Football club hits back at English Football League in ground sale dispute
Sheffield Wednesday Football Club has launched a claim against the English Football League for “acting unlawfully” by charging the club over the sale of its ground to owner Dejphon Chansiri.
The club sold Hillsborough for about £60m, with the deal leading to charges against it for trying to avoid breaking spending rules.
A statement released by the club this week said: “We have sought to engage with the EFL in order to agree a sensible procedure to resolve the dispute arising from the fact that the club relied upon representations from the EFL in relation to the sale transaction which is the subject of the charges.
“The club regrets that the EFL has so far refused to agree to the club being permitted to make its claim, and refused to agree to a sensible procedure for dealing with the dispute.
“We will continue to take such steps as considered necessary to protect and enforce the club’s rights against the EFL and to protect it from unlawful action by the EFL affecting the club and the performance of its team.
“The club will not make any further comment at this stage.”
The EFL charges, confirmed last month, relate to both how and when Hillsborough was sold and its inclusion in the club’s 2017-18 accounts.
An EFL spokesman told the BBC: “As a result of the disciplinary proceedings announced last month, it would clearly be inappropriate to provide any additional comment on matters linked to our comprehensive investigation other than to reiterate that, following the review of a large number of documents provided by the club – some of those seen for the first time – evidence came to light to justify the multiple charges of misconduct.”
Wednesday has denied the charge, which will be considered by a disciplinary commission. The club has previously argued it has proof that the EFL gave authorisation for the sale of the ground.
