"The major concern" - Reading FC: Grim takeover reality underlined | OneFootball

Football League World's Reading fan pundit fears the Royals could soon enter administration

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more...

Reading FC are a football club currently on their knees, and are suffering from the ownership of Dai Yongge, who bought the club back in 2017.

Yongge's financial mismanagement saw the Royals relegated from the Championship to League One at the end of the 2022/23 season, courtesy of a six-point deduction which was imposed upon the club due to the owner's failure to meet the EFL's profit and sustainability limits.

Sadly, such a development was nothing new for a Royals fanbase who had already seen their club docked six points in November 2021 for exceeding the EFL's permitted loss limit.

The Berkshire outfit subsequently finished 17th in League One last season, following yet another points penalty, but remarkably sit ninth in the third tier at present, despite continually suffering amid Yongge's failing ownership.

Royals supporters are demanding a change in owner, while the club confirmed last month that they have entered a period of exclusivity with a prospective purchaser.

Bleak Reading FC admission made

With the Royals' ongoing struggles in mind, Football League World asked our Reading fan pundit, Johnny Hunt, what concern he had for his club ahead of the January transfer window.

He said: "The major concern ahead of the January transfer window is 'will we still have a club?'

"The ongoing issues around the ownership dominates everything at the minute.

"It's all gone quiet, since it's gone to exclusivity with some possible owner.

"Hopefully that's a good thing, that things are getting done, but time seems to be moving on.

"It's been over a year since the club's been up for sale, and we're still no closer to announcing a new owner, and that's going to be a huge impact for what can happen in January, which could possibly be administration.

"If we don't get an owner, there's an impact then on the transfer window.

"If we do have a new owner, then hopefully, actually, we can start to do some business, probably around the loans market, and maybe a couple of freebies, obviously still not able to spend money on players.

"But it's just everything with Reading at the moment depends on what happens with the ownership, what that can have for our club is kind of unnerving, to say the least."

Unfortunately, Johnny's fears around the club in terms of the potential of administration are very real concerns, as the Royals continue to suffer from Yongge's financial mismanagement.

If the exclusivity talks between the Berkshire outfit and their prospective buyer do not yield a takeover, then it could have grave consequences for a club who were formed in 1871, and have gone on to win trophies such as the third tier title in 1994, as well as the Championship title in 2012.

In recent years, we have seen clubs such as Bury and Macclesfield expelled from the Football League due to financial issues imposed upon the club by failed owners.

Sadly, in the wake of such events, Royals supporters must also fear for the future of their club, unless their struggles are brought to a halt in the near future.