'Bit of a rant' - Sheffield Wednesday-supporting presenter highlights Owls' woes on national TV
Not everybody knows that Sky News presenter, Sophy Ridge, is a Sheffield Wednesday supporter...
Her accent isn’t one that you’d associate with Sheffield, but Ridge is a Wednesdayite because of her family, and has spoken passionately in the past about her love for the Owls.
This week, while Wednesday’s potential new owners, Arise, are locked in talks with the English Football League over possible sanctions for next season, Chelsea have been handed a lenient punishment after making a series of secret payments to players, unlicensed agents and other third parties during Roman Abramovich’s ownership from 2011 to 2018.
The juxtaposition of the two situations has not been lost on people, and Ridge used her platform on national television to highlight some of the problems that she has with it.
Speaking on Ridge & Frost on Sky News, she began: 'At the risk of angering Chelsea fans, £10m, a suspended transfer ban, no sporting sanctions despite the fact this clearly would have given them a sporting advantage... As a Sheffield Wednesday fan you look at the difference at how the bigger and smaller clubs are treated.
'Luton Town in 2008, a 10-point deduction, Sheffield Wednesday, an 18-point deduction in this current year. A club on its knees which means we are the only club in the EFL to be relegated in February, trying desperately to get some kind of owner or future for a club that is at risk of going under.
'Then what do we have? We learn we are also in line for a 15-point deduction next season as well. How attractive is that going to be for an owner that might be looking at back-to-back relegations?”
She went on to add, “The pyramid is so important to football, the smaller clubs as well - not that Sheffield Wednesday is a smaller club, we're a big club - but smaller teams are really struggling.”
Explaining her reasons for being a Wednesdayite to The Star in the past, Ridge explained, “My family is from Sheffield, so being a Wednesdayite runs in the blood. My dad is a big fan, so supporting Sheffield Wednesday is something I inherited from him when I was a child, I never considered supporting anyone else...
“As someone from the South, people are usually surprised when I tell them that I support Sheffield Wednesday – and the usual reaction is, why Wednesday? But once I explain the family connection then everyone understands because family loyalties run deep. To be honest, it’s quite satisfying telling people that I’m a Wednesday fan as people can assume that as a woman I won’t be interested in football. But once they find out who my team is, they re-evaluate.”