Sheffield Wednesday fans will dream of Birmingham City, Ipswich Town repeat as takeover twist revealed | OneFootball

News that two of the American bidders for Sheffield Wednesday have merged could be exciting news for fans of the beleaguered Championship club.

Reports that two of the American bids for beleaguered Championship club Sheffield Wednesday have merged could leave Wednesday fans hoping for a repeat of what's happened at a couple of other current Championship clubs under US ownership.

With a formal announcement expected in the near future, speculation over who the new owners of Sheffield Wednesday will be is reaching fever pitch.

With the club's relegation from the Championship now being treated as a foregone conclusion as a result of the growing gap between them and safety, the identity of the new custodians of the club could be their most important result of the remainder of the 2025-26 season.

And one development reported at the end of last week regarding an American bid for the club could give Wednesday fans cause for optimism that their club could have a very bright future indeed, if the experiences of two other Championship clubs under American ownership is anything to go by.

Sheffield Wednesday American bids reported to be joining forces to buy the club

It has been reported that two of the bids to buy Sheffield Wednesday out of administration have merged. The Storch family and a group led by US businessman Jon McEvoy are understood to have joined forces in their attempt to buy the club, and it's also been reported that this merger is the reason why there has been a delay in announcing the preferred bidder for Wednesday.

Both parties have a previous connection with interest in EFL clubs. The interest of John McEvoy is long-held and well-known. It was reported that McEvoy, who counts the talent agency Various Artists among his investments, had consulted with the front man of the Sheffield-based band Reverend & The Makers, John McClure, a lifelong Owls fan, about the viability of buying the club.

The previous interest of the Storch family in buying into English football came during the summer, when they were reported by the Telegraph as being part of the Gareth Bale-fronted consortium that was linked to buying League One club Plymouth Argyle. These talks came to nothing, and it would appear that the Storch family have now shifted their attention elsewhere.

Sheffield Wednesday fans could have a lot to be excited about, if the experience of Ipswich and Birmingham is anything to go by

A number of American groups have bought into English football in recent years, and if the experience of two other Championship clubs is anything to go by, Sheffield Wednesday fans could have a lot to look forward to should they also come under US ownership.

Shelby Companies Ltd, led by the colourful Tom Wagner, bought Birmingham City in 2023, and when the club were relegated into League One at the end of the 2023-24 season they suffered the worst possible introduction to the game in England.

But the new owners of the club have kept faith in their project. The Blues' stay in League One turned out to be brief. They were promoted straight back to the Championship at the first attempt with a record-breaking 111 points, and their progress this season has also been solid, with the team having settled, with real aspirations of a play-off place or perhaps better.

Arguably more important than even this have been their plans for a new 62,000-capacity stadium for the club. Plans for this new 'Sports Quarter' have been advancing at a pace, and the club hope to be in the stadium for the start of the 2030-31 season.

Developments at Ipswich Town since Gamechanger 20 bought the club from Marcus Edwards in 2021 have been less showy, but no less impressive.

Ipswich had stagnated to the point that they'd fallen into League One by the time of the sale, but two successive promotions took them all the way to the Premier League, and while staying in that division at the end of the 2024-25 season was beyond them and their start to this season was slow, the team has picked up some form, and they're now well-placed to bid for a quick return.

The one thing that both of these groups have in common has been a lack of fear of investing in their respective clubs in order to help them succeed. The new Birmingham City stadium could change the trajectory of that club forever, to the point that Premier League football will be essential if the club are to make it work.

Ipswich's owners have been lower-key in terms of their aspirations for their club, but getting the club from their position in League One to being serious contenders for a Premier League would be a significant achievement, even if they hadn't managed those two successive promotions.

And if there's one thing that Sheffield Wednesday need at the moment, it's investment. On the pitch, transfer embargoes and fee restrictions have left the first-team squad threadbare, giving them little chance of avoiding the drop this season even before administration-related points deductions were applied.

Off the pitch, the position is similar. Hillsborough stadium itself has been neglected for a very long time, and needs substantial work carried out to bring it into the 21st century.

The cost of renovating the stadium could be high, but it would certainly be to the long-term benefit of the club to carry it out. Presenting Sheffield Wednesday as a modern, forward-looking club could be attractive to the sort of players that they wish to attract, as well as potential future commercial partners.

The merger of these two bids shows that both the Storch family and John McEvoy's group are serious about buying Sheffield Wednesday, and if they're serious about buying in, then Wednesday fans have good cause to believe that they'll be serious about investment once they've secured ownership of the club. If they can unlock the potential of Sheffield Wednesday, fans really could be looking forward to a very different future for their club.