It's been a sorry story and Reading Football Club... MY football club... a club I grew up with, a club I've watched for decades from the terraces from the old Division 2, up to the dizzy heights of the Premier League and back down to League One (what used to be called Division 2) and now staring a consecutive relegation in the face and a real threat of extinction.

How did we get here?

On 3rd October 2023, little more than 3 months ago, I wrote this post about the troubles at Reading F.C. which included a brief synopsis about our current owner, Dai Yongge. When I wrote that post, it felt like a very depressing time and a lot has happened since then, so let's catch up...

The Club is Officially FOR SALE

This was music to every Reading fan's ears. The owner has got the message and he wants to sell. Was he planning to cut his losses and accept that he's incapable of running a football club properly?

He paid a reported £26m for us in 2016 and has seen us get relegated and destined to get relegated again under his ownership? What does he think it's worth? Will he accept a cut price deal?

Yes and no. (More no than yes.)

Yes in the respect that he has "invested" over £200m in the club. "Invested" being compared to a coin - on one side, he improved our training facilities. On the flip side, he bought some of the shittest players ever to wear the hoops.

So how much does he want?

£70m - £80m. For context, Championship leaders Leicester City cost £39m (in 2010) and Premier League Wolves cost £46m (in 2016),

NOBODY would pay £70m+ for a team destined for League Two... although there was reportedly interest which had made good progress. Fans became optimistic only for the owner to demand a higher price late on in negotiations.

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Nothing has been reported since other than confirmation that he still wishes to sell.

National Exposure and Protests

On 3rd December 2023, Reading travelled to non-league Eastleigh for an FA Cup 2nd Round tie. It's the first time we've competed in the early rounds for 20 or so years and the TV cameras were there, ready for a "giant-killing".

The TV crew got what they wanted - a fairly comfortable home win and an embarrassing exit. But that didn't matter. To the fans, that wasn't important. What was important was the opportunity to get a message across about the Ownership Problem in modern football.

In the 16th minute (indicative of the 16 points deducted since Dai Yongge took over), the match was halted as tennis balls and fake money flew onto the pitch.

Coverage by ITV was unequivocal in their support - explaining the situation in the build-up to the match with commentators and pundits in full support of the disruption.

This was the kind of exposure we needed.

These protests continued at every home game in the 16th minute but it was felt that something more needed to happen but before we get to that, let's talk about the EFL.

EFL (English Football League)

I don't know if saying that the EFL regulates the English League (below the Premier League) is accurate but they're the ones who impose points deductions. Which are generally administered as a result of club finances.

For failing to adhere to Financial Fair play (our revenue vastly exceeding our expenditure), we have received punishment. For failing to pay players and staff on time, we have received punishment. For failing to pay HMRC (our tax bills), we've had at least 2 winding-up orders.

Of these penalties, last season. we received a 6 point deduction. A crucial 6 points which was the difference between staying up and getting relegated.

Continuation in not paying players on time (or are tax bill) has seen an additional 4 points this season - enough to put us in the relegation zone.

Who are the punishments punishing? The owner couldn't give a fuck. It's certainly not changing his behaviour... so the EFL have finally learnt a lesson and in its most recent punishment, targetted the owner. Not the club, the owner and the owner alone. A paltry £20,000 (with another £50,000 suspended). Pocket change for a Billionaire and probably pointless as I seriously doubt he'll pay it... the punishment for that? A football ban. Will he care? No. It'll probably give him a nice excuse to stop paying anybody.

This is a long post already and I've barely scratched the surface... I didn't realise quite how much I have to say on the subject so my plan to write about the January transfer window can wait for another day. Let's get on to today's events...

Upping the Game

I mentioned earlier that fans wanted to do more... so today, in what is now the customary 16th minute, fans invaded the pitch.

It was supposed to be a short protest to get the point across and once the point had been made, many fans started to return to their seats. But not everybody and a sit down protest in the centre circle began.... which grew, and grew... until nearly an hour and a half later, the match was abandoned.

Coverage in the press has exploded... my phone buzzing with "were you there?" (I wasn't, I had a nice family day out which is what I'd planned to write about)...

The football world is noticing. Will the football world take action?

Watch this space.

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