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Sheffield Wednesday's current difficulties are seen as a "significant problem" and the independent regulator is aiming to acquire authority to investigate clubs in similar circumstances, the recently named head the official has announced.

Through a comprehensive talk, the regulator, who was named to the position this week, expressed "sympathy" towards the club's followers.

Kogan met with four supporters' associations representing the Championship side in recent days.

The football club have been experiencing difficulties in multiple areas in this season, with the club delaying salary disbursements on five separate occasions, including in September.

"Evidently Wednesday represents a major concern for the league and a substantial concern for English football," the regulator explained.

"Sheffield Wednesday is one of the historic institutions for English football and this week we have met supporters' organizations.

"Our aim is to acquire the ability... which will permit us to bring Sheffield Wednesday - and other clubs submitted for our review if they require examination and acted upon."

Financial Struggles and Leadership Concerns

The club's controversial proprietor the Thai businessman suggested earlier this year he would be open to selling the club at their home ground, but he has failed to complete a sale with prospective buyers.

Failure to pay player wages on time in March and May led to sanctions by the English Football League (EFL) in June, preventing the club from carrying out any recruitment activities for the next three transfer windows, although those limitations were removed in the end of the transfer window.

Regulator's Perspective

Kogan said: "Our role exists to serve the fans of Sheffield Wednesday, Bury or any football club where people are committed to a local institution that has existed throughout their lifetimes in multiple situations.

"I completely understand the club's situation, as I do for all the clubs that over recent decades have faced collapse, or approached financial ruin, for causes separate from the followers."

Inquired if the oversight body could require an chairman to relinquish a club if they are deemed unsuitable, the regulator answered: "If your question is 'would we intervene in the final instance?', the response would be once we assemble the facts and understand the situation, we will."

But Kogan stressed that forcing owners to sell clubs would be treated as a "last resort" and the regulator would prefer to cooperate with proprietors.

"Our least desirable course of action is start getting involved with an particular organization, an individual owner, without having the opportunity to collaborate with that proprietor to address the issues that the club's facing and the proprietor's dealing with," the regulator explained.

"But the truth is, when you review the record of the sport, over the last 20 or 30 years there have been some owners, not many, but certain individuals who have acted carelessly in the way which they've been managing their clubs and ultimately decline to assume obligation for the coming years."

'If we get it wrong, extraordinary progress vanishes'

The chairman convened with delegates from multiple organizations to lay out the remit of the oversight body this week and insisted it was a "proactive meeting" with a "significant participation" from the grassroots to elite level.

"It's a job that's actually really important, because should mistakes occur, if the world of football gets it wrong, the extraordinary progress that's been made could disappear incredibly quickly," Kogan said.

"And that's what nobody wants in the context of the English game is a huge success story - we've got to keep it going.

"Substantial financial resources entering the sport and has been channeled for the recent generations, because certainty is lacking it will keep flowing into the sport, which is one of the reasons why I think we have to take a really clear view on risk and of course, of the next two or three years."

Elite Division Worries

Top flight officials resisted the creation of a regulator because of apprehensions regarding adverse consequences on the elite division's competitive balance, but the regulator stated: "I fully support the prosperity and expansion as an financial organization of the top division.

"Being fully aware of the concern of undermining the top flight as an elite competition of England. But concurrently, if you consult with top flight officials after this week's discussion, they would have had a high level of reassurance -and, in fact, they have been informing us confidentially they have a high level of reassurance."

Political Connections

The chairman continues to confront a "full inquiry" by the Commissioner for Public Appointments after he acknowledged providing funds to the political party in 2020.

The chairman provided financial support for government minister the minister's leadership bid, along with that of the now Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer.

"I've been completely open about my past party membership [with Labour], and that ideological connection terminated the day the select committee approved my appointment," the regulator explained.

"I am presently disconnected from any form of political activity."