England s century-old club is deeply involved in wage arrears, Thai boss is accused of "kidnapping" the club

Sheffield Wednesday Football Club, founded in 1867, is one of the oldest football clubs in the UK and even the world. Although the team has never appeared in the Premier League again after entering the new century, this club with a long history of 158 years is not short of fans. However, in the summer of 2025, Xie Wednesday was experiencing unprecedented turmoil - some fans called for boycotting the team due to wage arrears, and local lawmakers even claimed that the club was "kidnapped and held hostage" by Thai boss Defung Changcili.

How did things develop like this?

The owner of Sheffield Wednesday Football Club is Thai businessman Defung Changxili. In recent times, the club has been poorly managed and has been facing cash flow problems.

Changcili has not yet made an official explanation of the cause of the problem, but the situation has escalated recently.

Xie delayed payments to the UK General Administration of Taxation and Customs (HMRC) in both 2023 and 2024, and in May and June this year, they could not even pay the salary of players, coaches and staff on time.

They are currently facing three bans from the English Football League (EFL), one related to the player's wage arrears and one related to another issue with the HMRC, and on July 3, they faced a third ban on failure to pay transfer fees.

They are already subject to the registration ban, including this summer, and they cannot transfer to any player until all the arrears are paid; they cannot rent players for a paid period.

Changcili did not give any explanation for the cause of the current crisis, and the club has not come up with any solution to the problem now. Mahta Morango, president of the Professional Football Players Association, described Sheh’s situation as “shocking” and “untolerable”.

Meanwhile, Sheffield Southeast Councilman Clive Bates urged Changcily to sell the club, accusing him of "taken hostage".

Bates, a lifelong fan of the "Owls", said: "Changcili must accept the fact that Xie Wednesday was sold to prevent the club from collapsing completely... As fans, we deserve better treatment." Who is Changcili? The Chauncili family, which controls the world's largest canned tuna producer, United Group, reportedly bought the club from former Sheffield chairman Milan Mandarich on Wednesday in 2015 for £37.5 million.

The "Owls" have not participated in the Premier League since their relegation in 2000. In the first two seasons of Chauncili's helm, Xie Wednesday was able to enter the Champions League upgrade play-offs, but in recent years, the club owner, who is nearly 60 years old, has focused his main energy on frequent clashes with fans in fan forums and public statements.

In 2023, amid fans' calls for him to sell the team, he told fans: "You don't have the right to ask me to leave." In an interview with the Sheffield Star, he asked fans to raise £2 million to help the club repay outstanding debts owed to the UK General Administration of Taxation and Customs, but he solved the problem himself soon after.

End of last season, Sheffield Fan Trust organized a large-scale demonstration to demand that Chancily leave. Some employees received a salary of £700 in June in March this year, Xie's players failed to pay on time. Although the problem was resolved a few days later, the same thing happened in May and June.

Some players still haven't received their May salary. It is believed that many players have submitted their resignation, according to relevant regulations of England, because if players do not receive the wages owed for two consecutive months, they have the right to leave as free. The coaches have also been affected, and their contract has expired, which means that the team can only have a "smart" coaching staff left to take charge of the preseason preparations.

The highly acclaimed head coach Danny Roll is about to leave the club and negotiations are still ongoing.

Non-competition staff also suffered wage arrears. Last month, an emergency fund helped some employees.

The outside world believes that some employees have received a salary of £700 in June. It is not clear when they will receive their full salary.

Changxili's high price transfer, and it is difficult to find a "take-up man"

Changxili has not yet disclosed what kind of offer he is willing to accept to sell the club.

He did say in a statement that he rejected a consortium's offer of £40 million plus "limited future Premier League promotion expenses".

After becoming Xie Zhousan's boss, Changcili invested considerable amounts of money in ten and a half years, and seemed determined to offer a quote that far exceeds the market value that many people recognize.

Unless he is willing to lower the price, it is hard to imagine someone buying Xie Wednesday club.

Mandarich briefly expressed interest in returning but later decided not to participate, and John Flanagan, a member of a consortium in the United States, revealed that they had made two offers for the club, both of which were rejected, and Chaunciley did not make a "counter offer" to them.

It seems that bidders must be prepared to pay too high prices or come up with plans to make Chauncili interested.

Insiders of a consortium participating in the bidding said the negotiations with Changcili were the "most unique" negotiations he had experienced in his business career.

The Sheffield Wednesday boss had made it clear that he did not believe in the confidentiality agreement, which made it difficult for the parties to even take the first step in the negotiation process.

Players and coaches have a desire to go

As the training ground has not been completed, the players are currently training outside the club and do their best to prepare for the new season..

Some players have been training at the track and field at Hallam University in Sheffield, next to the venue is the venue for the five-a-side football matches that many fans have participated.

This makes the training scene for Sheffield Wednesday very chaotic, far from the many clubs that work in training camps or in their own facilities.

It is worth noting that some players have resigned because of their wage arrears, or expressed their intention to leave.

It is not clear what lineup Xie Wednesday will start the new season, especially as they are currently under a transfer ban.

Rolle led the team to 12th in the Championship last season, and although reports of his impromptu being poached by another club are untrue, the news of his impending resignation is accurate.

The talented German coach strongly hinted at the end of last season that he already knew he would leave Xie Wednesday. Understandably, he was eager to draw a line and move on, just like some players.

fans are desperate to leave Changxili

Facing the current situation, many Xie Wednesday fans are heartbroken and eager to end Changxili's "rule".

This week, the Fan Trust called on fans to boycott fan merchandise and retail, a call that appears to have received widespread support online, with many insisting they will not return to Hillsborough until the new boss is in place (Herd Wednesday home).

When seeing people expressing their support for the players, fans also told the staff that they would also be supported if they decide to strike due to salary issues.

Xie's fans usually don't show any demonstrations, with protests at the end of last season being the worst ever.

Xie has no preseason scheduled for Wednesday, but protests may erupt again when the team plays its next game.

A recent security advisory panel meeting discussed security issues in the Hillsborough North stand, which had been rumored to be closed.

Some fans have purchased season tickets for the stands and the club has not made any clarification on the matter.

"Enough, enough!" There was an uproar on social media, and the fans of Sheffield Wednesday were already unable to bear it. The fans of the Owls wanted to find a new boss as soon as possible.