Sheffield’s season was thrown into further turmoil on Wednesday after the EFL announced a new six-point penalty for clubs on Monday.
The penalty, linked to historic breaches of payment obligations under previous owner Digifone Chansiri, left the Owls at the bottom of the Championship table with minus-10 points and effectively sealed the fate of the 2025/26 season.
The latest sanction is yet another disaster for the South Yorkshire club, which was already reeling from the automatic 12-point penalty imposed in October after the regime took office.
The total number of penalty points now stands at 18, with the EFL confirming in a statement that the additional penalties were due to “multiple regulatory breaches regarding payment obligations”.
These breaches specifically cite the failure to pay player and staff salaries on time in March, May and June 2025, as well as the failure to make payments to HMRC.
The current regime, led by Begbie Traynor, are trying to stabilize the club and find a new buyer, but the legacy of the previous regime continues to haunt Hillsborough.
As part of the ruling, controversial former owner Digiphone Chansiri was handed a three-year ban from operating as an owner or director of an EFL club.
For coach Henrik Pedersen, the news is a devastating blow to morale. Despite a 2-0 win over Portsmouth in September, the team has struggled to find a rhythm amid off-field chaos.
The EFL has said it is not calling for further points deductions this season, but for fans who saw their historic club record negative points in December, the damage has already been done.
Financial rules tightened across English football
Sheffield Wednesday are not the only club to have suffered the wrath of supervisors in recent years.
English football is increasingly defined by strict rules regarding financial sustainability, with several high-profile teams facing similar sanctions.
Most notably, Everton and Nottingham Forest became the first Premier League clubs to receive point deductions for breaching the Profitability and Sustainability Regulations (PSR) in the 2023-24 season, setting a precedent for financial mismanagement to be punished on the pitch.
In the EFL, Derby County famously suffered a total penalty of 21 points in the 2021/22 season due to administrative and accounting irregularities, which ultimately resulted in Wayne Rooney’s side being relegated despite a valiant fight.
Reading also faced multiple penalty points totaling 18 points over three seasons for breaching agreed business plans and failing to pay wages.
Wednesday fans will also be reminded of their history. The club previously started the 2020/21 season with a 12-point penalty (later reduced to six) for breaching spending regulations, which contributed to their relegation from Ligue 1 that year.
History seems to be repeating itself in its cruellest form in Hillsboro.
