Sheffield Wednesday fans made their feelings clear by staging a protest against owner Dejphon Chansiri before kick-off in Sunday’s Championship opener at Leicester. 

Chansiri is facing growing calls to quit, with a deepening financial crisis seeing players and staff go unpaid on time for the third month in a row. 

Hundreds gathered before kick-off at the King Power Stadium to vent their anger over months of financial turmoil, waving placards quoting Chansiri’s own promise – ‘If the fans want me to sell, I’ll sell’ – alongside: ‘Stick to your word, Dejphon Chansiri.’

Above them, a chartered aircraft circled the stadium with a banner – ‘Dejphon Chansiri Out’.

Once the Wednesday fans took their seats, they unveiled several banners in a bold display of defiance. 

Sheffield Wednesday fans made their feelings clear by staging a protest against owner Dejphon Chansir

a chartered aircraft circled the stadium with a banner – ‘Dejphon Chansiri Out’ before kickoff 

When the match began, vast sections of the away support were missing from the stands as part of a co-ordinated five-minute walk-in

One read ‘SWFC For Sale – Enough Is Enough’, another demanded ‘Chansiri Out’, while a third declared ‘Chansiri = Poison! Keep Fighting SWFC’, making their feelings painfully clear to the club’s owner.

Leicester fans rose to applaud the 3,300 travelling supporters from Yorkshire, in a powerful display of solidarity between the two sets of supporters.

The scenes followed one of the most turbulent summers in the club’s history.

Wednesday were charged by the EFL after failing to pay players and staff on time in four of the past five months 

The club remain under a transfer spending ban until January 2027, unable to pay fees for signings or loans. 

Earlier this week, Wednesday’s financial issues, including delayed wage payments, were partially eased by a Premier League solidarity payment.

Daily Mail Sport understands there is a belief within the EFL that Chansiri is trying to sell although discussions are believed to have taken place with advisors, rather than the Thai businessman himself.

Should a buyer be found, the EFL is ready to speed up its approval process.In a lengthy statement, the EFL spoke of its concerns and frustrations over the ‘developing challenges’ at the club.

‘The League wants to see a strong, stable and competitive Sheffield Wednesday, and for that to happen we are clear that the current owner needs either to fund the Club to meet its obligations or make good on his commitment to sell to a well-funded party, for fair market value – ending the current uncertainty and impasse,’ it read.

The scenes followed one of the most turbulent summers in the club’s history

Once the Wednesday fans took their seats, they unveiled several banners

Daily Mail Sport understands there is a belief within the EFL that Chansiri is trying to sell

‘We continue to pursue options available to us to resolve the current challenges, and to that end the League is currently in advanced discussions with Mr Chansiri’s legal advisors on formalising a process around divestment of his shareholding in the Club.

‘The EFL Board met on Wednesday morning to receive a comprehensive update and, following recent speculation, the League can confirm that there are no restrictions on the Club starting the season on Sunday as planned.

’The statement also gave an update on disciplinary proceedings against Wednesday for the myriad of financial issues.‘The Club has now surpassed 30 days of late payments for the year beginning 1 July 2025. As a result, the Club’s fee restriction has been extended to the end of the winter transfer window in the 2026/27 Season.

‘The EFL can also confirm that the Club was placed under a further embargo for non-payment of players.’