfit nominated as one of five potential winners for this year's Ballon d'Or Men's Club of the Year after partaking in the FIFA Club World Cup.

Ashley is a name even more well-known to English football fans, having made his money through his Sports Direct sportswear empire, which led to him acquiring control of Newcastle United for £134m in September 2007.

It's fair to say that several decisions throughout his 14-year tenure at St James' Park didn't go down well with disillusioned supporters who protested to oust him from the boardroom, eventually selling to the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund four years ago.

However, Ashley's continued interest in sports business and rescuing historic clubs was evident in his bid to buy Derby County in 2022, when the Rams were in the exact same predicament as Wednesday currently find themselves in.

Meanwhile, whilst not having previous experience of owning a football club, McEvoy did attempt to buy Coventry City in 2022, whilst also holding stakes in the Nashville Predators and Colorado Rockies of the NHL and MLB.

Wednesdayites will also be intrigued by his off-pitch connection to the Steel City, holding a stake in talent agency, Various Artists Management, who hold links to Reverend and the Makers' lead singer and Hillsborough season-ticket holder, Jon McClure.

Sheffield Wednesday will hope for stability regardless of the new ownership's identity

As previously mentioned, all three bidders have a selection of pros and cons should their bid be accepted by Begbies Traynor.

Regardless of the identity of the new chairman or ownership group, those on the terraces will be crying out for one thing above all else, which is the buzzword of stability.

For too long, Wednesday have been at the forefront of controversy and instability, which led to two seasons in League One between 2021 and 2023 after an initial points deduction for breaching EFL spending regulations.

A current 12-point deduction sees the Owls sit on minus six points after 12 games, which has only made the task at Henrik Pedersen's hand - Championship survival against all odds - nigh on impossible.

Therefore, staff and players at the club will hope to use the coming weeks and months as a period where strong infrastructure and stability can be put back in place, allowing Wednesday to eventually end their current 25-year hiatus from the Premier League.