Sheffield Wednesday takeover: The action David Storch & Arise have taken to avoid new complication | OneFootball

Sheffield Wednesday are bringing in a highly experienced sports barrister to handle any legal matters that may be imposed onto the club

With Sheffield Wednesday's relegation and now their position at the bottom of the Championship confirmed, all eyes are on next season.

There were significant updates in the takeover process at Hillsborough last week as Arise Capital Partners, consisting of David Storch, Michael Storch and Tom Costin, was announced as the new preferred bidder, just weeks after James Bord's consortium pulled out of proceedings.

It was some rare good news to end numerous negative and worrying stories coming out of the club, but, as Wednesday fans have had to grow used to, there have been some caveats alongside it.

The Owls are set to begin next season with a 15-point deduction, as the bid put down by the new preferred bidders doesn't pay off the creditors the 25p in the pound to satisfy the EFL's insolvency rules.

But that doesn't seem to be all, as the club is currently subject to financial restrictions that would not allow them to pay a fee for a new player until the summer transfer window of 2027, plus a wage cap restriction, which would see the club capped at £7 million on wages, with players not being allowed to be paid more than £7,000 per week.

Arise hires a top sports lawyer to handle legal matters in the wake of owner checks

An update from the Sheffield Star has stated that David Storch is now going through the EFL's Owners and Directors test, with the hope that the takeover can be completed by May.

The report also reads that Nick De Marco has been brought in to deal with any legal matters that may come from the checks and conversations had with the EFL.

De Marco is a sports barrister at Blackstone Chambers, where he has worked for close to 25 years. The Blackstone Chambers website describes him as the "go-to" for any football disputes, and in 2023, he was listed as one of the four most highly regarded sports silks in the UK.

In 2024, he represented Benjamin Mendy in a successful trial against Manchester City, where the Frenchman was found to have been owed the majority of his unpaid wages towards the end of his time at the club, which were withheld from him after he was charged with sex offences.

While the 15-point deduction seems irreversible, there may be some hope that, from conversations had with the EFL, they can see these wage and fee restrictions eased, which would give the Owls a fighting chance at avoiding a second successive relegation next season.

Sheffield Wednesday continue to live in hope after Nick De Marco hire

Sheffield Wednesday will face an uphill struggle to remain in League One next season, as they are set to begin the campaign on -15 points. Having restrictions in place regarding transfers will almost confirm a double relegation.

The Owls need a squad rebuild, but as it stands, they won't be getting one, meaning that Arise are essentially buying a League Two club. Understandably, the Star reports that the group are "uncomfortable" with the added sanctions imposed on the club.

Hopefully, the hire of a top sports barrister whose reputation precedes him will give Wednesday some hope that there can be some release and next season could be a little more enjoyable regarding general competitiveness on the field.

As it stands, the club are en route to being saved, and they'll hope that this can mark the start of a new era, rather than having the remnants of Dejphon Chansiri's reign still lingering until their restrictions come to an end naturally.