Jailed owners, crypto chaos, unpaid tax - New EFL season brings dread for fans
The dawn of a new season is meant to be a time to dream. A blank canvas presents itself in front of every club in early August and supporters are allowed to briefly get caught up in a swirl of unrealistic ambitions and outlandish forecasts. Or at least that’s how it used to be.
The EFL is increasingly becoming a place for realism rather than fantasy and for a number of clubs from the Championship down to League Two there is already fear of what the next nine months could bring.
Relegation is on the mind for some. Worse, for others, is the prospect of off-field problems making what happens between the lines a secondary consideration.
The north west is an obvious departure point for this Tour de Dread considering Wigan Athletic will begin their League One campaign on -8 points courtesy of the previous owners’ gross mismanagement that saw players and staff go without their salary last season.
Mike Danson, a homegrown billionaire, completed his 100 per cent takeover of the club in mid-June and cleared all existing debt and wage issues should not be a problem but their handicap remains a reminder of the precarious reality facing so many EFL clubs. Manager Shaun Maloney has a squad that is too good to face a relegation battle but they might already have too much ground to make up in the race for elevation.
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An hour further north at Fleetwood Town there are questions around the ownership. Andy Pilley, whose investment elevated the club from the non-League doldrums to League One, was last month sent to jail for 13 years for his role in a fraud scheme. In a statement after his sentencing the club said that it would “continue to operate as normal” and described Pilley as “former chairman”.
He resigned as director of the club’s parent company in May and two family members were appointed in March. Yet the EFL have been silent on the matter and the weakness of their owners’ and directors’ test has again been brought into focus - although he was already owner of the club before the crimes were committed.
Charlie Methven, perhaps best known for his performance on Netflix, is now part of Charlton's ownership group. (Netflix / Fulwell 73)Ownership changes are nothing new at Charlton Athletic, who have been taken over by a subsidiary of Global Football Partners. For neutrals the most notable element will be the presence of Charlie Methven, whose Brentish scenes in Netflix ’s Sunderland Til I Die documentary, but Addicks fans will be hoping these custodians are in it for the long-term following a decade of boardroom turmoil. Fans have been bruised so often that the new group face a tall order to entirely convince.
Fifty miles south most Crawley Town supporters are bracing for a campaign of grim struggle under their crypto bro owners and a co-chairman in Preston Johnson who brought ridicule by sitting in the dugout for a match last season.
The WAGMI project looks to be falling apart and the departure of key players, some of whom have thought it preferable to step down to non-League, is indicative of the shambles and chaos.
West of London’s commuter belt at Reading the opening of their League One campaign, a first dip into the third tier since 2001-02, may be swiftly followed on August 9 by a day in court over an unpaid tax bill.
Having been served a winding-up order in June, the club has also been reprimanded by the EFL for not paying players on time and a separate breach of regulations by owner Dai Yongge, who has remained silent throughout a difficult summer. They are under a transfer embargo, although new manager Ruben Selles said in late July that he received assurances the tax bill will be paid.
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The Royals are not the only Chinese-owned club in a state of distress. West Bromwich Albion supporters continue to call on majority shareholder Guoachan Lai to sell up and talks in recent months do not yet appear to have brought the prospect of a change much closer.
Interested parties have included a group featuring Chris Farnell, a lawyer who was previously involved in failed ventures with Burnley and Charlton, but their offer of a minority shareholding has not progressed.
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Again there are questions and concerns over who really owns the club. Some well-connected sources say there is state influence from China that means up to a 1,000 different business figures may have a vested interest in the club. But the EFL remains tight-lipped around what concerns they have and fans are left to piece rumours together while hoping for a positive outcome.
Neighbours Birmingham City hope their new owners, fronted by American hedge fund manager Tom Wagner and involving NFL mega-star Tom Brady, can bring stability to St Andrew’s following the unhappy era of another China-based ownership group.
Zooming out, though, it becomes clear that all of these clubs share one inescapable reality. The EFL is increasingly a financial basket case in need of regulation and it seems a safe bet to predict other clubs will veer towards the cliff edge between now and May.
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