'Our role is integral to football's future' - football oversight chief the new chairman
Sheffield Wednesday's current difficulties represent a a "serious issue" and the new football authority is looking to gain the ability to look into club affairs in similar circumstances, the newly appointed chairman the official has announced.
During an extensive discussion, Kogan, who was appointed on Monday, showed understanding towards the club's followers.
The chairman convened with four supporter groups representing the South Yorkshire club recently.
The football club have been facing challenges both on and off the pitch in the current year, with the club failing to pay players on time on several different times, including in last month.
"Clearly Sheffield Wednesday has been a major concern for the league and a major challenge for the sport," the chairman stated.
"Wednesday stands as one of the historic institutions for the English game and this week we have met fan representatives.
"Our aim is to acquire the ability... which will enable us to take Sheffield Wednesday - and other clubs brought to our attention if they warrant scrutiny and addressed."
Financial Struggles and Proprietorship Status
Wednesday's embattled owner the Thai businessman suggested earlier this year he would be willing to sell up at their home ground, but he has failed to complete a sale with potential new owners.
Delayed salary payments on time in earlier this year resulted in restrictions being imposed by the football authorities in June, preventing the club from carrying out any recruitment activities for the subsequent signing windows, although that restriction was lifted in late summer.
Authority's Position
The chairman stated: "Our role exists to serve the fans of Sheffield Wednesday, Bury or any football club where fans are dedicated to a local institution that has represented their community in multiple situations.
"I completely understand the club's situation, as I do for each organization that over recent decades have faced collapse, or approached financial ruin, for factors unrelated to the followers."
When asked if the regulator could force an chairman to relinquish a club if they are judged inappropriate, the regulator answered: "When asking whether 'would we intervene in the final instance?', the answer is once we assemble the facts and know what's going on, we will."
But the chairman emphasized that forcing owners to sell clubs would be treated as a "last resort" and the authority would rather to collaborate with owners.
"The final option we would consider is start getting involved with an specific team, an specific proprietor, without being in a position to cooperate with that proprietor to address the problems affecting the organization and the chairman's encountering," Kogan said.
"In actuality, when you look back over the history of the sport, over the last 20 or 30 years there have been certain proprietors, few in number, but particular people who have shown negligence in the way which they've been managing their clubs and ultimately refuse to accept accountability for the long-term prospects."
Sheffield Wednesday supporters have been demonstrating against owner Dejphon Chansiri this season
'Mistakes could erase significant advances'
The chairman convened with delegates from multiple organizations to lay out the remit of the oversight body this week and maintained it represented a "proactive meeting" with a "substantial involvement" from the National League to the Premier League.
"This position carries substantial significance, because if we get it wrong, if the sport makes errors, the extraordinary progress that's been made might evaporate incredibly quickly," Kogan said.
"And that's what nobody wants in the realm of domestic football is a huge success story - we must maintain momentum.
"Considerable investment entering the sport and has been invested for the past two decades, because there are no assurances it will continue to come into football, which is one of the reasons why I think we have to maintain a focused outlook on challenges and obviously, of the immediate future."
Premier League Concerns
The Premier League opposed the establishment of an oversight body because of concerns about detrimental effects on the elite division's competitive balance, but the regulator stated: "I completely endorse the prosperity and expansion as an financial organization of the elite league.
"Being fully aware of the worry about compromising the division as a high-quality offering of England. But concurrently, if you engage with division representatives after this week's discussion, they would have had a high level of reassurance -and, actually, they have been informing us confidentially they have a significant confidence."
Partisan Associations
The regulator remains subject to a "full inquiry" by the Commissioner for Public Appointments after he revealed he contributed money to the Labour Party in recent years.
The chairman donated money to Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport the minister's leadership bid, along with that of the government leader.
"I have fully disclosed my past party membership [with Labour], and that political affiliation came to an end the day the official body endorsed my nomination," the regulator explained.
"I currently have no participation in any form of political activity."