Sheffield Wednesday’s Championship rivals to work under transfer restrictions Owls have experience of

Cardiff City - who count former Owls loanee Mark McGuinness among their number having called him back from a season-long loan at Hillsborough last season - survived after a long flirtation with relegation from the Championship last season, finishing four points and just one place outside the drop zone.

The south Wales club operated under what has become known as a ‘soft transfer embargo’ in the winter window thanks to complications around the payment of fees for the transfer of Emiliano Sala, an Argentine player who tragically died in a 2019 plane crash while in transit to Cardiff amid a move from French side Nantes.

It had been decreed by the EFL that the Bluebirds would face a three-window restriction of all transfer and loan fee payments, reducing their activity to that of freebies and free loans.

On appeal, that sanction has been reduced to two windows. Having already operated under those rules in the January 2023 window, this summer will be the final window of the sanction.

It’s a similar process to that suffered by Sheffield Wednesday in recent previous windows, though in very different circumstances.

In addition to the fee restriction for two windows, Cardiff will also make a payment toward the EFL’s legal costs and arbitrators’ fees.

An EFL statement reads in part: ‘Cardiff City had triggered the EFL’s ’30-day rule’ when it was late in making an initial payment to Nantes FC for the transfer of Emiliano Sala, having been ordered to do so following a lengthy legal process involving FIFA, the Court of Arbitration for Sport and then the Swiss Federal Tribunal.

‘The Club appealed to a Disciplinary Commission following an amendment to the League’s ’30-day rule’ in June 2023 after EFL Clubs agreed a right of appeal should be afforded to any Club in breach should they have genuine exceptional circumstances that ought to be considered by a Disciplinary Commission.

‘Upon reviewing the case, the Disciplinary Commission agreed with the EFL that the Club was 53 days late in making payment so should be sanctioned, but that there were also exceptional circumstances surrounding the case which should be considered.’