Reading FC’s financial predicament is far from improving, as evidenced by yet another unsettling report from their Supporters’ Trust.
The Royals had already lost six points in League One in 23/24, and a further two point deduction is presently suspended. The team has experienced a variety of off-field problems in recent seasons.
The controversial owner Dai Yongge is reportedly trying to sell the Berkshire-based team, but there is still a long way to go before they emerge from their financial quagmire.
perusing the FC Supporters Trust newsletter
Late on Tuesday night, Supporters’ Trust at Reading (STAR), the organisation in charge of managing the club’s sale, spoke with former CEO Nigel Howe and provided an update to the supporters.
The text of the X message was, “STAR update meeting with Nigel Howe.” Not feeling very good today; things are progressing quietly, but time is running out.
As anticipated, there is a shortfall this month, and the club’s staff is working diligently to explore all available financing sources.
“As supporters, we must unite and provide the team with all of our might. Every point up for grabs is significant and might be the difference between our survival in league one and not.
The Select Car Leasing Stadium’s funding shortage is still concerning and might result in the team losing more points—their fourth in as many games this year.
The first came in March 2023 when they were docked six points for violating the profit and sustainability regulations, which essentially guaranteed their demotion to League One. Then, at the beginning of the current season, they were docked another point for failing to pay their players on schedule.
As Yongge persisted in withholding money for the struggling club, they lost another three points in September. Since the problem will continue until 2024, two more points were deducted from their total last month.
With a winding-up petition filed in June of last year, the Royals are barely surviving as a football team due to Yongge’s worrying decline, and it doesn’t appear that they will be able to raise any more money very soon.
The Chinese billionaire has repeatedly neglected to deposit the funds needed for players’ salaries into an account, which has caused the NFL to attempt—in vain—to disqualify him in November 2023.
A Reading FC sale update is provided by Bowen.
On Tuesday, Mark Bowen, the head of football operations, provided an update on the football club’s ongoing sale.
“The sale of the Club is moving along. There have been a lot of inquiries, most of which have been about the Club’s real estate holdings,” he stated.
“Whilst every proposal is considered, the primary focus for Nigel Howe and Mr Dai is to sell all assets and the Club inclusively – so we must be patient in allowing the correct process to be followed.”
For many associated with Reading FC, that provides a ray of hope. They will be praying that the sale and the accompanying financial upheaval are finalised before it’s too late.
The owner of Reading has been the subject of several demonstrations by the club’s supporters in previous seasons. One such protest involved storming the pitch to demand the cancellation of the team’s January match against Port Vale.
The Royals are fighting hard on the pitch to stay afloat in League One as a result of numerous point deductions, making their struggle there even more intense.
League One Table (As it stands March 6th) | ||||
Team | P | GD | Pts | |
17 | Reading | 36 | -4 | 39 |
18 | Burton Albion | 35 | -15 | 39 |
19 | Cambridge United | 35 | -13 | 38 |
20 | Shrewsbury Town | 36 | -25 | 38 |
21 | Cheltenham Town | 35 | -19 | 34 |
22 | Port Vale | 34 | -23 | 32 |
23 | Fleetwood Town | 36 | -20 | 31 |
24 | Carlisle | 35 | -31 | 23 |
The team led by Ruben Selles is presently five points clear of the drop zone, but they still have a game against 21st-place Chelsea coming up.
There is still a lot of fight left for this historic football team on the pitch, as demonstrated by their precious victory over Carlisle United, the bottom team. Hopefully, this winning streak will continue after Yongge takes over.
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