{"id":261631,"date":"2025-07-13T13:07:22","date_gmt":"2025-07-13T13:07:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/261631\/"},"modified":"2025-07-13T13:07:22","modified_gmt":"2025-07-13T13:07:22","slug":"francesco-guardascione-wants-sheffield-wednesday-takeover","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/261631\/","title":{"rendered":"Francesco Guardascione wants Sheffield Wednesday takeover"},"content":{"rendered":"

Sheffield Wednesday supporters, long starved of hope under Dejphon Chansiri\u2019s turbulent reign, finally have cause for optimism.<\/strong><\/p>\n

A takeover of the Owls<\/a> is reportedly close<\/a>, offering the prospect of much-needed renewal at Hillsborough.<\/p>\n

But amid whispers of billionaire American businessmen, another, far more troubling name has emerged.<\/p>\n

Why Francesco Guardascione\u2019s interest in Sheffield Wednesday should raise alarm bells<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Hillsborough<\/p>\n

BBC Radio Sheffield\u2019s Rob Staton reports that Francesco Guardascione is heading up a consortium<\/a> pursuing a purchase of the club.<\/p>\n

It is a name fans must get to grips with quickly – not because it inspires hope, but because it demands caution.<\/p>\n

While Owls<\/a> fans are right to yearn for the end of the Chansiri era, replacing one chaotic owner with another could plunge the club even deeper into turmoil.<\/p>\n

Guardascione is no stranger to football takeovers. He is also no stranger to failing them<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Over the past two years, he has been linked with at least four or five acquisition attempts<\/a> involving lower league clubs in Italy and Spain. Each one has ended the same way: with deals collapsing due to financial irregularities, specifically failed payments.<\/p>\n

Take S.S. Turris Calcio, for example. In January 2024, Guardascione was announced<\/a> as the club\u2019s new majority shareholder, supposedly bringing an end to Antonio Colantonio\u2019s seven-year ownership.<\/p>\n

Yet by February, the \u20ac350,000 payment due as part of the deal had not arrived<\/a>. The bank transfer never landed. The deal collapsed, and Turris remained with Colantonio.<\/p>\n

A similar story played out in Spain, where Guardascione\u2019s group, Maraja Holding, appeared set to take control of Sabadell FC. Initial reports were bullish – aspirations of La Liga football were even floated<\/a> – but again, the money never came.<\/p>\n

The bank transfers didn\u2019t clear, and Sabadell issued a statement<\/a> confirming no agreement had been reached. This isn\u2019t a one-off, it\u2019s a pattern – and it is disturbingly reminiscent of Wednesday\u2019s<\/a> current plight.<\/p>\n

Under Chansiri, the club has been crippled by missed payments, transfer restrictions, unpaid wages, and general financial disorder<\/a>. Swapping one unsteady hand for another with an even shakier track record would not be progress – it would be a disaster.<\/p>\n

Guardascione\u2019s business background is in hospitality and restaurants. His football credentials consist primarily of failed deals, murky finances, and unmet promises.<\/p>\n

Football writer Matt Thomas notes Guardascione\u2019s history of collapsing takeovers<\/a> without explanation. Reports point to failed bank transfers, missing payments, and confusion about ownership.<\/p>\n

There are further causes for concern. His son, Daniel Guardascione, has been involved in alleged football-related controversies<\/a> involving fake contracts.<\/p>\n

Sheffield Wednesday must avoid another Chansiri-style ownership disaster<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"Dejphon<\/p>\n

It is critical that the professionals overseeing the sale of Sheffield Wednesday<\/a> exercise the utmost diligence.<\/p>\n

The EFL\u2019s fit and proper person test, already widely criticised for its historic failures, must not allow a repeat of the Chansiri experience.<\/p>\n

With an incumbent football regulator now watching, this is precisely the sort of ownership bid that must be scrutinised in the strongest possible terms.<\/p>\n

The club is in desperate need of new leadership and fans are right to hope for brighter days – but they must not allow that hope to blind them to the very real risks posed by figures like Guardascione.<\/p>\n

Wednesday<\/a> need stability, transparency, and proper governance – not another ill-fated experiment with financial smoke and mirrors.<\/p>\n

Reports suggest other, more credible bidders are in the frame, including US billionaire Tilman Fertitta<\/a> and former Crystal Palace owner John Textor.<\/a> These are the kinds of names that may offer a genuine reset – Guardascione, by contrast, seemingly represents the same old chaos in a new suit.<\/p>\n

Owls<\/a> fans deserve better, and the next chapter in this great club\u2019s history must not begin with a repeat of the very mistakes they are still trying to recover from.<\/p>\n

\t\t<\/p>\n

\"Donald<\/p>\n

\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

Related<\/p>\n

\t\t
\n\t\t\tWhat is Tilman Fertitta’s link to Donald Trump as Sheffield Wednesday takeover edges closer
\n\t\t<\/a><\/p>\n

Takeover talk concerning Sheffield Wednesday is centring on the American billionaire Tilman Fertitta, who’s described as an ‘ally’ of Donald Trump. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Sheffield Wednesday supporters, long starved of hope under Dejphon Chansiri\u2019s turbulent reign, finally have cause for optimism. A…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":261632,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8817],"tags":[748,393,4884,1620,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-261631","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-sheffield","8":"tag-britain","9":"tag-england","10":"tag-great-britain","11":"tag-sheffield","12":"tag-uk","13":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/114846082382815238","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/261631","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=261631"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/261631\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/261632"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=261631"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=261631"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=261631"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}